The International Journal of Information, Diversity, & Inclusion (Aug 2019)
Scenarios of Health Engagement Experiences and Health Justice in Rural Libraries
Abstract
This article documents scenarios or narratives of health engagement experiences in rural libraries based on qualitative analysis of feedback collected from 15 rural librarians in the Southern and Central Appalachian (SCA) region during semi-structured interviews conducted in 2017-2018. The article focuses on respondents’ perspectives of the “aboutness” of their health-related engagement, collaborating partners, encountered challenges, and resulting outcomes. Scenarios were documented in broader interviews that focused on specific health activities and community engagement in 11 domains, including agriculture, diversity, economy, education, environment, government, health, law, manufacturing, social welfare, and other. The research forms part of a planning grant entitled “Assessment of Rural Library Professionals’ Role in Community Engagement in the Southern and Central Appalachian Region: Mobilization from Change Agents to Community Anchors (CA2CA@SCA-RL)” awarded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services to the University of Tennessee, sub-contracted to the University of Alabama this year (July 2017 – June 2019). Scenarios provide a taxonomic classification of health-related programs relevant to the region and a framework of practice related to their implementation. As a health justice tool, they also challenge the hegemonic imagination of mainstream American society, news media, and popular culture that has only presented the SCA rural belt in deficit light. The article becomes a counter-point to these past unfair and marginalizing representations in its constructive asset recognition of the SCA rural librarians’ positive examples of health-related experiences. It spotlights the “invisible” of SCA librarians’ individual/community empowerment as change agents making an impact on the lives of their rural residents.
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