Black History Edit-a-Thon 2021

When and Where
Duration	February 2021 register and edit anytime
Training sessions (times in ET)	Feb 5 & 19, 1-4pm Feb 12 & 26, 10am-1pm
Link to join	Register to receive (#Schedule)
Social media
Hashtag	#BlackHistoryMonth #UofT #(your group/institution) + if you're participating from a library: #1Lib1Ref

We invite you to celebrate Black History Month with us. Learn to edit Wikipedia and help us improve its coverage of Black histories!

This virtual editing campaign will last through the month of February 2021.

There will be kickoff and closing events at the beginning and end of the month. We will also run regular, facilitated editing sessions over Zoom.

To join a virtual event, please register in order to receive the video call link. See #Schedule of events for details.

Online. You can edit without joining a virtual event, or join a facilitated virtual event (kick-off event or weekly editing hours).

This event is open to anyone who would like to help grow the sum of fair, dignified, and gender-inclusive Black histories on Wikipedia. All levels of skill are welcome.

You will need internet access and a device (PC, tablet, etc.) which can handle text editing and web searches.

If you are new and would like to learn to edit over one of the facilitated sessions, you will need simultaneous access to Zoom.

We thank all participants (you!) and organisers who kindly share their time to make this virtual editing campaign possible. This event is a joint effort by library staff at University of Toronto's three campuses (Mississauga, Scarborough, and St. George) and the Toronto Public Library. It also builds on a previous event hosted in February 2020 at UTSC Library.

You can edit without joining a virtual event. If this is your preference, see #To edit (the next section).

If you do wish to join a virtual event (kick-off event or weekly editing hours), please register to receive video call links. Registration links can be found in #Schedule of events.

Log in or sign up for an account through one of these Outreach Dashboards:

• General
• Music library

How:

• If you have an account, log in and click Join program under Actions (bottom right section) to register.
• If you don't have an account, click Request an account at the top of the page to request one. You will then obtain an account registered with the edit-a-thon.

If you run into any difficulties, you can email us.

Once you are registered with the event, you can begin editing! See #How to edit and #Tasks for an overview of what you can help with and how. The list of #Online resources may also spark some ideas on what to edit. You are, of course, always welcome to find ways to edit beyond what has been suggested. If you start editing an article in #Tasks, please mark it as "Started" in the Status column.

You can edit in any language. See notes in #Languages. You can also edit on Wikimedia Commons and Wikidata.

You can register with the event anytime. We can count your relevant edits for the duration of February 2021 as long as you are registered by the end of the month. At the end of the event, we will supplement Dashboard counts with data from Event Metrics.

You can edit in any language. We are currently counting edits in the following language Wikipedias:

If you are editing in a language which does not appear on this list, event facilitators are happy to assist. Please leave a request on User:Utl_jung's talk page and they will get to it as soon as possible. We can count edits retroactively, so you can start editing without waiting for the facilitator's confirmation.

On Wikipedia, you can improve old stuff (existing articles) or write new stuff (new articles). If you're new to Wikipedia, it may be helpful to start by improving existing articles. Please bear in mind that the instructions below take the English Wikipedia as their basis. Basic editing "how-to"s apply across all language Wikipedias, although templates are specific to each Wikipedia and you will need to find and use the appropriate ones.

Here are some ways you can improve an existing article:

• Link one article to another. For example, in Eglinton West there is a sentence on reggae which should be linked to reggae.
• Cite to verify statements which do not yet have a source. Everything on Wikipedia needs to trace back to a source.
• Add sentences based on sources. Keep in mind:
  • Please only summarise and paraphrase the information found in the source being cited, to avoid plagiarism and copyright issues.
  • The source cannot attest to more than it claims.
    • For example, a source that says 'A' can only anchor 'A', not 'A therefore B'. To write 'A therefore B', you will need a source that says 'A therefore B'.
• Reword or rephrase in favour of terms that are specific, up-to-date, and chosen by relevant individuals/cultures/communities.
  • Prioritise sources that use such terms.
  • See also: manual of style for writing on group/cultural identity and gender identity
• Add templates to an article to make them easier to find, read, and improve.
  • You can add an infobox to the top of an article. An infobox summarises key facts about the article's subject, and looks different based on topic. It can include an image or a map if appropriate and available.
    • The infobox should only summarise information which is in the body of the article. If you have new facts to add, write and cite that information in the body of the article then use the infobox to summarise.
    • There are many kinds of infoboxes. Use an infobox appropriate for the article's subject. Take a look at similar pages in editing view to see what others have used, or look on Wikipedia:List of infoboxes for infoboxes which are bolded and/or have a higher transclusion count (=more frequently used). Commonly used infoboxes include infobox song (example), infobox film (example), infobox musical artist (example), infobox person (example), infobox radio station (example).
  • You can add these templates to the bottom of an article, if applicable:
    • ((authority control)) - if the article is about a person or an organisation
    • ((stub)) - if the article is small and needs more development.

To write a new article, take the following steps:

• Choose a topic whose notability can be established through several reliable sources. You should find at least 3-5 sources which:
  • are independent from the subject of the article (avoid conflict of interest)
  • stay constant over time (avoid social media)
  • can be summarised without additional interpretation (avoid sources like a photograph with no accompanying description)
• Look through related Wikipedia articles in case you find the same topic covered in a section of another article. Use a search engine to find relevant articles.
  • For example, History of insulin is not an article in itself, but there are relevant sections in Insulin#History and History of diabetes#Insulin.
  • If you do find a section which addresses your topic, you can build on that section instead of creating a whole new article. Or if the section is notable enough to merit its own article and you'd like to dedicate some time to creating it, you may do so. You can then link to the new, standalone article from relevant sections using Template:Main.
• Gather many different sources on the topic. A Wikipedia article is the sum of what is known about a topic, so your collection of sources will be your writing material. No need to worry about perfection, but you can give it a strong start that others can build on.
• To get a sense for article structure, refer to other well-developed articles on the same topic area (e.g. place, biography, organisation, event).
  • Take a look at some recognised articles by topic in Wikipedia:Good articles. These will give you a sense for what your article can look like.
• Draft the article, adding citations at the end of each sentence. If you used one source for many sentences, you may cite it at the end of the last sentence.
  • You can draft the article in your Wikipedia sandbox. This is your scratchpad - you can find it in the top right corner of Wikipedia.
  • Make sure to summarise and paraphrase the information you find in a source, to avoid plagiarism and copyright issues.

• When you are ready, use Wikipedia:Article wizard to submit your article as a draft. The article will be pushed to draftspace and be titled "Draft:[Article name]".
• While the article is in draftspace, others can help improve it before it is created in mainspace.
• You can submit the article for creation by clicking Submit for review. If you don't see this button, add the code ((subst:submit)) to the top of your draft in the source editor. Once you publish changes, you will see a yellow tag which indicates that the article has been submitted for review.

• Wikipedia:WikiProject Women in Red/Essays/Ten Simple Rules for Women in Red - advice on creating biographies

This section has been relocated to a stand-alone project page for the task list.

Below are some free, open-access resources on Black histories in Canada. (Feel free to add resources by editing this section!)

Searching on Google Books is another good strategy to find info on a particular subject.

If you have a university library card or public library card, you can access academic journals (e.g. JSTOR at U of T) or archival newspapers (e.g. Toronto Star Historical Archive at TPL) and other useful databases to find info on a subject. (You sign up for a Digital Access Card from Toronto Public Library online).

• Black Settlers Come to Alberta - Virtual exhibit with section on Amber Valley and other communities from Heritage Community Foundation.

• British Columbia's Black Pioneers: Influencing the Vision of Canada - Virtual exhibit from BC Black History Awareness Society and Digital Museums Canada.
• BC Black History Awareness Society - Includes biographical articles ("The Pioneers"), plus covers various topics in its "Learning Centre".
• Black Strathcona - Virtual exhibit of videos about Vancouver from Creative Cultural Collaborations Society in partnership with Vancouver Moving Theatre.

• New Brunswick Black History Society - Multiple articles available by category (e.g. Sports, Historical Sites).
• Black Woman Ann Otherwise Called Nancy - Virtual exhibit from Virtual Museum Canada.

• African Nova Scotians in the Age of Slavery and Abolition - Virtual exhibit from Nova Scotia Archives.
• Shaping a Community: Black Refugees in Nova Scotia - Article from Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.
• Remembering Black Loyalists, Black Communities in Nova Scotia - Virtual exhibit from Nova Scotia Museum.
• Black Loyalists: Our History, Our People - Virtual exhibit made as part of by Canada's Digital Collections Program, Industry Canada.
• The Story of Africville - Article from Canadian Museum for Human Rights.
• Africville Story Map - Virtual exhibit from Africville Museum about the Africville community in Nova Scotia.
• Black Cultural Centre for Nova Scotia - Includes articles on immigration, Loyalists, Refugees of War of 1812 and the Jamaican Maroons.

• Resources Relating to Black History at the Archives of Ontario - Multiple virtual exhibits covering wide range of history — plus resources for educators.
• Black History images from the Archives of Ontario's Alvin D. McCurdy fonds - More than 80 photographs in the Wiki Commons collected by Alvin D. McCurdy dating mostly from the late 19th and early 20th centuries that document the social history of the Black community of Amherstburg, Ontario.
• Freedom City: Uncovering Toronto's Black History - A virtual exhibit from Toronto Public Library. Includes timeline.
• Black History in Toronto - Sampling of documents with historical overviews from City of Toronto Archives.
• We Stand on Guard for Thee: Teaching and Learning the African Canadian Experience in the War of 1812 - From the Harriet Tubman Institute at York University.
• Slavery to Freedom - Virtual exhibit focusing on Ontario from Ontario Heritage Trust.
• OBHS Online - Virtual learning portal from Ontario Black History Society Archives featuring people, burial places, places worships and settlements.
• The Underground Railroad: Finding Freedom in the Niagara Region - Virtual exhibit with biographies and summaries of places from Library and Archives Canada.
• Black History in Grey County - Virtual exhibit about this Ontario county from Grey Roots Museum and Archives.
• Ontarians Should Know More About the Black History of Oakville - Article from TVO.
• Slavery and its Gradual Abolition in Upper Canada - Lesson plan with useful background information that may be of use from Canada's History.
• First Baptist Church Chatham - Overview from Ontario Heritage Trust, about a church that currently does not have Wikipedia article.
• Sandwich First Baptist Church - Overview from Ontario Heritage Trust, about a church that currently does not have Wikipedia article.
• Stewart Memorial Church - Overview from Ontario Heritage Trust, about a church that currently does not have Wikipedia article.
• Buxton National Historic Site & Museum - Contains three virtual exhibits related to North Buxton community.
• The Black Community in St. John’s Ward - Essay from City of Toronto Archives.
• For the Record: An Idea of the North - A exhibit digest from Toronto Public Library on emergence of hip hop in Toronto.

• Slave Life and Slave Law in Colonial Prince Edward Island, 1769-1825 - Article from Journal of the History of the Atlantic Region.

• Show Girls - Documentary film about the Black jazz clubs in Montreal from 1920s to 1960s from National Film Board of Canada.

• The Saskatchewan African Canadian Heritage Museum Inc. - Info on early pioneers, military and more.
• Shiloh Baptist Church Cemetery - Article from University of Calgary about a church and associated community.

• Hidden History: Black History of the Yukon - From Yukon Archives.

• Black History in Canada - The Canadian Encyclopedia's hub for many articles on Black Canadians and Black histories. Includes timeline.
• African Canadian Online - Project by York University with sections on music, dance, film/theatre, literature and visual art.
• On the Road North: Black Canada and Journey to Freedom - Virtual exhibit by Parks Canada, published on Digital Museums Canada.
• Significant Dates in Black History - From City of Toronto.
• Noteworthy historical figures - Over 60 profiles of individuals, from Government of Canada.
• Blacks in Canada: A Long History - PDF from Stats Canada providing some numbers about populations of Black individuals in Canada.
• Dictionary of Canadian Biography - Search results of dozens of biographies of Black individuals.
• Akua Benjamin Project - