Historians, archivists, and social activism: benefits and costs

Yaco, Sonia; Hardy, Beatriz Betancourt

doi:10.1007/s10502-012-9187-0

Cited by 28 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…It is dismayingly true that many archives are structured as society’s reactive chroniclers, but at their best they collect, preserve and share what they can in a spirit of openness about the many ways that their mediation might influence our current and future understanding of history. Overt activism certainly has its limits for academic archivists working in public institutions or other settings with specific prohibitions on political activity (Yaco and Hardy, 2013). However, any professional commitment that favors neutrality to the detriment of other principles quickly loses its credibility when one honestly contemplates what is at stake in the Trump era.…”

Section: A Take On the Academic Archives Landscapementioning

confidence: 99%

A challenge most bigly: academic archives and higher education in the Trump Era

Wiles

2020

RSR

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Purpose This paper aims to provide a critical perspective on emergent issues in the Trump era directly or indirectly relevant to academic archives. It describes current operational characteristics and trends in academic archives and considers the implications of the “Trump Effect” on academic archives in support of higher education. Design/methodology/approach The author examines archival studies literature pertaining to academic archives in combination with recent research and reporting on Trump Administration higher education policy to argue for increased professional awareness and vigilance. Findings The author asserts that Trump Administration rhetoric and policies aimed at remaking American higher education and undermining democratic norms pose a threat to academic archives as institutions that support learning, memory and historical accountability. Originality/value This paper adds to scholarly discussions in the library and information studies and archival studies fields about the merits of neutrality, the legacy of memory institutions and the obligation of information professionals to take a stance on difficult issues. Additionally, there are few (if any) sources that discuss the role of academic archives specifically in the contemporary political context.

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Section: A Take On the Academic Archives Landscapementioning

confidence: 99%

A challenge most bigly: academic archives and higher education in the Trump Era

Wiles

2020

RSR

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“…W jego zakresie znajdowały się kwestie dotyczące zawodu archiwisty, w tym edukacji zawodowej. Przykładowe tematy poruszane w artykułach opatrzonych kodem "zawód": wpływ tematyki sprawiedliwości społecznej na kształcenie archiwistów (na przykładzie Uniwersytetu Kalifornijskiego w Los Angeles) 49 , oddziaływanie aktywizmu społecznego na pracę historyków i archiwistów 50 ; transformacja roli archiwisty wraz ze zmianami paradygmatycznymi w dziedzinie archiwalnej 51 .…”

Section: Skrótowe Określenie Tematuunclassified

Czasopismo „Archival Science” w latach 2011–2020 – analiza treści artykułów naukowych

Wiśniewska-Drewniak¹

2020

Archeion

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The Archival Science journal in the years 2011–2020 – an analysis of research papers Archival Science is currently the most important archive journal, published in English since 2001. The aim of this article is to analyse articles published in that journal in the years 2011–2020. Four types of issues were analysed: the authors’ affiliations, geographical characteristics of articles, research methods and the subject of the published texts. As a result, it was noted that authors of articles come mostly from English-speaking countries (which confirms the trend from the years 2001–2010, studied by Eric Ketelaar in 2010) and when the subject of an article focuses on a specific geographical area, it concerns English-speaking countries as well. It was observed that many research articles do not present specific research methods and those that do mention not only traditional methods, such as archival research and a literature review, but also methods characteristic of social sciences (e.g. an interview, observation, survey). Ten most popular subjects described in the analysed texts include: digital issues, the underprivileged, state archives and documentation, the history of archives, human rights, decolonisation, ethics, preparing archival materials, social archives, the profession of an archivist and documentation manager.

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“…8-9). This viewpoint is often phrased as activism, whether social (e.g., Yaco and Hardy, 2013) or archival (e.g., Caswell, 2014; Flinn and Alexander, 2015). However, the concept of “archival activism” by itself may need further definition as it can mean different things to different people.…”

Section: The Social and Political Nature Of Community Archivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Scott (2013) notes that Yaco and Hardy’s (2013) research on archivists and social activism “simply asks people working in the field what they do and how they do it” rather than attempting to find a meaning in terms like community archives and collective memory. Yaco and Hardy (2013, p. 259) found that the “among the 76 archivists who responded to this question, the most common form of activity is to encourage activists and activists’ organisations to preserve and retain their records (80 per cent), followed by encouraging the deposit of records in an archival repository (66 per cent)”.…”

Section: The Social and Political Nature Of Community Archivesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Defining the undefinable: an analysis of definitions of community archives

Welland

Cossham

2019

GKMC

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Purpose This paper aims to explore definitions and notions of what a community archive is, and the tensions between different understandings of community archives. Design/methodology/approach The paper is a critical analysis of community archives definitions and understanding from researchers and practitioners across the wider heritage information sector. Findings Community archives are a growing area of interest for researchers because of the archives’ intrinsic link to the community and their provision of the evidence of it. While discussion often focuses on a paradigm of transformative purpose, existing definitions around community archives continue to be tenuous, reflecting different real or perceived types and practices and the perspective of the author and the sector they work within. Variations in definition can also occur because of differences in perspective around theory and practice, with many practitioner-based definitions intrinsically bound with the community they represent. This can result in community archives being defined as “alternative” based on mainstream practice or “political” based on theoretical purview, or “meeting the needs of community” by the community archivists themselves. Research limitations/implications The paper is conceptual and does not attempt to provide one definition that covers the perceived extent of community archives. It is part of work in progress on the nature of community archives and the impact such discourse may have on archival theory and practice. Originality/value This paper provides an overview of some of the key issues and themes impacting a definition of community archives, and in doing so works towards a broader understanding the nature of community archives. In most cases, the concept of “community” seems to provide a common definitive element and practitioner definitions focus on addressing the needs of self-defined community to a greater or lesser extent.

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Historians, archivists, and social activism: benefits and costs

Cited by 28 publications

References 13 publications

A challenge most bigly: academic archives and higher education in the Trump Era

A challenge most bigly: academic archives and higher education in the Trump Era

Czasopismo „Archival Science” w latach 2011–2020 – analiza treści artykułów naukowych

Defining the undefinable: an analysis of definitions of community archives

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