DEI in libraries

Relatively recently, a colleague (Peggy Griesinger) distributed a bibliography on the topic of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), and I decided to spend some time analyzing the content of the bibliography. This missive outlines what I was able to extract, given the limited time I spent.

Size and scope of the corpus

I began by doing my best to download each of the articles from the bibliography, and for the most part, I was successful. The corpus contains twenty-four articles for a total of about 230,000 words. (This is about the size of the Iliad and the Odyssey.) This averages out to 9,600 words/article. Based on my experience, these articles are larger than most academic journal articles. The following two graphs illustrate the point, but you can see that one of the items is much larger than the rest, specifically, "Browsing through Bias" by Sara A. Howard:

boxplot histogram

Through rudimentary counting & tabulating of unigrams and bigrams, I began to get a feel for the corpus's aboutness. A visualization of statistically significant keywords does the same:

wordcloud
unigrams
wordcloud
bigrams
word cloud
keywords

For more detail regarding size and scope, see the automatically generated about page.

Linking keywords to items

I then wanted to visualize what keywords were associated with what items in the collection. While I could have done this a different way, I first created an RDF/XML representation of the bibliography, queried for items and their associated keywords, and output a Graph Modeling Language (GML) file. I then visualized the file. From the results you can see that many of the keywords are not shared across the articles with the exceptions of "records", "identity", "access", "indigenous", and "congress". With many keywords, the article by Howard stands out, again. We can also see the article by Doyle is somewhat broken, in that the underlying OCR contains many words with many spaces:

network
documents associated with keywords

More about aboutness

I then did some topic modeling, and since there were twenty-four items in the collection, I decided to model using twelve topics, just because twelve is a factor of twenty-four.  :)  A list of the topics, and a pie chart illustrating the topics echoes themes from the set of keywords:

         labels  weights                                           features
           work  0.86813  work people subject use terms university acces...
      authority  0.27605  authority access control record records metada...
           slow  0.19817  slow copyright rights digital librarianship co...
         gender  0.17810  gender name records trans identity transgender...
     indigenous  0.15415  indigenous knowledge nations organization abor...
         ethics  0.14408  ethics ethical catalogers code subject neutral...
      knowledge  0.12845  indigenous knowledge tribal peoples native sys...
           open  0.09336  gender open data knowledge wikidata respondent...
       archival  0.09149  archival archives knowledge cultural digital c...
    description  0.08941  archival description archives black archivists...
            sex  0.06362  sex queer sexual homosaurus terms lgbtq trans ...
        african  0.00990  african special states civil united americans ...
piechart
themes across the corpus

I then pivoted the underlying model on author names in order to get an idea of what each author discussed. Most of the authors discuss two overall topics (remember, I modeled on 12 topics and there are 24 items in the corpus), but three authors were a bit different. For example, Griesinger's bibliography includes the widest degree of the themes, while the articles by Howard and Olson are almost exclusively seem to be on a single topic, "african" and "archival", respectively:

topics

Upon closer inspection, the article written by Olsen proved to be false positive because it contains zero optical character recognition text, sans copyright notices. (See the plain text version of the Olson article.)

Diversity, equity, and inclusion

While the theme of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) does not explicitly show itself in the previous analysis, the theme is very much present. For example, to illustrate what words are used "in the same breath" as the idea of DEI, I first concordanced for the roots of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and then I created a simple word cloud. I don't think there will be any surprises here:

word cloud
Words used "in the same breath" as diversity, equity, and inclusion

I then extracted all the sentences from the corpus containing the same roots, and then submitted them to a pair of machine learning models (QuestionGenerator and ExtractiveQAPipeline) which: 1) enumerate questions that might be answered by the text, and 2) tries to answer the questions. This is a useful process for text summarization. I implemented this using three files: 1) list-questions.py - extracts questions from a text, 2) ask-a-file.py - given questions, output plausiable answers, and 3) list-and-answer.sh - a wrapper for the previous two files. Many of the interesting (at least to me) question/answer pairs included the following:

Double-click on the questions to see the answers.

