Introduction

The SILS Ethical and Inclusive Metadata Practices in UC Library Search (EIMP) Project Team (PT) recommends each UC campus create a public-facing statement of commitment to describing library collections in an inclusive, respectful manner and acknowledgement of potentially offensive language in library metadata. Special Collections & Archives have been at the forefront of this work, and campuses may already have their own statements for these materials. Because boundaries between various types of library materials may not be apparent to users of UC Library Search, it is important to (also) have a single, overarching statement.

Components of an Inclusive Language Statement

Below are suggested components of harmful languages that EIMP-PT identified through the evaluation of statements from various libraries and archives.

Commit to inclusive/ethical description and user experience

Providing an explicit commitment to addressing harmful language in the library catalog is an important way of making clear to readers how the library values and prioritizes an inclusive user experience within the library catalog. By detailing the specific commitments the library is making with regard to ethical description, the library can demonstrate an action-oriented approach to readers, as well as tie these commitments to larger Library values and mission statements around equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility.

Examples:

To ensure that the result of our work is inclusive, humanizing and anti-oppressive, we have adopted the following commitments to create and remediate description:.. (UCLA Library Ethical Description Policy)

We are committed to the on-going work of creating and updating our cataloging and metadata practices to reflect the Library’s values of diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility. (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library Statement on Potentially Harmful Languages in Library Catalog)

Acknowledge the presence of harmful language in the description 

Include wording that prepares the user for potentially harmful and problematic metadata they may find the library catalog. This includes terms that are biased and can help perpetuate the oppression of marginalized groups. Users may even encounter names of organizations and geographic places that include outdated and offensive terms.

**Acknowledge the library’s responsibility to describe resources & their creators respectfully and carefully

Examples:

As a result, catalog records and archival descriptions sometimes contain language that is harmful or omits important information. (Columbia University Libraries Statement on Inclusive Editing of Harmful Language in Library and Archival Descriptions)

While personnel in UMD Libraries' Cataloging and Metadata Services department strive to use inclusive language to describe library materials, you may encounter harmful language in our catalog. (University of Maryland Libraries Statement of harmful language in catalog records)

While we strive to catalog our collections as carefully and thoroughly as possible, we acknowledge that previous descriptive practices and outdated metadata conventions sometimes produce entries and information that are not historically accurate, or are offensive or discriminatory. (UCLA Clark Library Statement on Cataloging)

Provide information on why harmful language may be present 

Providing information on why harmful language might be present in a library catalog is essential because it acknowledges the historical and ongoing impact of oppressive systems on marginalized communities. When providing a statement, it's important to distinguish between transcribed data, which reflects the language used by the creator of the material, and cataloger-provided data, which may introduce additional biases. Furthermore, statements should acknowledge that catalogers may not be members of the communities they are describing, which can lead to misrepresentation or erasure. Additionally, statements should also mention that legacy data in the catalog may contain harmful language that was previously acceptable but is now recognized as offensive.

** Differentiate between transcribed and prescribed(?) metadata

**Acknowledge library staff may be describing communities they are not a part of

**Legacy data

Examples:

…you may encounter harmful language in our catalog. You may find examples of such language in book titles, subtitles, or other information transcribed directly from library materials. In these instances, harmful words are not censored because this content provides historical context for understanding the era, attitudes, and opinions of their creators. (University of Maryland Libraries Statement of harmful language in catalog records)

Many of our catalog records and finding aids were created years ago and may contain harmful language. It was a common practice to reuse language provided by creators, previous owners, and vendors. (Brandeis University Library Statement on Potentially Harmful Language in Collections, Cataloging and Description)

Provide a mechanism for reporting offensive language

Provide a resource/reference list

How often this statement is reviewed / updated

Invitation for feedback on the statement itself