How Subjects Matter: The Kinsey Institute’s <i>Sexual Nomenclature: A Thesaurus</i> (1976)

Drucker, Donna J.

doi:10.7560/ic52204

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…However, the thesaurus has not been updated with the most recent terminology and lacks the term "transgender." 39 The Gay Studies Thesaurus was self-published by Dee Michel in 1985. It was developed using books and periodical resources while the author was in graduate school.…”

Section: Potential Solutionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using the Homosaurus in a Public Library Consortium: A Case Study

Fischer¹

2023

LRTS

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Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) onLGBTQIA+ topics have not evolved alongside the frequently changing vernacular vocabulary used to access resources on the topics. To rectify this issue, libraries can choose to use an alternative controlled vocabulary, like The Homosaurus: An International LGBTQ+ Linked Data Vocabulary. This case study provides an overview of how Cooperative Computer Services (CCS), a public library consortium in Illinois, made the case to allow the Homosaurus in the CCS catalog, gained approval from the member libraries, and crafted a cataloging manual section. Other libraries can follow the recommendations in this article on how to properly make the case for the approval of a policy to allow an alternative controlled vocabulary in their catalog.A ccording to a Gallup poll from 2022, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) population in the United States increased from 5.6 percent in 2020 to 7.1 percent. While the percentage is stable in older Americans, the percentage of LGBT Gen Z Americans has increased from 10.5 percent in 2012 to 20.8 percent, and the percentage of LGBT millennials has increased from 5.8 percent in 2012 to 10.5 percent. 1 Such a large increase means that the LGBT community will become even more visible than in previous generations; more resources will be published on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex, asexual, and more (LGBTQIA+) topics, and media will feature LGBTQIA+ issues more frequently. This means that librarians will see an increase in the number of patrons that seek access to materials on LGBTQIA+ topics. An important part of this process is ensuring that the bibliographic records are sufficiently cataloged with subject headings that represent the terminology used by the LGBTQIA+ community to describe themselves. Regardless of whether one is a member of the community or not, the vernacular vocabulary to describe relevant topics is used more frequently than scientific or dated terms. If bibliographic records do not include the terms that patrons search for, the materials they need will be hidden and inaccessible when they are needed the most. However, Library of Congress (LC) has not sufficiently prepared for this inevitable need by updating the archaic Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) terms like "Sexual minorities" and "Gays" or adding in appropriate scope notes, so catalogers know how to apply terms to records. 2 It is time for catalogers to devise their own solution while they continue to lobby the Subject Authority Cooperative Program (SACO) to appropriately update LCSH.To make bibliographic records on LGBTQIA+ topics more accessible, the member libraries of Cooperative Computer Services (CCS), a public library consortium in Illinois, approved a policy to allow The Homosaurus: An International

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Section: Potential Solutionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using the Homosaurus in a Public Library Consortium: A Case Study

Fischer¹

2023

LRTS

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“…The research clarified several goals for changes to the classification system: that it be updated to reflect current language, be logically ordered and arranged, function as a living system, and create a historical record of the system's evolution. It is important to note that much of the existing research on knowledge organization for LGBT2QIA+ subjects features critiques of existing systems (Adler, 2017), or focuses on subject cataloguing (Drucker, 2017) and archival representations (Latimer, 2013), and was therefore only tangentially related to the actual process of building a new classification system in a queer context.…”

Section: Classification Projectmentioning

confidence: 99%

Centring LGBT2QIA+ Subjects in Knowledge Organization Systems

Bullard¹,

Dierking²,

Grundner³

2020

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This paper contains a report of two interdependent knowledge organization (KO) projects for an LGBT2QIA+ library. The authors, in the context of volunteer library work for an independent library, redesigned the classification system and subject cataloguing guidelines to centre LGBT2QIA+ subjects. We discuss the priorities of creating and maintaining knowledge organization systems for a historically marginalized community and address the challenge that queer subjectivity poses to the goals of KO. The classification system features a focus on identity and physically reorganizes the library space in a way that accounts for the multiple and overlapping labels that constitute the currently articulated boundaries of this community. The subject heading system focuses on making visible topics and elements of identity made invisible by universal systems and by the newly implemented classification system. We discuss how this project may inform KO for other marginalized subjects, particularly through process and documentation that prioritizes transparency and the acceptance of an unfinished endpoint for queer KO.

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Bibliographies

Birkwood

Howard

2017

Library & Information History

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How Subjects Matter: The Kinsey Institute’s Sexual Nomenclature: A Thesaurus (1976)

Cited by 3 publications

References 22 publications

Using the Homosaurus in a Public Library Consortium: A Case Study

Using the Homosaurus in a Public Library Consortium: A Case Study

Centring LGBT2QIA+ Subjects in Knowledge Organization Systems

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