On this episode, Raivynn Smith discusses early experiences in social movement organizing, approaches to campus and community organizing, as well as the role of staff in supporting student activism. Raivynn also shares aspirations to engage in social justice in library and information science by fostering community access to information, promoting inclusive and diverse representation, and creating space for communities to engage social change in local libraries.
Amber Williams:
Hi, welcome to PodCask, stories of community action and social change in the real world. And if you didn't catch that before that's PodCask, as in the undergraduate minor here in the school of social work. This is an ongoing series of interviews that feature the diverse stories of Cask alumni who share highs, lows, and other revelations about community action and social change after college. Each interview captures unique stories about some of their earliest memories Casking, how certain lessons learned carry with them, or have been challenged or contradicted over time. Today's interview features Raviynn Smith hosted by me, Amber: Assistant Director and faculty here in the minor. Checkout Raviynn's story.
Amber Williams:
All right. Hello everyone. And welcome back to our Cask alumni podcast. Today, I am really excited to welcome Raviynn Smith as our interviewee and Cask alumni Extraordinaire, who's here to share a bit about their story and what they've been up to. So, Raviynn, if you want to introduce a little bit about yourself, pronouns, where you're from, background. Share with us.
Raviynn Smith:
Awesome. Well thank you for having me. Like Amber mentioned, my name is Raviynn Smith. I use they, them, theirs pronouns, and I'm from Cincinnati, Ohio.
Amber Williams:
Woo, woo!
Raviynn Smith:
I know right? Woo, woo.
Amber Williams:
Sin City.
Raviynn Smith:
Not Columbus, not Cleveland, Cincinnati. And right now, I am a program specialist [inaudible] partnerships at the Spectrum Center, which is University of Michigan's LGBTQ Center. I went to Michigan as an undergrad. I was a transfer student, graduated in 2017 with my major in psychology and my minor in Cask, of course. And yeah, had a really cool experience of getting to both, just be in a lot of classes with Cask, which were definitely some of my favorite. But I also got to work as an undergraduate student with the Cask Minor on some of their communications work, which is also really cool.
Raviynn Smith:
And I've taken a lot of those skills into my job now and plan to take a lot of them into my future jobs. So, yeah.
Amber Williams:
Yes. So you've given us a really just awesome capture of everything that you've been up to from undergrad up through now. But I'm wondering if we can step back all the way from back in the day. Talk a little bit about why you came to the University of Michigan and where social justice and social change kind of came into your mindset as someone who was just transitioning from moving from Cincinnati into Ann Arbor, Michigan and exploring this work on campus.
Raviynn Smith:
Yeah. So, I had a really interesting journey through undergrad. So, I was homeschooled as a teenager, which is where I kind of started doing more, I guess, volunteer work. So, I volunteered a lot as a teenager. And I think that was sort of a little bit of my first foray into social change, social justice. Around 14, I started listening to a lot of NPR, probably more NPR than any 14 year olds would be listening to. For example, I remember sitting and listening to when the Arab Spring happened, and sitting in my room listening to it happen, and it was just wild.
Raviynn Smith:
And so, I think that just really helped me have more of a world view of things that were happening, and the ways in which people were taking agency over their own selves and their lives and their communities. And so, kind of trying to translate that into my own live in a very teenagery way, right? So as much as any teenager can.
Raviynn Smith:
I went to college at 17, dropped out of college at 18. It's all good. But that actually ended up being a really cool part of my life in the sense that I got to get involved with Occupy Wall Street, or it was Occupy Cincinnati's version Occupy Wall Street, which is very interesting experience. The whole experience was just wild. I was just kind of honestly there watching a lot of things happen. And I got to have a say in the formulation of some of the ways our camp was set up. And it's funny, because one of my biggest concerns was how we communicated. Our camp had a really poor communication system. People would show up and be like, "How do I help?" And there was no one to figure out how to get them to where they needed to go. So, there's just these people who are showing up, who are interested in being a part of this, but had no guidance in how to.
