Teardrops and Closed Caskets!!!Our forgotten Movers & Shakers

Teardrops and Closed Caskets!!!Our forgotten Movers & Shakers

Ranganathan’s faithfuls, let’s take a walkabout to explore the Zimbabwe LIS professional recognition or honouring structure. The objective is to discover what the (LIS) field values in terms of bestowing honors at the individual level, and in which ways the awards system will perpetuate or progress those values. In general, the dialogue attempts to inquire where librarian honors fit into the larger context that includes other major Zimbabwean professional awards such as CZI Manager of the Year. Ultimately we may interrogate the following questions: what qualifies as prestige within our field, and how is that scale of prestige viewed from outside librarianship? My intention is to expand the dialogue, to quiz our current rewarding structures and to inspire professional competitive spirit. But, the major underlying theme for this dialogue is the many teardrops and closed caskets (painful losses of 10+ just in 2015 alone) of eminent Zimbabwean LIS professionals, who we have not honored in their lifetime but give those glowing recitals on their deathbeds and social media platforms. Why are we waiting for them to pass on and not recognize them in their living years?  We have and we are still bitterly witnessing the demise of the core of the profession, like griots they go forever with their knowledge unrecognised.

One school of thought notes that “librarianship is the red-headed step child of professional disciplines,” invoking a long-held inferiority complex, especially between working librarians and the LIS professoriate.  Furthermore, what inhibits us as librarians to step over our disciplinary lines to apply for and nominate one another for existing awards that are already conferred with honor?

At this juncture, it’s necessary to state my unequivocal bias. I am a proud veteran librarian who loves the ‘L’ sign, and due to one good cause that was made possible by many people other than me, my name is recognizable. My conscience and conviction on reward structures is slanted towards my own circumstances and experiences.  My thought provoking dialogue on and writing about recognition in Zimbabwean librarianship is to give credit where it is due, and encourage a culture of innovation that will continue to make librarianship a vital cog in overall national development. Simply let me fight my recognition battle whilst am still alive, we have lost our luminaries such as Stan Made, Lawton Hikwa, Vimbai Hungwe who sadly were recognized and honored outside our own circles, distinguished for their leadership and vision, as well as their continued investment in the profession through mentorship.  Sadly, our living heroes and heroines Collence Chisita, Hosea Tokwe, Jerry Mathema, Driden Kunaka, Roger Stringer, Buhle Mbambo, Professor Ngulube and many others have again been honoured by outsiders such as the prestigious IFLA, LIASA, CILIP, ALA Movers and Shakers. 

I can safely argue that “recognition for me carries notions of honor, status, respect, esteem and more, all related to the valuation of an individual within a group”. Amongst our lot, many fit this bill without any doubt and hesitation.  Its time ZimLA take heed and urgently act in this regard. With the celebratory June 2016 50th JUBILEE conference beckoning, ZimLA must take advantage of this joyous occasion to honour and celebrate past, present and future LIS heroes and heroines.  In my personal opinion not recognising our own has been a major factor influencing apathy towards ZimLA activities and participation.  ZimLA needs to give back unreservedly to their constituency, to hardworking pros such as Steve Mushonga, Gilchriste Ndongwe, Michael Chimalizeni, Ashabai Chinyemba, Tonderai Chanakira, Harriet Ncube, Brian Kutiwa, and Ellah Moyo.  ZimLA and each one of us need to be proactive in this regard; we could start small with awards such as Branch Librarian, Librarian of the Year, Public Librarian, School Librarian, honorary awards, posthumous recognition, merit awards, student award, most innovative project/service, partner/network citations and ultimately a hall of fame. This could be exploited for massive membership drive and retention.

I am left with perhaps as many questions as I began, and no concrete answers. How do we understand excellence in library work, and in what ways should we celebrate with those colleagues?  

Still i Rise

PS to be published in ZimLA News "Stil i Rise Dialogue"