The Rochester Regional Library Council is a multi-type library network serving libraries and library systems in the five-county Rochester region – Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Wayne and Wyoming counties. RRLC is a member of the Empire State Library Network, which is comprised of the nine regional library councils in the state of New York. RRLC provides programs and services that enhance member library cooperation, service delivery and resource sharing. RRLC serves as a forum for the unified representation of library interests and helps members achieve together what could not be achieved separately. The unique role of RRLC is that it is the entity through which its members can coordinate and relate their diverse activities to create a more effective service network to improve information access for the people of the Rochester region and beyond. RRLC members include all types of libraries: academic, public, school (K-12), corporate, non-profit, and medical.
RRLC Vision Statement
The Rochester Regional Library Council is universally recognized as the benchmark library network, improving access for all to the benefits of an enriched information environment. All members of the community have access to information from the libraries in our five-county area and beyond and access to the training, equipment and data to fulfill their information needs in a timely, convenient and cost-effective manner. The member libraries and systems work jointly with RRLC staff to develop and implement the information delivery programs that make this possible. Through partnerships within the private and public sectors, new tools are transparently integrated into the network, linking all community members to ideas, information and knowledge in all forms. The RRLC staff facilitates this process, working with libraries and systems to ensure that sufficient resources are available and that their effectiveness is maximized.
RRLC Committment and Action for Racial Justice
RRLC believes in a society free of systematic oppression, discrimination, and racism. We believe in the core values of libraries as defined by the American Library Association: access to information; confidentiality/privacy; democracy; equity, diversity and inclusion; intellectual freedom; and social responsibility. We stand with Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and are committed to opening up space for discussion and self-reflection among our members.
To that end, we will:
- Examine the makeup of our Board of Trustees, identify ways to better represent our community on the Board, and seek out voices and points of view that have been systematically oppressed
- Examine systematic and structural oppression and racism as it relates to library services and policies
- Hold space for discussion and facilitate personal growth, learning, and self-reflection among our members
- Prioritize digital collections & grant projects focused on BIPOC
We ask that you share any and all resources & tools you have found that may helpful in learning about systematic racism and oppression of BIPOC communities, encouraging discussion & self-reflection, and cultivating an antiracist mindset.
Submit resources here.
Selected Resources:
Books
Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates
The New Jim Crow, Michelle Alexander
How to be an Antiracist, Ibram X. Kendi
So You Want to Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo
The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America, Richard Rothstein
Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, Ibram X. Kendi
The Fire Next Time, James Baldwin
Invisible No More: Police Violence Against Black Women and Women of Color, Andrea J. Ritchie
Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches, Audre Lorde
Films
The 13th [Netflix]
Podcasts
Code Switch [NPR]
The Diversity Gap