Edit-a-thon focuses on Indigenous women

WATERLOO REGION — A group of female archivists, librarians, curators and researchers in Waterloo Region want to change the fact that only about 10 per cent of Wikipedia editors are female, and as a result, women-focused content in the online encyclopedia is lacking.

On Saturday, from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Kitchener Public Library, representatives from the library, the University of Waterloo Archives, the K-W Art Gallery and Open Sesame, will work with anyone who wants to participate to improve and create pages for Indigenous female artists.

“We are raising awareness about important figures in the community but we’re also empowering members to contribute to a knowledge base that’s shared globally,” said Danielle Robichaud a digital archivist at the University of Waterloo and one of Saturday’s event organizers.

Wikipedia, a free online encyclopedia whose content is contributed by the general public, first released statistics on female contributions in 2012. Since then, female-focused edit-a-thons have occurred in a number of countries.

Saturday’s event was inspired not only by past edit-a-thons but also by an exhibit at the K-W Art Gallery titled, “Carry Forward.” It showcases stories, records, and history that has been under-represented, lost, or edited out.

Edit-a-thon organizers have gathered a number of trusted resources about more than 30 Indigenous female artists and will provide them to this weekend’s participants.

“We have a list of Indigenous artists that we have identified as needing page improvements,” said Robichaud. “Sometimes it’s a matter of they don’t have enough references on the page (indicating) where the information came from (and) sometimes the writing could be improved.”

One artist who will get her first entry into the encyclopedia this Saturday is Marjorie Beaucage.

“Marjorie is a two spirit Métis artist who is based in Saskatoon — she’s a documentary film maker,” said Crystal Mowry, senior curator at the K-W Art Gallery.

Beaucage is also included in the art gallery’s exhibition.

“She’s someone who has had an incredible influence on a number of artists who are working right now, particularly artists who are interested in queer rights and advocacy … yet there’s no record of her in Wikipedia,” said Mowry.

One of the biggest hurdles in getting people to contribute to the website is likely its culture, said Robichaud, who has been a regular contributor since 2013.

“The website tends to have a culture that can be argumentative in some cases or perhaps overly rigid in how particular guidelines are applied,” she said, adding that often work is deleted if it doesn’t meet those guidelines.

One of those guidelines is to make sure you stick to the facts when writing an entry.

“You cannot put in your personal opinion,” said Robichaud.

It’s also important to reference legitimate resources if you want your post to remain on the site.

These guidelines will all be explained at this weekend’s event, which is open to beginners and experienced editors.

“I think the real value in having an edit-a-thon is you have support and company, so if you have a question there’s someone right there to ask,” said Robichaud.

To register for the event visit the Kitchener Public Library’s website.