‘A process where we’re all at the table’: community archives challenging dominant modes of archival practice

Abstract

Community archives have compelled shifts in dominant archival management practices to reflect community agency and values. To analyse these shifts, we ask: In what ways do community archives and their staff challenge traditional archival modes of practice? Do community archives work within or against dominant frameworks for institutional sustainability? Do community archives challenge or replicate dominant custody practices? Based on semi-structured interviews with 17 founders, staff and volunteers at 12 Southern California community archives, this research examines the diverse models of practice utilised by community archives practitioners that diverge from and challenge standard practices in the field. By addressing these questions, our research uncovers a variety of models of practice employed by communities in Southern California to autonomously create and sustain their archives.

Ethical accountability and high-stakes recordkeeping: Discussions from the Sex Work Activist Histories Project

“…Academic contributors will also explore how this work requires them to open up their definitions of what is a record, what is an archives, and what is a best practice, as they discuss and prioritize the understanding of these concepts with non-academic stakeholders. As with other community archives, because this project focuses on preserving histories in ways that matter to their creators, foundational and traditional archival concepts are revisited if/when they don't serve the goals of the project (Zavala, Migoni, Caswell, Geraci & Cifor, 2017). Opening up and questioning these definitions and practices can feel risky.…”

Managing Volunteers in Archives: Developing Mutually Beneficial Experiences

“…Many community archive projects are the result of the interest and commitment of a core group of volunteers. 4 A strong volunteer program provides an established archives program with many benefits. Volunteers contribute valuable work to the overall goals of the department.…”

Addressing cultural insensitivity in archival description: A literature review examining collaborative approaches

“…The emergence and rising use of community archiving practices has helped to address some issues of misrepresentation in the archive. A community stewardship model focuses on collaboration between archives and communities, more evenly distributing institutional power (Zavala et. al, 2017).…”

“…In some instances, the authority of description and access remains directly in the hands and control of the community. It is not difficult to bring community input into descriptive practices, as long as institutions and archivists are willing to share their inherent power and control with the community (Tai, 2018;Zavala et al, 2017). Centering the voice and input of the community can happen at different Archivists in the aforementioned archives acknowledge the inequalities and biases inherent the archival institution, and more minutely, the process of archival description.…”