The Prince George Public Library has updated terminology in its catalogue records when describing books on topics related to Indigenous peoples.
This project is a significant milestone in PGPL’s ongoing commitment for reconciliation and the important role of language in seeking to create an inclusive and welcoming library experience.
Subject headings are the official terms that searchers use to find books and other resources on specific topics on the shelves of the library.
To reflect Indigenous perspectives and honour diverse cultures, the library has replaced culturally inappropriate and outdated subject headings with terms that are more accurate and culturally appropriate.
Notable highlights include “Indians of North America” changing to “Indigenous Peoples--North America,” and the term “Off-Reservation Boarding Schools” being updated to “Residential Schools.”
This initiative also places the library in alignment with other Canadian libraries working to update their internal processes, including examining the key role that language plays in creating an inclusive library experience.
“We are very proud to announce the completion of this project, a step forward in updating our cataloguing practices to ensure the language used is more respectful and inclusive,” Paul Burry, library director, said.
“The work performed by the members of our collections and technology team allows us to better represent the knowledge and experiences of Indigenous peoples, while supporting our mission to make the library as welcoming as possible to everyone in our community.”
Chris Field, who joined the library earlier in 2023 as manager of collections and technology, was able to lead this complex project thanks to his background in library systems administration and technical services.
“Libraries use subject headings to describe the topic of a book, but the standardized vocabulary we derive those terms from contains language that is antiquated and culturally insensitive,” Field said. “By adopting a new Indigenous-specific vocabulary developed by our colleagues at Greater Victoria Public Library, PGPL staff were able to identify and replace thousands of outdated headings in our library catalogue.”
Moving forward all new materials added to the library’s collection will undergo careful review to ensure they adhere to the updated subject headings and reflect the library’s commitment to respectful representation.
