In Summer 2021, UCO Chambers Library's catalogers crafted an inclusive metadata statement. Our presentation will provide an overview of the process, recommendations for creating your own statement, and the challenges of important terminology being misappropriated as buzzwords (e.g. "decolonizing" the catalog)N

Beezley, Shay

Palone, Kaitlyn

English

SHAREOK repository

Finding the Right WordsS H A Y  B E E Z L E Y  &  K A I T L Y N  P A L O N EU N I V E R S I T Y  O F  C E N T R A L  O K L A H O M AMETADATA JUSTICE IN OKLAHOMA LIBRARIES & ARCHIVES SYMPOSIUMJULY 14, 20221. Define what we mean by inclusive metadata statement and why create one2. Provide an overview of our process3. Question the use of the word “decolonization” in the context of remediating library metadataOverviewWhat is an “Inclusive Metadata Statement”?Also known as…• “Statement on Potentially Harmful Language”• “Statement on Critical Cataloging”• “Ethical Cataloging Statement”• “Historical Language Advisory”“statement on harmful or offensive language in description and bias in cataloging”State of  the Cataloging ProfessionIncreased Call for Addressing Problematic MetadataCalling out LCSH has been around for a while…“Illegal Aliens” Subject Heading…but it’s become more prominent as libraries were making localized changes andmany are not satisfied with “illegal immigrants” as the revised headingIncreased Transparency of Bureaucratic ProcessesCatalogers have been working to explicate the subject heading creation and revision process (SACO)Why Draft an Inclusive Metadata Statement?Explanation of BureaucracyEmpathy for UsersCommitment to ProgressOur ProcessOverview of  Our ProcessTask 1Draft an inclusive metadata statementTask 2Identify inclusive metadata strategies Task 3Create a form for users to report offensive terminologyReview2 rounds of review (first with area director and final review with executive director)ReleasePublished in the About section of our websiteTask 1 Breakdown:  Reviewing Exist ing Sta tementsTask 1Draft an inclusive metadata statement1. Reviewing existing statements2. Decide on a name3. Create an outline4. Write!•We went through the list on The Cataloging Lab and read as many statements as possible•Our initial task was to identify the ones we liked best and why•Our favorite statements focused on actions specifically takenTask 1 Breakdown:  Why “Inclusive Metadata”?Task 1Draft an inclusive metadata statement1. Reviewing existing statements2. Decide on a name3. Create an outline4. Write!•No standard name for this type of proclamation•“Acknowledgment of bias”•“Statement of ethical description”•Inclusive Metadata•Phrasing aligns with UCO’s Inclusive Community initiativeTask 1 Breakdown:  Crea te An Outl ineTask 1Draft an inclusive metadata statement1. Reviewing existing statements2. Decide on a name3. Create an outline4. Write!•Acknowledgement of problematic metadata•Context•What we’re committed to doingTask 1 Breakdown:  Write !Task 1Draft an inclusive metadata statement1. Reviewing existing statements2. Decide on a name3. Create an outline4. Write!•Write collaboratively•We each took a piece of the outline and wrote the corresponding part•Consider word choice carefully•We strongly caution against using the word “decolonize” in any of these statementsAcknowledgementWho is acknowledging the problem? What is the problem?Where is this problem?Max Chambers Library is committed to servingunderrepresented communities. One way we accomplish thisis through our professional catalogers' dedication toaccurately and respectfully describing materials relating tounderrepresented communities. We acknowledge thatstandards for descriptive practice are entrenched indiscriminatory concepts, such as racism, homophobia,ableism, and misogyny. These practices directly affectour users as metadata rooted in discrimination may bevisible to our community in Central Search, SHAREOK,the library's website, or the library's digital collections.We are actively taking steps to ameliorate these problematicpractices that directly affect the Central community's accessto library resources.Background / Library of  CongressConsider the audienceExplain in a user-friendly mannerNot an attack on Library of Congress personnel or colleagues contributing through SACOLibraries are not without biases - bothconscious and unconscious - that affectpolicies and practices. In the case ofcataloging and metadata, the classificationof library resources reflects how acataloger views and interprets thesubject matter. We primarily use theclassification standards maintained bythe Library of Congress, which have beencreated by people with their own biasesand judgments from their specificcultures and time periods.CommitmentSo what we will do about it?By acknowledging weaknesses andflaws in these standards and otherareas of librarianship, we aim tosupport the University's inclusivecommunity initiative through thefollowing practices:Cultivate a supportive and safe environment where staff feelencouraged to acknowledge their biases and engage in constructivediscussions.Continue to identify areas of bias in the library.Apply