Documenting LGBTQ Life: News and Events
Special Collections to Host Virtual LGBTQ Wikipedia Edit-a-thon

Special Collections to Host Virtual LGBTQ Wikipedia Edit-a-thon

Are you looking for a way to meaningfully contribute to your community- without leaving your living room?

During the week of July 13 to July 17, 2020, Special Collections is sponsoring an edit-a-thon that will focus on strengthening representation of LGBTQ individuals, events, and issues on Wikipedia. An extension of the Documenting LGBTQ Life in the Lowcountry project, this weeklong event will give participants an opportunity to learn how to write and edit Wikipedia articles, sharpen their research skills, and empower them to address gaps present in LGBTQ-related Wikipedia entries. Participants will be provided with a curated list of articles for revision and creation based upon ongoing efforts to collect, organize, and document the Lowcountry’s understudied and underrepresented LGBTQ history.  

Wikipedia is the largest open access encyclopedia in the world. Students and researchers from all educational backgrounds use it as a jumping-off point for research. Unfortunately, it suffers from representational bias. LGBTQ articles, which are often short and lack robust sources, are commonly flagged by Wikipedia as not notable enough to be written about. Participants will help push back against the lack of LGBTQ representation on Wikipedia by using resources in our collections to strengthen these articles. 

Whether you have the time to edit ten articles or can only add a single sentence, no contribution is too small. Anyone is welcome to join and no experience is required! Training will be provided. 

You can view a list of articles to be edited, learn more about LGBTQ Life in the Lowcountry, and complete easy to follow Wikipedia training modules on the LGBTQ Lowcountry Wikipedia Edit-a-thon LibGuide. Sign up for the event here or email lgbtq@cofc.edu with questions. 

Happy editing! 

Upcoming events

In the Zone

We’re participating with Safe Zone training at College of Charleston in a special LGBTQ history workshop on October 8. Check out http://safezone.cofc.edu/ for more information.

News

Our first oral histories are now available on the Lowcountry Digital Library! You can read the transcripts and listen to the recordings from our collection page.

We’ve just posted a new article by Harlan Greene about the Garden & Gun club, a mixed gay and straight bar in Charleston in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Click here to read the article.

We now have a LibGuide to supplement our collections with the College of Charleston! You can find books, web resources, articles, and videos to add context and depth to the archival materials and oral histories that are part of the project. Visit https://libguides.library.cofc.edu/lgbtq to explore the guide and find resources to help further your research.

Check out our online exhibit and virtual tour of Charleston’s queer history. Developed by Harlan Greene and Dr. Sandy Slater, The Real Rainbow Row takes you to different locations through downtown Charleston that relate to LGBTQ history. Come learn the history you may have missed at The Real Rainbow Row website. Now you can take the virtual tour at http://speccoll.cofc.edu/the-real-rainbow-row-map/

Our social media is up and running! Visit us on Twitter @lgbtlowcountry, Instagram @lgbtlowcountry, Facebook @LGTBQ Life in the Lowcountry, and SoundCloud @lgbtqlowcountry.

Previous events

We hosted an exhibit and cocktail hour as part of the College of Charleston’s Fall Alumni Weekend on November 16. It was a great opportunity to share the progress our project has made so far.

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New LGBTQ archive at College of Charleston receives grant to help document neglected era of history

Two years ago, a graduate student at the College of Charleston approached Harlan Greene at the Special Collections desk to request materials concerning Charleston’s LGBTQ history.

CofC calls on LGBTQ alumni to share their stories for posterity

The Special Collections department of the College of Charleston libraries is collecting stories, records, and documents that showcase "the rich history of the Lowcountry's gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community."

The Real Rainbow Row Walking Tour

This project focuses on people, events, and places in Charleston that attest to a strong and vibrant queer past.