(National Review) Emily Drabinksi, president of the American Library Association (ALA), a group that Barack Obama endorsed in July, expressed surprise in a recent interview that her public identification as a “Marxist” caused a political backlash against her organization.
“I was excited to highlight and celebrate two aspects of my identity that are really important to me, and are often under a lot of scrutiny,” Drabinksi told NBC News on Monday, her first interview since taking over the post in July.
Shortly after becoming president of the ALA, Drabinksi marveled at her unlikely candidacy in comments that divided librarians and legislators across the country. “I just cannot believe that a Marxist lesbian who believes that collective power is possible to build and can be wielded for a better world is the president-elect of @ALALibrary,” she wrote in a now-deleted tweet following her election in April 2022. “I am so excited for what we will do together. Solidarity!”
Drabinski’s remarks led Republican lawmakers in several states, including Illinois, South Carolina, and Arizona, to demand their respective libraries withdraw support for the ALA. “The minds, hearts, souls and bodies of our children must be protected. The use of taxpayer funds to subvert the traditional family unit, which is the core of our national identity, will not be tolerated. Marxism is not welcome in Georgia,” the state’s Freedom Caucus wrote in one typical message following Drabinski’s disclosure.
“I didn’t anticipate these kinds of targeted attacks being used as a bludgeon against library workers across the country. I really think that is regrettable, and I wish that wasn’t happening right now,” Drabinski told NBC.
