ILA Statement on the Termination of Dr. Carla Hayden as the Librarian of Congress
May 12, 2025
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The Illinois Library Association is deeply saddened and disappointed regarding the unjust termination of Dr. Carla Hayden as the Librarian of Congress on Thursday, May 8, 2025.
Appointed as the 14th Librarian of Congress on September 14, 2016, Dr. Hayden made history as the first woman and the first African American to lead the nation’s library.
Dr. Hayden's tenure at the Library of Congress was centered on improving accessibility, fostering innovation, and promoting inclusion for all Americans.
She prioritized expanding public access to the Library’s collections, introducing audiences to treasures such as Frederick Douglass’ papers and the contents of President Abraham Lincoln’s pockets on the night of his assassination.
Her forward-thinking leadership introduced cutting-edge technology and digitization efforts, making the Library’s vast collection accessible to anyone, anywhere.
In 2021, Dr. Hayden launched the Of the People: Widening the Path initiative, with support from the Mellon Foundation. This program fosters engagement and contributions from underrepresented communities, enriching the Library's collections and ensuring they reflect the diversity of the American experience.
Her career began at the Chicago Public Library, where she served as the young adult services coordinator, a library associate, a children’s librarian, and later as deputy commissioner and chief librarian.
In 1995, she became the first African American to receive Library Journal’s Librarian of the Year Award in recognition of her outreach efforts as the CEO of the Enoch Pratt Free Library in Baltimore, Maryland, including establishing an after-school center for teens.
Dr. Hayden served as the president of the American Library Association from 2003 to 2004, and in 2017, she was honored as an Illinois Library Luminary, by the Illinois Library Association, for her contributions to librarianship.
Dr. Hayden received a B.A. from Roosevelt University and an M.A. and Ph.D. from the Graduate Library School of the University of Chicago.
ILA and the ILA Executive Board stand in solidarity with library leaders, professionals, and advocates across the nation in honoring Dr. Hayden, and thank her for her unwavering dedication and commitment to the freedom to read and her belief in the transformative power, wonder, and democratic promise of libraries.
As challenges like this continue to impact the library world, your support is imperative. Advocate for federal library funding in the 2026 budget by contacting your representatives today: bit.ly/Call2FundLibraries.
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