  1. Criticisms have focused on the biases and limits of what?
    • answer: representation
    • context: al cataloging is the LCSH. Criticisms have focused on the biases and limits of representation in the systems to serve diverse populations in areas of
    • answer: ethical metadata
    • context: ethical metadata; bias in cataloging; diversity; equity; inclusion; linked data http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4125-2397 http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7514-0
  2. How are librarians' skill sets honed?
    • answer: through ongoing interaction with diverse groups
    • context: resentation of library materials shapes their skill sets and approaches to instruction which are honed through ongoing interaction with diverse groups
  3. How can diverse communities find new modes of access to materials?
    • answer: through user-recommended cross-references
    • context: erse communities find new modes of access to materials through user-recommended cross-references, but minoritized people can develop relationships and
    • answer: expanded metadata fields
    • context: 17. http://sched.co/ABGn Lyon, Meghan. Alongside the content, expanded metadata fields based on local needs and vocabularies including "traditional k
  4. How do you identify trans-related content and metadata?
    • answer: through regular assessment
    • context: xtual information for trans and gender diverse resources. ● Identify trans-related content and metadata through regular assessment and prioritize for
  5. How long has bias in LCSH borne fruit?
    • answer: three decades
    • context: trated attention to the issue of bias in LCSH has borne fruit in the three decades since the publication of [Prejudices and Antipathies], and the libr
  6. How many core professional values did librarians identify in a survey of information workers?
    • answer: patron service
    • context: ost identified value among academic librarians in North America was patron service. Regarding the LCSH, Steven A. Knowlton reports on the changes imp
  7. Indigenous diversity precludes what?
    • answer: generalization
    • context: on at the Xwi7xwa Library. Although Indigenous diversity precludes generalization, knowledge in Indigenous contexts is frequently characterized a s w
  8. Minoritized people can develop relationships and mutual support through what?
    • answer: discussion and sharing
    • context: erials through user-recommended cross-references, but minoritized people can develop relationships and mutual support through discussion and sharing.
  9. Not every work that uses LGBT includes what?
    • answer: gender diversity
    • context: s sexuality and gender, essentially erasing trans and gender-diverse people. Not every work that uses LGBT includes gender diversity.15 If a resource
  10. The traditional notion of permanent metadata can also be a hindrance in creating what?
    • answer: diverse metadata
    • context: l notion of permanent metadata can also be a hindrance in creating diverse metadata describing a creator. This opens the door for the authority of de
  11. What are the most salient properties to the community?
    • answer: service to the client, (2) equality of access, (3) information literacy, (4) intellectual freedom, (5) preservation of the cultural record, (6) literacy, (7) professional neutrality, (8) diversity of opinion, (9) confidentiality of records, (10) cultural diversity, and (11) copyright and intellectual property rights
    • context: service to the client, (2) equality of access, (3) information literacy, (4) intellectual freedom, (5) preservation of the cultural record, (6) literacy, (7) professional neutrality, (8) diversity of opinion, (9) confidentiality of records, (10) cultural diversity, and (11) copyright and intellectual property rights
  12. What are these interrelated dual dimensions?
    • answer: gender, sexuality, race, age, ability, ethnicity, language, and religion
    • context: gender, sexuality, race, age, ability, ethnicity, language, and religion.43 Patrick Keilty specifically addresses how subject classification and ontol
  13. What can also be a hindrance in creating diverse metadata describing a creator?
    • answer: The traditional notion of permanent metadata
    • context: diverse communities and from diverse populations."31 The traditional notion of permanent metadata can also be a hindrance in creating diverse metadata
    • answer: biases
    • context: ect access, many ethical issues and problems arise as to how to address biases, whether catalogers should label creators, the logistics of how to do s
  14. What do critics of LCSH focus on?
    • answer: the biases and limits of representation
    • context: cal cataloging is the LCSH. Criticisms have focused on the biases and limits of representation in the systems to serve diverse populations in areas o
  15. What do different cultures and languages have terms for?
    • answer: genders
    • context: munities and subjects ○ Different cultures and languages have terms for genders that may not translate into the primary language of description. ● Co
  16. What has long characterized the efforts of libraries to arrange their collections of books?
    • answer: The neat division of knowledge into tidy silos of scholarly disciplines
    • context: in the library community.1 Introduction The neat division of knowledge into tidy silos of scholarly disciplines, each with its own section of a knowle
    • answer: equal access to all users
    • context: ents as hopeful milestones in the continuing effort to provide equal access to all users."40 The Library of Congress continues to be amenable to revis
  17. What is a good place to start?
    • answer: headings
    • context: h trans and gender diverse terminology. A good place to start is with headings that follow an established pattern such as those in the Arts, Culture
  18. What is required to represent diverse library reading materials?
    • answer: Core Values
    • context: Library Association's "Core Values" of diversity and social responsibility, as called for by Roberts and Noble (2016), is to provide insight into the
  19. What is subject to political pressure from the U.S. Congress?
    • answer: single controlled vocabulary
    • context: abularies be used to supplement LCSH to reduce reliance on a single controlled vocabulary that is subject to political pressure from the U.S. Congress
  20. What is the core value of the American Library Association?
    • answer: diversity and social responsibility
    • context: Library Association's "Core Values" of diversity and social responsibility, as called for by Roberts and Noble (2016), is to provide insight into the
    • answer: to provide access to library resources for diverse communities and from diverse populations
