Abstract

Gender inclusion is not an optional part of library work—at least, it isn’t if we want all those “Libraries Are For Everyone” signs to be true. And yet, the reality is that many libraries fail the most basic aspects of gender inclusion for patrons, employees, or both. Even in libraries where Trans 101 trainings do occur and are well received, or where the baseline of knowledge among employees is relatively high, the question remains: What now?

This article intends to answer that question. Very broadly speaking, gender inclusion work in libraries means sustained action to ensure that some patrons and employees do not have worse experiences than others based on their gender. What this actually looks like in practice depends on your professional specialty, institution size and type, the tools and spaces and platforms your library uses, state and local legislation around trans and gender diverse people, and more.

This article offers practical strategies for how to meaningfully integrate gender inclusion into library work. Since the specific actions vary widely due to many different factors, these strategies are intended to guide individuals in a way that makes sense for their role rather than to tell people exactly what to do.

Gender inclusion is a core element of all library work that hopes to avoid excluding people. Everyone in this field needs to do it. There are no exceptions. This article is for you.

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

6-4-2025

Notes/Citation Information

Krueger, S.G. (2025). How to Gender Include. Practical Academic Librarianship: The International Journal of the SLA Academic Division, 15(1), 24-40. https://pal-ojs-tamu.tdl.org/pal/article/view/7212

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