Raviynn Smith:
So, I was like, "We need to have a table set up where people can come. We need to have a board where different committees can post that they have needs. We need to have some kind of way to communicate what is happening here, than just chaos." Because that's how it was coming across, as chaos. And so, I think just that experience, that and getting to work at a library afterwards, just kind of helped me understand and the ways in which communities and communication and resources all are really intertwined, which I think, I mean, it made a lot of sense why my advisor when I came was like, "I think this minor would be a really good fit for you based on your application." And I was like, "Yeah, I think so too."
Raviynn Smith:
Because it was just, in coming to Michigan, learned a lot about sort of the theories and a lot of the history of social change work that I haven't seen examples of. But they didn't really have a place to sort of set it in within history, right? So, it's like, "I know these things are happening over here and over here." But I couldn't look back into history and be like, "Okay, this has happened before, and here's what folks learned from it. And apply it now." That wasn't really something that I knew, and so I kind of gained that here.
Raviynn Smith:
It also was really interesting to come to Ann Arbor because it's really white and it's really wealthy. And that was just a really big change for me from coming from Cincinnati. In some ways it was good because even though Michigan is really white, it still has, in a way, more diversity than Cincinnati in the sense that Cincinnati is very much white and black, almost 50/50 actually. Where here, it's at least you get folks who are coming from other countries who identify as Muslim or who identify as Latinex.
Raviynn Smith:
And so, just getting to interact with folks who were different in those ways, or at least interact with other people of color, it was really nice. But definitely the class differences here was really interesting and rocky. And so, I think that also, it was nice to be able to look at social movements and to look at the history of community organizing and see myself there, even if I didn't see myself on campus.
Amber Williams:
Yeah. Yeah, and it's really powerful, just sort of hearing your story about sort of graduating from high school and then, moving into college. And leaving college, and moving into participating in what was a social movement, but specifically situated in Cincinnati. And I know there's so much that you shared in your journey, just transitioning from that period of life into engaging at an undergraduate level. But it's almost like in your journey around social change that you got involved in something and then, sort of wanted to step back and really contextualize the history, the meaning, the frameworks, the theories and all of that.
Amber Williams:
And so, I guess in stepping back a bit further from that, I'd like to hear a bit about how did you end up with Occupy Wall Street? How did you find this collective? How did you get involved? How did you even intuit that there were issues in the movement, within the chapter that you were in? Tell us a little bit more about how you just got there.
Raviynn Smith:
Yeah. So, oh gosh. I mean, part of me, it's like-
Amber Williams:
[inaudible 00:07:11].
Raviynn Smith:
Right. And part of me is like, "I don't even know." I remember, honestly, posts on Facebook. So, I remember when Occupy Wall Street started to kind of happen and it was like, what? September of, God, whatever year that was. 2011, I think? And so, I remember listening to NPR, of course, and watching these things happen on Wall Street in New York City and just kind of feeling some of that disillusionment.
Amber Williams:
Yeah, disillusionment.
Raviynn Smith:
As a young person, and this is coming off of the recession and coming out of the family where we were working class and I had seen my family get the short end of the stick a lot of the time, right? And talking to other people who are my age, and I mean, at the time I was working at Target. And so, kind of just seeing the world I was kind of existing in, and knowing that for me, this might be a temporary moment. But for a lot of people that this is their permanent setup. Right?
Raviynn Smith:
And just feeling a sense of, from the movement, I liked the message. I liked the message of this is enough. We're done. It was very much seemed a collective. There was people saying, "Well, there's a million different people saying a million different things." But I didn't feel that. I felt like there was a centralized message. But then, there was people saying, "We can have a centralized message, but also have people with different identities that have different experiences, and also because of that, different priorities." But it doesn't mean that any of those priorities are less than. We're just not taking anything less than you addressing all of our priorities.
Raviynn Smith:
And I was like, "Yeah, we should demand more of our government. We should demand more of our economy and have it serve all of us and not some of us." And so, I think the message of just the general Wall Street movement kind of pulled me. And so, there was sort of a big rally in downtown Cincinnati and I went and it kind of went from a rally to a march. And I just kind of went along and then, I was there. And as people were just leaving the march and leaving the rally, there was sort of a handful of folks who just left who were like, "We want to make this a thing." And I was like, "Yeah, okay. I'm down." I mean, I was 18 years old and I was only working at Target. I really didn't have anything else to do.
