ACM is actively committed to reparative and inclusive archival practices, including archival description, metadata management, and systems environments. This growing section includes local documentation and other resources centering ethical description, critical cataloging, and equitable technology to support this work.
You may encounter harmful language in our description, which includes catalog records, finding aids, collection guides, and inventories. If you encounter harmful language in description, or would like to request changes, please complete this form.
Materials in our collections, which comprise a part of the cultural and historical record, may depict offensive and objectionable perspectives, imagery, and norms. While we have control over description of our collections, we cannot alter the content. We are committed to reassessing and modifying description when possible so that it more accurately and transparently reflects the content of materials that are harmful and triggering in any way and for any reason.
As librarians and archivists at NYU Libraries, we are actively confronting and remediating how we describe our collection materials. We know that language can and does perpetuate harm, and the work we are undertaking centers on anti-oppressive practices. We are also making reparative changes, all to ensure that the descriptive language we use upholds and enacts our values of inclusion, diversity, equity, belonging, and accessibility.
Once you submit the form, we will review and act on your request, and document any changes we make. You can submit the form anonymously if you prefer, or provide your contact information to receive updates.