    • context: Association (ALA) core value "to provide access to library resources for diverse communities and from diverse populations."31 The traditional notion o
  21. What is the most identified value of a library?
    • answer: patron service
    • context: ost identified value among academic librarians in North America was patron service. Regarding the LCSH, Steven A. Knowlton reports on the changes imp
    • answer: service to the client
    • context: lowing 11 core professional values identified by librarians: (1) service to the client, (2) equality of access, (3) information literacy, (4) intellec
  22. What is the opportunity for inclusivity and diversity in authority work for identification of creators and authors?
    • answer: Outside of subject headings and classifications
    • context: ing, social tagging, and user-sourced knowledge."52 Outside of subject headings and classifications, there is also the opportunity for inclusivity and
    • answer: user studies with underrepresented and diverse racial and cultural groups
    • context: her exploration and could benefit from user studies with underrepresented and diverse racial and cultural groups to address biases and incorporate inc
  23. What is the purpose of vocabularies created by subculture and non-majority communities?
    • answer: to address the inclusion of diverse description by gender, occupation, ethnicity, geographic region, audience, and age
    • context: abularies exist to address the inclusion of diverse description by gender, occupation, ethnicity, geographic region, audience, and age, but most are n
  24. What was the most identified value among academic librarians in North America?
    • answer: patron service
    • context: ost identified value among academic librarians in North America was patron service. Regarding the LCSH, Steven A. Knowlton reports on the changes imp
  25. Where can you find the Diversity Style Guide?
    • answer: https://www.diversitystyleguide.com/
    • context: dgt.html (Demographic Group Terms) Diversity Style Guide https://www.diversitystyleguide.com/ https://www.diversitystyleguide.com/topic-glossaries/rac
  26. Who creates metadata about trans and gender diverse people, communities, resources and topics?
    • answer: workers in cultural heritage institutions
    • context: s This document is designed to serve as a resource for workers in cultural heritage institutions who create metadata about trans and gender diverse pe
    • answer: Trans Metadata Collective
    • context: ument is the result of a year of work and collaboration by the Trans Metadata Collective (TMDC; https://transmetadatacollective.org/), a group of doze
  27. Whose professional activities shape their skill sets and approaches to instruction?
    • answer: librarians
    • context: er identified the following 11 core professional values identified by librarians: (1) service to the client, (2) equality of access, (3) information l
    • answer: librarians
    • context: ctives in widely diverse social, political and economic spheres. The librarians' professional activities of selection, acquisition, and representatio
  28. Who were not consulted during the creation of categories?
    • answer: Asian and Asian American communities
    • context: ces colonial terminology in general and specifically for Asian and Asian American communities who were not consulted during the creation of categories
  29. Why does scope note not apply to trans and gender diverse people?
    • answer: it talks about individuals presenting themselves as something they're not through concealing aspects of their identity
    • context: se people since it talks about individuals presenting themselves as something they're not through concealing aspects of their identity.19 However, unt
    • answer: it conflates sexuality and gender
    • context: actory because it's not a commonly used phrase and because it conflates sexuality and gender, essentially erasing trans and gender-diverse people. No
  30. Women and people of non-traditional genders are examples of what?
    • answer: traditionally marginalized communities
    • context: nderrepresented populations. Specifically, people from traditionally marginalized communities in the USA, including women and people of non-tradition
  31. Criticisms have focused on what?
    • answer: the biases and limits of representation
    • context: cal cataloging is the LCSH. Criticisms have focused on the biases and limits of representation in the systems to serve diverse populations in areas o
  32. Feinberg pushes back against what concept?
    • answer: a universal and "ideal definition
    • context: nformation systems, and pushes back against the concept of a universal and "ideal definition."64 This acknowledgement of the decisions made in the des
  33. How are marginalized peoples repeatedly segregated and ghettoized?
    • answer: institutional cataloging and classification practices
    • context: e repeatedly segregated and "ghettoized" through institutional cataloging and classification practices.13 Most commonly, these practices consist of (1
  34. In recent years, ethical debate has focused on issues of what?
    • answer: neutrality, inclusivity, self-determination, and privacy
    • context: years, ethical debate has focused on issues of neutrality, inclusivity, self-determination, and privacy. Interrogating the ways that subject headings
    • answer: social responsibility
    • context: This sort of behavior is not neutrality, and in fact conflicts with one of the libraries' core values and ethics of social responsibility.19 Following
    • answer: equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives
    • context: equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives. In "Principles and Concepts in Information Ethics," Burgess (2019, 1) asserts that "if, figuratively sp
    • answer: gender and sexuality
    • context: of gender and sexuality are being challenged and explored as never before (Diamond 2020), including in many institutions of higher education, where di
  35. Libraries and institutions in the twenty-first century have embedded what principles into their values and strategic goals?
    • answer: diversity, equity, and inclusion
    • context: and institutions in the twenty-first century have embedded diversity, equity, and inclusion principles into their values and strategic goals. Aborigi
    • answer: social justice
    • context: n library and information science practice, research, and pedagogy, social justice as a core value in libraries also encompasses cataloging values for
    • answer: age, appearance, empowerment, ethnicity and race and nationality, gender and sex and sexuality, and health