Raviynn Smith:
And I think I was just looking for something to be involved in that kind of took me out of myself a little bit because things had just been rough for a little while. And so, I just think, I needed to feel part of something in a way, but something that spoke to my values. I think over time it got a little, like I said, chaotic, right? And so, my life changed, the movement kind of changed. So, that's when I took a step back. So, I just kept coming back. We had meetings, I would go to those and my mom didn't let me sleep overnight. I will say that right now, for clarification.
Amber Williams:
There were some boundaries, an accountability system.
Raviynn Smith:
Yes. My mother was not, she was like, "No, you're not doing that." Which looking back, makes sense. You don't want your 18 year old child sleeping overnight in a park downtown. But I was there as much as I could be. And I, at some point, got a chance to lead one of the marches as well. That was really cool to get to device the route and I also got to pick the chants that we did. Yeah, and I think some of that involvement also led, later on, to me being involved in some Black Lives Matter protests as well, which was really interesting.
Raviynn Smith:
So, I had a lot more hands-on protests experience than I ever had here, which is why I love it because the way Ann Arbor came across to me was like that kind of place. But, I did so much more in Cincinnati and it's just a very interesting experience.
Amber Williams:
Yeah. Why do you think that is?
Raviynn Smith:
I think Ann Arbor talks the talk, but doesn't walk the walk all the time. And that's not to say that there's not some really... There's some really badass organizers in this city. I'm luckily to be Facebook friends with some. I'm lucky to just know some through other friends. And I think once you get involved in social justice, honestly in any city, the circle is not that big. So even if you don't meet someone, you hear their name. Their name has passed through the grape vine, right? But I do think as a whole, the city oftentimes says like, "This is something that we want." And then, there's no real movement behind it, right?
Raviynn Smith:
Like okay, where's the people power? Where's the funds? Where's the transparency? And I think, because of it being a college town, it just adds a different kind of dimension, right? There's this sort of, there's student campus activism. And then, there's just Ann Arbor activism. Those are two different things, and sometimes they overlap, but a lot of times they don't. And so, just that didn't really happen in Cincinnati. There's universities in Cincinnati, but there wasn't really that break off. And so, I'm not sure if that's just because Michigan is such a huge part of what makes Ann Arbor, Ann Arbor.
Raviynn Smith:
But like I said, a lot of the, especially later on in the protests I was involved in, were Black Lives Matter protests. And as a student, I was involved in some race-based actions for sure. But as, just a non-student, but a person who lives in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, it feels like there's less opportunities, or at least less, maybe I have just not found the right place to kind of settle that down there. So, if they exist, hit me up. I'd love to get involved. I can bring whatever I have.
Amber Williams:
Yeah, and I appreciate your observation there. And especially the difference between campus organizing and Ann Arbor organizing. And I feel that there are many people who would likely agree with you on that, knowing that this university really touts itself around student activism and the efforts of students over time. And kind of the history of how that's all sort of panned out and just thinking about the infrastructure of the institution in ways that that's also influenced higher education policy, but that's institutional.
Amber Williams:
So, what are these other kind of community level social movements or forms of organizing that happened and how do we tap into those networks and really connect and bridge relationships with students? And it's incredible just hearing your transition from being a young person, transitioning from Cincinnati to Ann Arbor and seeing the difference in what political organizing and engagement looked like. And so, just appreciate your reflections on that. And again, I think there are lots of people who would definitely agree with what that means in practice too.
Raviynn Smith:
Yeah, student activism on campus is amazing. And it's so interesting the way the university, like you kind of said, touts that a little bit. You look at like the connector, right? There's all these billboards with these different things or the new Trotter, there's these billboards with the different student movements. And if you look back on those times, I highly doubt the university was as receptive at the time, but now has sort of used these images and this movement to say like, "Oh, look!" I don't know, it's just a very interesting way to approach that and how the differences between the university views the ways activism has shaped the school, and the current activism, and their response to it.
Amber Williams:
Yeah.
Raviynn Smith:
So, it's very interesting.
