Harmful Content in Scholars' Bank

Scholars’ Bank contains some content and descriptive language that may be harmful or difficult to view. This content and the language used to describe it may include overt expressions of bigotry or bias, outdated cultural or geographical references, or stereotypes. We acknowledge that this impacts those accessing our collections and has the potential to perpetuate systemic discrimination and cultural bias. In providing access to these historical materials, the University of Oregon Libraries does not endorse any attitudes, prejudices, or behaviors contained therein.

What potentially harmful or difficult content is present in Scholars’ Bank?

Some items may:

  • Reflect white supremacist and American imperialist ideologies, which include racist, sexist, misogynistic/misogynoir, and xenophobic opinions and attitudes.
  • Be discriminatory towards or exclude diverse views on sexuality, gender, ableism, religion, and more.
  • Include graphic content of historical events such as violent death, medical procedures, crime, wars and terrorist acts, natural disasters and more.
  • Demonstrate bias and exclusion in institutional collecting and digitization policies. 

Where does this content come from? 

Scholars’ Bank was originally envisioned as an open access archive for the scholarly output of faculty and students at the University of Oregon and was broadened to include output from any member (faculty, students, staff) of the campus community, as well as materials supportive of the University’s mission, such as campus publications  and selected permanent University records. Some collections originate from local, state, and national partnerships, or from Special Collections and University Archives. Retrospective digitization of theses, dissertations and other materials date from the University’s earliest years of existence. These digital collections,built over decades, reflect the biases of periods in which they were created, as well as the biases of the donors and library staff at the time they were acquired. These materials may also include records created by, or depicting, marginalized groups of people.Digitized content from UO’s Special Collections and University Archives, including yearbooks and other campus publications, may contain offensive or harmful content or language, but reflect important aspects of institutional history. We retain harmful or offensive content and language for historical accuracy or to document the issues, social context, and attitudes of the material’s creators. Some situations where this might occur include publication titles, names of organizations which contain outdated terms, and use of self-identifying terms that are no longer favored by people within that group today. 

Why are harmful terms and descriptions used?

Harmful terms and descriptions are present in the collection for several reasons, including:

  • Communities with less access to and privilege within libraries and archives have had less control over how they are represented and described.
  • Librarians and archivists choose what language to use when describing materials. Some of these descriptions were written years ago, using language accepted at the time.
  • Librarians and archivists often re-use language provided by creators or former owners of the material. This can provide important context but can also reflect biases and prejudices.
  • Librarians and archivists often use a standardized set of terms, such as the Library of Congress Subject Headings, to describe materials. Some of these terms are outdated, offensive, or insensitive.
  • Librarians and archivists sometimes make mistakes, use poor judgement, and carry conscious bias into their work.

Why does Scholars’ Bank include potentially harmful content?

Scholars’ Bank preserves and presents these materials as part of the historical record, which does include depictions and records of people experiencing trauma and harm. Librarians, archivists, and curators seek to balance the preservation of this history with sensitivity to how these materials are presented to and perceived by users.

How are librarians and archivists working to address this problem and help users better understand such content?

  • Listening to users, researching the problem, experimenting with solutions, and consulting and sharing our findings with our professional communities.
  • Informing users about the presence and origin of harmful content.
  • Working directly with misrepresented and underrepresented communities to improve the ways they are represented.
  • Revising descriptions and standardized sets of descriptive terms, such as Library of Congress Subject Headings, supplementing description with more respectful terms, or creating new standardized terms to describe materials.
  • Evaluating policies for exclusionary practices and institutional biases that prioritize one culture and/or group over another.
  • Making institutional commitments to DEIA (diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility).

How can I report harmful content?

You can help us understand these issues and find solutions by reporting harmful content and language to the Scholars’ Bank Manager. Library staff will collaborate with our partners to flag, change or remove the content, weighing potential harm against considerations such as the accurate preservation of the historical record, best practices, and allocation of available resources. 

This statement was adapted from DPLA’s Statement on Potentially Harmful Content.