The Fresno State Library provides access to a variety of resources for teaching and research purposes. These items reflect the perspectives, social norms, and biases of the time period in which they were created. Part of our mission as a research library is to preserve the original context and terminology associated with materials in our collection. Our stewardship of these materials does not constitute support of their content or perspectives.
We recognize that the Fresno State Library collections include materials that many find offensive, harmful, discriminatory, and racist; as part of our professional practice, we critically reflect on how to address these issues while understanding the place these items hold in history and their impact on scholarship. We acknowledge our responsibility and are committed to continuing to develop practices that are equitable, inclusive, and anti-oppressive at the intersections of race, gender, faith, class, sexuality, age, and ability. Our practices are guided by our professional principles, standards, and ethics as well as work occurring across the California State University system, including the Inclusive Description Task Force. This work is an ongoing and iterative process.
We strive to be respectful of the beliefs and practices of different cultures by actively following cultural protocols, building relationships, consulting, and engaging in shared, culturally responsive decision-making with communities and scholars. This may include providing proper attribution, context statements, or mediated access. If you have feedback regarding the content in our collections and wish to communicate with us, please contact us at Ask a Librarian.
Note: this statement was adapted from UC San Diego’s Statement on Historical Context & Cultural Sensitivity in Collections.
October 23, 2025
Fresno State Library News 