Amber Williams:
Well, I wonder kind of in the same vein of activism and what that's looked like in your own experience, how has that transition to someone who's now a staff member on campus, working out of the Spectrum Center, and really engaging a number of student activists who are here on campus, how do you blend in your own sort of identity and experiences around that? But from this now staff lens on campus.
Raviynn Smith:
Yes. So, yeah, me and some other folks on staff talked about this a lot because it's an interesting transition and there's a fair number of people who come, end up working on staff or as faculty who previously protesting the university. That is not that uncommon. I think for me, one of the things was recognizing positionality, right? So, especially my first couple of months at the Spectrum Center was being able to separate myself and be like, "I'm not a student anymore. And my job is now what I kind of looked up to other staff members for." So, that access to resources to carry their message forward as someone who does have kind of a privileged voice in the university sense, of being able to reach higher administration, sometimes, depends, right? I'm no director.
Raviynn Smith:
It was really important for me to still keep my own identity as my values and the work I wanted to do within social justice, whatever that looked like. And let me make it clear right now, means that I'm not going out and protesting every week. I currently don't really identify as an organizer, just because I don't feel like I'm doing that same kind of work right now. And then, there's so many people who are doing such amazing work, I don't see myself in that same vein. But definitely would like to think that I'm still pretty involved and I definitely keep up with what's going on.
Raviynn Smith:
But I think for me it was important that I didn't feel like I was being owned by the university. So, if I want to go to a protest, if it's against university or not, I have the right to go. Right? And I don't go usually thinking that I'm representing the university because I'm not. But I think as an individual being it's really important for me to be able to still engage in those activities because it's important to me. And it's important to me also as a staff member, honestly, to show students, any students who are there, who do recognize me, that I care. Right?
Raviynn Smith:
So, for example, there was a community prayer held on the Diag, sort of in reaction to both the shootings that happened in New Zealand and also, the false active shooter alter that happened on that Saturday after. And I mean, I wanted support, but I also wanted to make sure any students who I did know who were there saw that I cared. I saw this, and I cared. And even though I don't hold those identities, I'm more than happy to help connect them with anything they need or if they just need to vent or to talk to someone or if they need help finding someone to talk to, like in whatever kind of ways I can be a resource, that's what I want to do.
Raviynn Smith:
So, that's kind of how I have merged myself into, instead of doing more, a lot of the on the ground work, being a resource, which I'm okay with because I think that I'm not a student anymore. And so, I can keep up as much as I can, but I don't know those students' issues as well as they do. And so, my job is to amplify their voices, and so that's what I try to do right now.
Amber Williams:
Absolutely. You mentioned earlier that you want to ensure that you're sort of leveraging what now feels like a privilege in voice in your role as a staff member. What does that mean to you in terms of both, what it means to have a sort of privileged voice as a staff member, but also how you leverage that in a kind of organizational context?
Raviynn Smith:
I mean, I think it's definitely, it's a little weird sometimes. Like going to an event and Racer recognizes you and you're like, "You know who I am? How?"
Amber Williams:
Recognition matters. [inaudible] how?
Raviynn Smith:
I feel really lucky in the sense that our center, our director, Will Sherry, is super receptive. And so, I'll go to Will with ideas or I'll go to Will and be like, "I don't think that this is the way we, as a center, this really represents us or goes along with our values." And Will will take that into total consideration. And that's not a thing you can do everywhere, and I know that. And so, I think leveraging those moments when I know that I don't want to lose my job, right? So, I know that that won't happen, right?
Raviynn Smith:
But I've also definitely had moments in meetings where I've said things that are kind of pushing the envelope a little, and I know that people sometimes are just like, "Hmm." Because it's not necessarily the easiest way to go with a certain issue or topic, but I'm like, "We would be remiss if we didn't address this. Right? We would be remiss if we didn't approach this in this way if we claim to stand for what we stand for." And so, I think, for me, trying to use the privilege that I have as a staff member to hold other staff members and our institutions, our organizations, accountable as best as we can while also acknowledging that there's only so much any organization or office really can do.
Raviynn Smith:
But I think that at least for the Spectrum Center, I find it really important that even if we can't do it, we never let anyone just feel lost, right? Even if we can't provide that resource, we find them someone who can. And so, I think that's been really great in the past couple of years I've been working there, is working with folks that develop the resources that we have so that it's not just like, "Oh, we don't offer this and so, it's just not offered anywhere." But being able to make sure that the things we implement are stable programs that will last over time.
