This article concerns differences in the types of conflicts related to librarians acting as activists in Denmark and Sweden. The conflicts in Denmark are limited and mainly of internal character while the conflicts in Sweden are debated in more broadly in the field.
Through the Orders of Worth framework by Boltanski & Thévenot the article analyses interviews with both Danish and Swedish librarians. The analysis shows that activism in Denmark is considered an appropriate description for library work that involves doing more than making materials available in working towards social justice. In Sweden, the understanding of activism is more problematic and the Swedish informants in the article do not see themselves as activists, nor the library’s work for social justice as activism. The article shows that Danish librarians work strategically with activism through partnerships. In contrast, the Swedish librarians justify their work by focusing on work done for the good of society or certain groups, since this is considered the best possible position in order to avoid conflict, as the library institution itself also is justified from this perspective. Finally, the article discusses the cultural policy-climate in both countries and shows, that libraries and the cultural field in general have been low on society’s agenda in Denmark, while there is an ongoing ideological conflict in Sweden between left- and rightwing political actors and between national and local levels of government. Overall, the article shows that the difference in the conflicts related to activism in libraries in Denmark and Sweden must take the cultural policy climate in each country in to account, but that it is important for the understanding of the conflict to discuss how actors justify their work for social change.