Letter to the Editor
As a librarian at the University of California Santa-Barbara, I wish to address the publication of the article by former UCSB University Librarian Kristin Antelman.1 Ms. Antelman criticizes DEI trainings’ standardized vocabulary and practices through the lens of “cognitive liberty.” I would challenge the application of this term which originated with Duke Professor of Law and Philosophy Nita A. Farahany. Dr. Farahany’s work revolves neither around DEI principles nor other advocacy, but rather relates to near-future surveillance via neuroscience.
Other questionable applications of sources include a 1961 text by Dr. Jay Lifton which Ms. Antelman fails to correctly cite. The phrase “thought-terminating clichés” tacitly compares DEI initiatives to Lifton’s focus on persecution and brainwashing within Maoist China or (if meant to cite the author’s 1989 edition) fundamentalist extremists and cults. It becomes impossible to accept the author’s attack on DEI principles and methodology in good faith. Advocating for a backwards trajectory in this perilous time for the profession is not only short-sighted. Rather, the article’s publication itself smacks of a disingenuous approach to the advocacy principles established by our professional bodies including our flagship organizations of ALA, ACRL, and ARL themselves.
~ Erin Sweeney Smith
Note
1. Antelman, K. (2025). Respecting Privacy of Thought in DEI Training. College & Research Libraries, 86(3), 430–448. https://doi.org/10.5860/crl.86.3.430.
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