    • context: age, appearance, empowerment, ethnicity and race and nationality, gender and sex and sexuality, and health. Program presented at the American Library
  36. People working in libraries and archives have been increasingly focusing on issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in what?
    • answer: linked data
    • context: ; ethical metadata; bias in cataloging; diversity; equity; inclusion; linked data http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4125-2397 http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7514
    • answer: their descriptive practices
    • context: eir energies on issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in their descriptive practices, including remediating legacy data and addressing biased lan
    • answer: library technical services
    • context: tegration and inclusion of queer subjects? Diversity, inclusion, and social justice in library technical services. The relationship between archival
  37. Tillman notes that despite the potential of linked data, what does Tillman note?
    • answer: incorporating unheard voices
    • context: data, Tillman notes that Despite the potential it offers for incorporating unheard voices, a multiplicity of representation or viewpoints does not inh
  38. To modify practices and services through the lens of diversity, equity, and inclusion, what does often it require?
    • answer: workshops
    • context: rchivist and other staff who work with photographs. Following the guidance gleaned from many workshops on the best practices for equitable, inclusive
    • answer: remediating legacy data and addressing biased language
    • context: usion in their descriptive practices, including remediating legacy data and addressing biased language. This paper will focus on the inclusion of gen
  39. We hold an inclusive view of what term?
    • answer: Aboriginal
    • context: ity, and inclusion principles into their values and strategic goals. Aboriginal is used as an inclusive category for all Indigenous people in Canada,
    • answer: accessibility
    • context: cate ourselves on evolving language and practices of inclusivity and accessibility. People working in libraries and archives have been increasingly f
    • answer: reparative description
    • context: discuss reparative description and cataloging standards as important efforts to make descriptive practices in GLAM institutions more inclusive and exa
    • answer: descriptive
    • context: he Technical Services Department has long been committed to inclusive descriptive practices, but recently its staff has undertaken a more formalized e
    • answer: inclusive language
    • context: them as we expand our understanding of "inclusive language" is a worthy endeavor. While attempting to be inclusive, this is actually to the detriment
  40. What are practices to be more ethical and inclusive?
    • answer: archival descriptive
    • context: processing born-digital and audiovisual materials and improving archival descriptive practices to be more ethical and inclusive. 8 See Dominique Lus
    • answer: Cataloging ethics; Cataloguing Code of Ethics; ethical metadata; bias in cataloging; diversity; equity
    • context: Cataloging ethics; Cataloguing Code of Ethics; ethical metadata; bias in cataloging; diversity; equity; inclusion; linked data http://orcid.org/0000-0
  41. What are resources about gender inclusive of?
    • answer: trans and gender diverse identities and experiences
    • context: ity, resources about gender that are inclusive of trans and gender diverse identities and experiences. Bibliographies & Other Sources Consulted Archi
    • answer: open knowledge projects
    • context: . This paper will focus on the inclusion of gender identity in open knowledge projects. Having internal policies or adhering to external group polic
    • answer: trans and gender diverse identities and experiences
    • context: dentity ● gender (if the resource is inclusive of trans and gender diverse identities and experiences in a significant way) The best practices about n
  42. What are some of the biases in cataloging?
    • answer: all standards
    • context: been excluded by white supremacist, patriarchal practices. However, all standards are biased; we will approach them critically and advocate to make c
    • answer: personal, institutional, and standards levels
    • context: es for inclusive metadata and awareness of biases at personal, institutional, and standards levels. They recommend providing additional access throug
    • answer: diversity; equity; inclusion
    • context: oguing Code of Ethics; ethical metadata; bias in cataloging; diversity; equity; inclusion; linked data http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4125-2397 http://orc
    • answer: race-related materials
    • context: outdated, incomplete, or offensive description, particularly in race-related materials. 7 This work of creating more inclusive descriptions extends t
  43. What could benefit from user studies with underrepresented and diverse racial and cultural groups?
    • answer: characteristics of creators
    • context: characteristics of creators requires further exploration and could benefit from user studies with underrepresented and diverse racial and cultural gro
    • answer: incorporating unheard voices
    • context: data, Tillman notes that Despite the potential it offers for incorporating unheard voices, a multiplicity of representation or viewpoints does not inh
  44. What creates barriers to access for those most likely to use and see themselves represented in a particular collection?
    • answer: biases
    • context: opic in ethical cataloging is the LCSH. Criticisms have focused on the biases and limits of representation in the systems to serve diverse population
  45. What did Dominique Luster say about conscious language?
    • answer: "conscious language = kind language + compassionate language + mindful language + empowering language + respectful language + inclusive language
    • context: n: "conscious language = kind language + compassionate language + mindful language + empowering language + respectful language + inclusive language."
  46. What did many people indicate they were including this information to highlight?
    • answer: marginalized groups or inequities in collections
    • context: they were including this information to highlight marginalized groups or inequities in collections, that there were so few responses indicating that
    • answer: under-represented histories
    • context: clusive, equitable description is crucial in bringing to light under-represented histories. At the David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library
    • answer: potentially offensive language