metadata using the standards provided by the Library of Congressin a selective manner and use professional judgment for incorporatingalternative controlled vocabularies.List of  Commitments (no. 1-3)List of  Commitments (no. 4-6)Collaborate with Library Systems staff in identifying opportunities for datanormalization for vendor-supplied metadata found in Central Search.Commit to actively learning about controlled vocabularies that improveaccess to resources by or about underrepresented communities.Commit to completion of specialized training and become approved tosubmit new or revised terminology to the Library of Congress.Before You Commit…Do you have the staffing?Can you adequately carry out the tasks you want to do? It’s ok to start small!Are you able to get training?What training opportunities are available? What are obstacles?Are you able to carry out newly-trained tasks?Be professional -- don’t waste your trainers’ time with not following through onanything!Task 2Identify inclusive metadata strategiesTask 2•What have we done?•What are we currently doing?•What do we plan to do? Purpose• Provide evidence of action behind words• Provide examples to large audience • Show existing projects for those who might want to report somethingCategoriesOffensive/Outdated TerminologyVerbiage used in standardized library cataloging practices that is based on outdated or offensive languageClassificationThe basis for creating call numbers, which are used to organize library materials in the physical stacksInclusive LanguageOpportunities to provide more inclusive language in library metadataOffensive/Outdated TerminologyProblem Action Status"Illegal Aliens" and "Illegal Immigrants" (Library of Congress Subject Headings)Replaced with “undocumented immigrants” in metadata sourced from WorldCat as part of greater library community initiativeUpdated 2022 to include revised subject heading “illegal immigrants”Retroactive removal completed (2020)On-going removal for new materials (2020-present)ClassificationProblem Action StatusThe letter "N" to organize materials by, about, or relating to Black people in the library's physical collectionsReplace "N" with "B" in call numbers for materials by, about, or relating to Black people - 300 titles affected have been identified for review and reclassifying.Library of Congress issued change (07/2021)Titles identified in collection (08/2021)Project underway (09/2021-Present)Inclusive LanguageProblem Action StatusInadequate options for 2SLGBTQIA+ descriptors in Library of Congress Subject HeadingsUtilize terms from Homosaurus, a linked data vocabulary designed to be more inclusive of the nuances of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, in addition to existing metadata when appropriate.Homosaurus identified as an option (2016)Adding terms on-going (2016-Present)Task 3: Creating a Reporting FormTask 3Create a form for users to report offensive terminology•Contacted other institutions•Decided on naming the form “Report Offensive/Outdated Terminology”•Option for users to remain anonymousOffensive/Outdated Terminology Form•Clarification about how we’re looking for metadata not found on the item itselfFinal Review and Uploaded to WebsiteOnce signed off by Executive Director, we uploaded everything to our websiteStatement Strategies FormBut our work is not done! These actions are only just the beginningWhy We Avoided the Word “Decolonization”• This is not an attack on our colleagues in the broader library community who may use “decolonize” to describe this work• We acknowledge that decolonization used metaphorically is not limited to library spaces• This perspective is our own and not necessarily in line with our employer’s, as UCO’s website on our land acknowledgement discusses decolonization of the academy, education, etc. AcknowledgementsTo decolonize• To free people from colonial status• To relinquish control of a subjugated people or area• To free from the dominating influence of a colonizing powerWebster’s Dictionary Says…."Decolonization is the process of deconstructing colonial ideologies of the superiority and privilege of Western thought and approaches. On the one hand, decolonization involves dismantling structures that perpetuate the status quo and addressing unbalanced power dynamics. On the other hand, decolonization involves valuing and revitalizing Indigenous knowledge and approaches and weeding out settler biases or assumptions that have impacted Indigenous ways of being. For non-Indigenous people, decolonization is the process of examining your beliefs about Indigenous Peoples and culture by learning about yourself in relationship to the communities where you live and the people with whom you interact." [Source: Pulling Together: A Guide for Front-Line Staff, Student Services, and Advisors by Ian Cull; Robert L. A. Hancock; Stephanie McKeown; Michelle Pidgeon; and Adrienne Vedan]Decolonization RedefinedAre These Actions Really “Decolonizing The Catalog”?• Identifying harmful language• Updating and proposing new Library of Congress subject headings• Finding new terminology to use instead of outdated or offensive words• Updating Cutter numbers• What do we mean when we say “decolonizing the catalog”?