Wikipedia edit-a-thon in Jamaica Plain will amplify queer women’s history
The History Project, a queer community archives based in Boston, is hosting a Wikipedia edit-a-thon Saturday to amplify the stories and lives of queer women who have helped shape the history of New England.
The group, led by Executive Director Joan Ilacqua, plans to edit or create pages for 13 influential queer women with local or regional ties, including Boston-raised Raffi Freedman-Gurspan, the first openly transgender White House staffer, and lesbian activist and teacher Angela Bowen. The effort also will highlight Elaine Noble, Massachusetts’ first openly gay representative elected to the state legislature.
“One of the shortcomings of Wikipedia is that most of the volunteers who edit Wikipedia are men,” said Ilacqua. “So, they’re writing from the perspective of being men, and there are far fewer articles about women; there are far fewer women editors of Wikipedia. It’s pretty difficult to get queer and trans material onto Wikipedia without significant footnotes.”
According to a 2010 study, just under 13 percent of Wikipedia contributors identified as female, and in 2019, according to The Guardian, that number increased to around 15-20 percent. In recent years, feminist and other women-centric groups have hosted edit-a-thons with the aim of closing Wikipedia’s gender gap.
The History Project will host the one-day event at the Jamaica Plain branch of the Boston Public Library Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and volunteers will lead two training sessions at 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. Participants will reference information found using the BPL’s online database and news and journal articles from university resources.
What’s great about edit-a-thons, says Ilacqua, is that volunteers don’t have to be well-versed in the subject matter to participate. The person leading the training sessions is both a seasoned Wikipedia editor and editing trainer who shows attendees how to set up their own Wikipedia account, how to edit, and how to reference information so the edits won’t get rejected by site moderators.
Ilacqua said she’s excited for “folks who participate to have a chance to get to know their fellow editors” at the inperson event, and for them to bring their editing skills home so “they can do it on their own, and take a moment during Women’s History Month to assert the history of queer women.”
Saturday’s edit-a-thon is the History Project’s fourth editing sprint. The 17 editors present for its first session in March 2021 created four original articles, edited 49 articles in total, and added nearly 9,500 words to Wikipedia. The second installment, in November 2021, saw 11 editors create one original article, edit seven articles in total, and add just under 11,500 words to the site. Its last stretch in March 2023 had nine editors create one original article, edit 30 articles total, and add approximately 5,000 words to Wikipedia.
It’s hard to gauge how many people will show up to each event, Ilacqua said, but everyone is welcome to drop in and help with the project.
“It’s really nerdy. You have to be interested in doing research and some writing, but it’s super accessible,” she said. “You can do it with us at the library, and you can go home and continue editing.”