    • context: o the mainstream. 10 Other strategies to call attention to potentially offensive language are to include a general alert in the collection inventory,
    • answer: racial, national, tribal, religious, linguistic, or cultural background
    • context: racial, national, tribal, religious, linguistic, or cultural background… Also index under name of ethnic group." C a t a l o g u e a n d I n d e x htt
  47. What does a cataloger need to assess to ensure subject headings are used by the groups being described?
    • answer: mirror terms
    • context: taloger should assess if subject headings for groups being described mirror terms are used by those groups. They then recommend the addition of other
    • answer: structured metadata
    • context: eavily on good description subject headings, tags, narrative, and structured metadata - created by catalogers and other information professionals; fur
  48. What does conscious language take into account?
    • answer: the many intersections of identities humans can occupy
    • context: guage + respectful language + inclusive language It takes into account the many intersections of identities humans can occupy: ability and disability,
  49. What does respectful language + inclusive language take into account?
    • answer: conscious language
    • context: re ethical and inclusive. 8 See Dominique Luster's formulation: "conscious language = kind language + compassionate language + mindful language + emp
  50. What do we commit to continually educate ourselves on?
    • answer: evolving language and practices of inclusivity and accessibility
    • context: commit to continually educate ourselves on evolving language and practices of inclusivity and accessibility. People working in libraries and archives
  51. What is a core value in libraries?
    • answer: social justice
    • context: n library and information science practice, research, and pedagogy, social justice as a core value in libraries also encompasses cataloging values for
    • answer: diversity, equity, and inclusion principles
    • context: nstitutions in the twenty-first century have embedded diversity, equity, and inclusion principles into their values and strategic goals. Aboriginal i
  52. What is the purpose of the cataloging lab?
    • answer: a crowdsourcing website for the drafting of proposals to revise and create new LCSHs for greater inclusivity
    • context: he Cataloging Lab is a crowdsourcing website for the drafting of proposals to revise and create new LCSHs for greater inclusivity. While there may be
    • answer: inclusivity
    • context: Over this time, it has become more and more accepted that inclusivity is a necessary value for cataloging because a library and its catalog cannot eff
  53. What term could be problematic and not inclusive of non-Western and Indigenous gender identities and gender systems?
    • answer: transgender
    • context: ld be a colonial imposition" (2019, 114), so even the use of the term transgender could be problematic and not inclusive of non-Western and Indigenous
    • answer: queer
    • context: s how subject classification and ontologies can find it difficult to account for queer phenomena.44 Keilty concludes that this is largely a product of
  54. Who explores barriers to ethical name modeling in linked data practices?
    • answer: Ruth Kitchin Tillman
    • context: f the design, adding context for users in Feinberg's approach.65 Ruth Kitchin Tillman explores barriers to ethical name modeling in linked data practi
  55. Who founded the Cataloging Lab?
    • answer: Violet Fox
    • context: changes to Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH).22 Founded by Violet Fox in 2018, the Cataloging Lab is a crowdsourcing website for the drafti
  56. Orienting the proposal process around literary warrant introduces what two major issues?
    • answer: one regarding the size and scale of proposed changes and another around its reliance on the publishing industry for equity and representation
    • context: ues, one regarding the size and scale of proposed changes and another around its reliance on the publishing industry for equity and representation. T
    • answer: equity, and inclusion in their descriptive practices
    • context: equity, and inclusion in their descriptive practices, including remediating legacy data and addressing biased language. These are just a few examples
  57. Professionals should focus on what?
    • answer: equity
    • context: objectivity as a notion is rigid and that professionals should focus on equity not equality in that they should consider the context of the topic and
    • answer: issues of diversity
    • context: lossary 43 References Adler, Melissa. People working in libraries and archives have been increasingly focusing their energies on issues of diversity,
  58. What are librarians in slow libraries focused on?
    • answer: relationship-building
    • context: organization systems. Workers in slow libraries are focused on relationship-building, deeply understanding and meeting patron needs, and providing e
  59. What is an uncomfortable situation for librarians invested in working toward gender equity?
    • answer: observing these kinds of misrepresentations
    • context: librarians invested in working toward gender equity, observing these kinds of misrepresentations within an information system that many trained catal
  60. What is the focus of librarians in slow libraries?
    • answer: relationship-building
    • context: organization systems. Workers in slow libraries are focused on relationship-building, deeply understanding and meeting patron needs, and providing e
  61. What must catalogers also acknowledge?
    • answer: none of these representations are neutral
    • context: ke and Schoonmaker assert that catalogers must also acknowledge that none of these representations are neutral, and there is always either an implicit
    • answer: privilege and responsibility
    • context: ractices. Bair states, "Catalogers recognize and accept the privilege and responsibility that is ours as gatekeepers of infor180 JOURNAL OF LIBRARY A
    • answer: Ethical missteps
    • context: cprof:oso/9780195316872.001.0001/acprof-9780195316872-chapter-4 32 Ethical missteps in description can be summarized as three behaviors to be aware of
  62. What was the purpose of bringing awareness of inequities in collections?
    • answer: to promote social justice
    • context: to inequities within their collections or bringing awareness of inequities in general to promote social justice. It was also curious, given how many
    • answer: to highlight marginalized groups
    • context: people indicated that they were including this information to highlight marginalized groups or inequities in collections, that there were so few respo

