The Mississippi library commission, which offers services such as specialized research assistance to libraries in the state, has ordered the deletion of two research collections: the race relations database and the gender studies database. The collections were stored in what’s called the Magnolia database, which is used by publicly funded schools, libraries, universities and state agencies in Mississippi.
The so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge), which has sent shockwaves through federal agencies and departments since its creation when the second Trump administration began, all but axed the Institute of Library and Museum Services (IMLS) in March by putting nearly all of its employees on administrative leave. The independent federal agency provides resources and support to libraries, archives and museums in all 50 states and territories.
The fallout from losing the IMLS is not restricted to Mississippi, Bivins said, but is something of concern for every state. Washington, which is one of 21 states suing the Trump administration over the dismantling of the IMLS and other agencies, was notified last Wednesday that it will not receive a $3.9m grant from the IMLS’s “grants to states program”. California and Connecticut, both of which are also suing the Trump administration, have been notified that they will not receive a $15.7m grant and the $1.2m remainder of a $2.2m grant, respectively.
With federal funding uncertain, state library agencies must look to their respective states for funding. In the 16 states where anti-diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) bills are law, that means complying with whatever that state’s legislature deems necessary.
According to a 31 March internal memo obtained by Mississippi Today, the Mississippi library commission’s deletions came about to ensure that the Magnolia database complied with state laws, though it did not specify which laws.
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