Raviynn Smith:
And it's not just based on who's currently working in Spectrum because there's never going to be a time where we don't have LGBTQ students. So, we need to make sure that that support is continuous. So, that's kind of what I am thinking. I don't know. I may still think I'm a small voice in a big pond, right? And there's some times where I kind of been told like, "Yeah, we can't quite do that. Or we can't quite do that in that way." And so, that's what requires creative thinking, which is totally fine. But it doesn't mean it's not sometimes a little frustrating or a little disheartening, but people are really nice to us, I'm not going to lie, as a center. And so, they've always seemed really grateful, and so I think it is a lot of internal motivation of like, "I'm glad you're grateful. But I also know we can probably still do better. So, what can we do better?"
Amber Williams:
Yeah, absolutely. And it's really great to hear you complicate what it means to be in your position and sort of balancing out the voices of students, but then also, the sort of institutional boundaries and breaks when really trying to push when student voices may not be there in particular rooms or particular spaces where decisions are made, which can also be in a lot of informal context. And so, how do you use those spaces, leveraging your voice within your position, also knowing that there are certain things that you can do as staff, but also certain things you can't do that students can do.
Raviynn Smith:
Yes.
Amber Williams:
And so, how do you sort of balance that out?
Raviynn Smith:
Yeah. Definitely, there's been times I tell people like, "This is a really great idea, and honestly, I want to support you, and maybe that's through us advertising about it, or trying to, maybe if we can financially support it. But it will go much closer to your vision if it's through you."
Amber Williams:
Yep.
Raviynn Smith:
Which sounds really weird but it'll be wrapped in so much red tape if it's through us. You do not want that.
Amber Williams:
Absolutely. Yeah.
Raviynn Smith:
And so, also, just at least for me, I make it a practice of being really transparent with students. I advise a group of students, and so if there's some reason why they can't do something, and sometimes it's serious and sometimes it's like, "Why can't we bring a goat to campus?" And I'm like, "Here's why you can't bring a goat to campus." But I'm always really transparent. I'm not just like, "Well, you just can't."
Raviynn Smith:
And I think that that's something that we should all strive for because this is college, we're all adults here. And there's no reason why folks shouldn't know what's going on and why things are done in a certain way.
Amber Williams:
Yeah, absolutely.
Raviynn Smith:
If possible, that's not violating FERPA.
Amber Williams:
FYI, FERPA is definitely a thing we don't want to violate.
Raviynn Smith:
Yes.
Amber Williams:
Yes. So, you spoke earlier about how you sort of see your identity, in a sense, changing in terms of, and maybe not even identity so much as it's the kind of work that you have done, and planned to do just as a change agent. And sort of thinking as your role as an organizer, activist, and that that mentality and framing is still very much embedded in how you engage students within your current work. But that it also looks and is situated differently.
Amber Williams:
So, I'm curious to know more about how you see yourself right now as a change agent, and also what you're looking forward to in the future, in terms of the role you want to play around social justice and social change? And how you see that kind of coming together?
Raviynn Smith:
So, like I kind of mentioned before, I think a lot of people, when they think of activist or organizer, it's the very on the ground work, putting together protests and things like that. But also, just meetings and coordinating people to be in a certain place or a lot of city council meetings and going between officials and just people who live in the city or people who are in your area, whatever, there's a lot of different ways to look at it. Like you said, change agent, it sounds really fancy. I'm a change agent.
Amber Williams:
Katie Richard Shuster.
Raviynn Smith:
Thank you Katie. Shout out to Katie.
Amber Williams:
Shout out to Katie.
Raviynn Smith:
And so, I like to think of myself now as definitely a resource in the sense that one, obviously for students, but also trying to implement that in the rest of my work with staff and faculty, community members. So, we have done collaborations with community partners, but also, it's nice to just get emails from people in the community who just have questions and just guiding them through the process. Like I said, being really transparent about what resources are available and what we've heard from them, and how we can best serve them and navigate them through these systems, which kind of has led to my interest in being a librarian because I have a firm belief that if folks are given the tools that they need to thrive and to grow, that they will make that happen for themselves.