• Have we given full consideration the meaning and impact of “decoloniz*?”• Is it an appropriate way to describe metadata remediation?Ask OurselvesWe purposely chose not to use “decolonize” in our inclusive metadata statement because1. Equating decolonization with remediation didn’t feel right, because decolonization is far more than remediation2. Decolonization is a powerful, radical act, and would we be watering down its meaning by using it metaphorically?3. It didn’t feel like it was our word to use, and we wanted our statement to reflect our genuine and sincere intentionsIn a Nutshell“When metaphor invades decolonization, it kills the very possibility of decolonization;it recenters whiteness, it resettles theory, it extends innocence to the settler, itentertains a settler future. Decolonize (a verb) and decolonization (a noun) cannoteasily be grafted onto pre-existing discourses/frameworks, even if they are critical,even if they are anti-racist, even if they are justice frameworks.The easy absorption, adoption, and transposing of decolonization is yet another form ofsettler appropriation. When we write about decolonization, we are not offering it as ametaphor; it is not an approximation of other experiences of oppression.Decolonization is not a swappable term for other things we want to do to improve oursocieties and schools. Decolonization doesn’t have a synonym.”[Source: Decolonization is not a metaphor."]From Indigenous scholars Eve Tuck & K. Wayne Yang: “I thus hold my fellow academics to account and ask for some refrain when using the word ‘Decolonizing.’ It does a disservice to the amazing indigenous scholarship and activist work that is targeting power structures to shake and reshape them to accommodate indigeneity. So, my humble suggestion, till you are actually willing and able to do the work of decolonizing the structures you (and even me) benefit from currently, let us think of better words to do what we are actually doing.”[Source: Do Not ‘Decolonize' . . . If You Are Not Decolonizing: Progressive Language and Planning Beyond a Hollow Academic Rebranding]From Dr. Nayantara Sheoran Appleton:What Are Some Other Words We Could Use Instead?Appleton’s examples:• Diversify your syllabus and curriculum • Digress from the cannon [sic]• Decentre knowledge and knowledge production• Devalue hierarchies• Disinvest from citational power structures • Diminish some voices and opinions in meetings, while magnifying otherHow We Can We Be More Specific to Describe This Important Work?• Diversify• Digress• Decenter • Devalue• Disinvest• DiminishHow We Can We Be More Specific to Describe This Important Work?• Diversify controlled vocabularies used in bibliographic metadata• Digress from outdated terminology and ensure your documentation reflects these local practices• Decenter white supremacy from bibliographic metadata• Devalue Dewey• Disinvest from vendors with poor quality metadata• Diminish the idea that cataloging is “neutral”The catalog is more than just subject headings and terminology used to describe materials—Its very organizational structure would have to be completely dismantled to truly decolonize the catalog! One More Consideration• Complete overhaul of WorldCat• Worth noting that “what is known must be shared®” is not necessarily in line with different cultures’ perspectives on knowledge organization• Complete overhaul of our integrated library systems and service platforms• Complete overhaul of Resource Description and Access and the rules/instructions that guide catalogers in creating metadata• Complete overhaul of classification schemes and controlled vocabularies beyond just improvementsWhat Would That Look Like?Is “Decolonization” Rea l ly The Right Word?• Are we scrapping the library catalog as it currently exists and remaking it with an Indigenous perspective?• Are we violently dismantling structures that uphold white supremacy?• Are we relinquishing control of colonized land and resources and returning them to Indigenous peoples?…If the answer is “no” or “we don’t know,” we’re probably not decolonizing.Parting Thoughts• Worth having this discussion as a profession – please share your thoughts (even and especially if you have a different perspective than ours!) in the chat• Words and how we use them are important, so our statements must reflect conscientious, informed research, careful consideration, and genuine sincerity • The Cataloging Lab: List of Statements on Bias in Library and Archives Description• Cataloging Ethics Bibliography• CritCat.org• CritLib.org: CritCat• "Do Not 'Decolonize'. . . If You Are Not Decolonizing: Progressive Language and Planning Beyond a Hollow Academic Rebranding"• “Decolonization is not a metaphor."Recommended ResourcesQuestions?Shay Beezleysbeezley@uco.eduKaitlyn Palonekpalone@uco.edu

Finding the Right Words

https://shareok.org/bitstream/11244/336456/1/Finding%20the%20Right%20Words.pdf

Finding the Right Words

Abstract

Similar works

Full text

Available Versions

SHAREOK repository