Slow librarianship

Along the way I also learned about "slow librarianship". After all, the word "slow" turned out to be a label in the topic modeled themes. Concordancing for the phrase "slow librarianship is", I get the following pseudo-definitions:

For more detail, see What is slow librarianship? by Meredith Farkas.

Summary

It goes without saying, DEI is a thing in libraries and librarianship; the articles in the given bibliography discuss DEI, and many of the extracted sentences elaborate on the how's and why's of DEI in libraries, specificaly in cataloging practice. "Thank you, Peggy, for bringing these things to my attention."

What is interesting to me is an apparent shift of librarianship in the past few decades. For a long time, libraries seemed to be about books, but with the advent of computers, library schools evolved into "i" (information) schools, but now-a-days, especially in practice, librarianship seems to be less about data, information, and knowledge and more about social justice. I suppose such is a sign of the times.

Colophon

The analysis of this missive is rooted in the Distant Reader and the Distant Reader Toolbox. More specifically, the Toolbox was first used to create a data set -- a "study carrel" -- from the content of the bibliography, and second, used to do the analysis. The study carrel ought to be available at http://carrels.distantreader.org/curated-dei_in_libraries-2024/index.zip, and if you: 1) download the carrel, and 2) install the Toolbox, then you will be able to do you own analysis and make your own interpretations. It is quite likely you will come up with a different set of observations and conclusions.

Fun with text mining, natural language processing, and data science with words.


Eric Lease Morgan <emorgan@nd.edu>
Navari Family Center for Digital Scholarship
University of Notre Dame

Date created: May 12, 2023
Date modified: May 30, 2024