Raviynn Smith:
So, it's a fine balance between I don't want to do it for you, but I know that the world has made it really hard for you to do this, and so I'm going to make a path. You can see really clearly what the next step is. You're not just getting lost in the junk, which I mean, it's really easy for students to happen because this university is so big and so decentralized and I see Michigan as a microcosm of the world, honestly. And so, I think that happens for a lot of people. A lot of people get washed through the cracks because they just didn't do this particular thing in the right way or at this time, or they just barely missed this credential.
Raviynn Smith:
And so, I think it's something that can have a really big effect on your life when you're just juggling family life, and work, and trying to figure out how to stay out of poverty or starting to struggle in poverty, right? To stay afloat. Someone told me, what is it? They called it a fourth agent or fifth? I don't know. Someone who works to create change within an institution. That's kind of how I see myself, which is a weird feeling because that wasn't where I started. It was definitely from the outside, but I don't think that my skills lend themselves well to trying to fight for change from the outside as much as they do from the inside for some reason. And I don't even know why. I think it's just, I know that I can be able to be in those rooms and have those conversations with people and I can use my nice Raviynn voice. Right?
Raviynn Smith:
And sometimes, not in a lot of spaces, but in some spaces, people look at me and be like, "Hmm, that's a legitimate idea." And I'm like, "Yeah, because for some reason, because I'm telling you this in this particular way, this seems like a legitimate idea." Even though students have been saying this for like forever. Right? And so, I think that that is something, a skill, that I have and I want to leverage it for good.
Raviynn Smith:
And so, that's kind of how I see myself hopefully going. And I mean, like I said, it happens a lot in my work at Spectrum. I tend to work a lot after hours in my work at Spectrum too. So, it definitely is a lot of bleeding over, which is also just because of the fact that I am working in a center where people who have identities that I hold. So, it hits extra close to home. So, something that is really emergent for someone, it feels really close to me because there's no reason why they couldn't have been emergent for me or one of my friends, right?
Raviynn Smith:
But I try to do other things. I volunteer some with Wicker. I've been volunteering in Planned Parenthood, as a clinic escort. So, I'm also trying to stay engaged with my community outside of campus because it'll just swallow you.
Amber Williams:
Mm-hmm (affirmative). Mm-hmm (affirmative).
Raviynn Smith:
But yeah, that's a really convoluted answer to your question.
Amber Williams:
No, no. To me, it ties together with even some of your early reflections on being a teenager listening to NPR. And your value for information and resources and knowledge. And to be able to distribute that and build connections and foster relationships. To me, all of that comes together as something that you very much value and that you also see as a skillset and a strategy that you hold, and being a voice in space and kind of working internally.
Amber Williams:
And I think it's critical to separate the differences between what it means to organize on the inside versus the outside. And some of that development as sort of a bottom up leader or someone who's doing a lot of base building work, all of the strategy that's necessary to really bring people together and to ensure that their empowerment is really being catalyzed in ways that foster the kind of outcomes that that community wants. And I think a part of that is access to information and advocacy from within and without. And so to me, that absolutely makes sense. And I can also see Baby Raviynn starting those early reflections just in sort of listening to NPR.
Raviynn Smith:
Yeah.
Amber Williams:
Yeah. So what comes next, Raviynn? [crosstalk] Yes. What comes next?
Raviynn Smith:
Well, I will be ending my tenure at Spectrum, which is bittersweet. I'm super happy and proud to have worked with such a wonderful staff of people, a wonderful group of student staff who really dedicated to serving other students on this campus. We've had some really, really cool new programs that we've implemented while I've been here. And I'm really excited to see sort of where they go from here with some of their... I mean, we literally started a group of people who meet every week, just talk about resources and that's so great. That's so cool. So, excited to see what comes from from some of that work and from some of the work that I got to start.
Raviynn Smith:
But I mean, it's time. I've done a lot and I want to really pass it on and see kind of where the next person takes it. Someone with fresh vision, fresh eyes to kind of take the work to a new level, right? Even though they're all like, "We're going to miss you." I'm like, "You'll be fine." I'm really excited to be attending graduate school, school to be TBA, but I will be pursuing my masters in library science. And I am super excited to be at, what I have coined, a social justice librarian, which is not a unique term. Other people will say that too. So let me say that I'm not creating this term, but I just have a really strong vision of libraries as being true. And you've heard me say this a million times Amber, true social justice spaces and the way in which they are conceived, the way which they're used now, the possibilities are so endless for libraries. Again, you just need people power, money power.
Raviynn Smith:
And so I'm really excited to get to engage with a lot of folks, engage with a field that, honestly, in a lot of ways has changed and in a lot of ways has not. And sort of being able to hold both of those because there's folks who are in the field right now who feel completely jolted, like their entire career has changed in the time they've been in it. And I'm looking and I'm like, "You're right. But also a lot of things haven't changed." There's a lot of libraries in communities where the people who work there look nothing and have none of the experiences of the people they're serving. And that's an issue in a sense, obviously it's fine. I've been in communities, work with communities, that I don't identify with, but there's no real development of education or knowledge of how to work with folks in a way that is socially just, and we talk about entering and exiting communities a lot in Cask and how to do that a way that's not harmful.
Raviynn Smith:
And I don't see those things reflected in libraries. And I'm in a lot of library groups on Facebook, which is really funny because it's like library memes and stuff, really nerdy.
Amber Williams:
I'd love to see some of those memes.
Raviynn Smith:
Oh, they're great. But also, we occasionally see these posts that people and other people will comment and be like, "I think this is just, I think you were just reacting in a classes way. I think your privilege is showing up." Someone was complaining about like, "Well someone's pants are sagging and what should I say to them?" They're like, "Why would you? Are they doing anything? Why would you say anything to them? They're not disturbing anyone." And so things like that, right? Those sort of reactions that people have are some of the ways that we've got work to do.
Raviynn Smith:
And so that's the kind of work I want to do. Right? Cultural competency work, as well as just having a better knowledge for folks of the library being a place where you can do social justice work, right? You can do accessibility work, you can create it into a place that reflects the needs of your community. And it can be a place where you see yourself there. So having materials that are representative of folks with disabilities, LGBTQ folks, folks of color that aren't banned or aren't challenged books, because there's no reason to challenge someone's identity just based on the fact that they hold that identity. And so working on some of that censorship and I mean, there's also a million other issues right now in library science work, like privacy and data. These sort of emerging things as technology moves faster than humans can. And what does that mean in the social justice framework? So yeah, there's so many exciting things to engage with. I'm really excited to get started.
Amber Williams:
Yeah. I'm super excited for you. And I know there's been just growing conversation about just information science and access to information overall, and a lot of social justice collectives. I'm thinking about allied media projects and the fact that their annual conference, I know in the last couple of years they had an entire sort of library kind of information track. And so I don't know who said this, but I know there's some kind of quote or statement out there about libraries as being one of the most radical constructs sort of instituted in our federal process. So knowing that it is an access point and a very critical one, in terms of communities have an access to information. But I think these nuances that you talked about in terms of the dynamics that happen in libraries and within library services and what it looks like to engage community and ensure that the resources reflect what the community would like to access and engage and use is all important.
Amber Williams:
So I'm super excited for your journey ahead and yeah, just love to see how you're bridging these connections from your undergraduate education and just who you are as a person and what you value and care about. And in looking to the future around sort of library information and science is one entry point to further engage in social justice. So...
Raviynn Smith:
Yeah.
Amber Williams:
Well, thank you so much, Raviynn, for your time today.
Raviynn Smith:
Of course. Thank you for having me.
Amber Williams:
Absolutely. It's been really wonderful and we can't wait to just trace and watch your journey ahead and just stay in touch with you. And who knows? Maybe in a couple of years we'll interview you again for a part two.
Raviynn Smith:
There you go. A little update.
Amber Williams:
A little update. Yes. Thank you so much, Raviynn.
Raviynn Smith:
Thank you.
Amber Williams:
Thanks for listening everyone and check us out next week for the next alumni interview. We'll be on Apple Podcast and also Spotify.