Academic Librarianship: The Quest for Rights and Recognition at the University of Toronto

Abstract

The dedication of librarians at the University of Toronto Libraries (UTL) was matched by a determination to obtain professional and academic rights, a quest that can be traced back to the early twentieth century when librarianship shifted from a male, to a chiefly female, profession. The 1960s and 1970s proved to be a pivotal period for academic librarians at the University of Toronto (U of T). What transpired during these two decades at U of T was, to some degree, conditioned by external developments in the profession, the rise of feminism and the growth of publicly funded graduate programs in Ontario’s post-secondary institutions, as well as internal developments, such as the rapid expansion of the UTL system and the librarians’ growing awareness that they were professional academics. In this historical narrative, the pivotal event, known as the Reference Revolution of 1974, marked a turning point and signalled not just the end of an era for the Chief Librarian, Robert H. Blackburn, but a new epoch for librarians at U of T because shortly thereafter, in 1974-1975, they joined the University of Toronto Faculty Association (UTFA). The courageous actions of a few benefited many. In a more or less chronological sequence, this chapter is an examination of the key events that preceded the Reference Revolution and the consequences of this pivotal moment in the history of librarianship at U of T. In reality, however, many of the issues in this chronological overview did not occur in sequential isolation but retained close connections to the past, often overlapping each other and taking on different guises through this 20 year period.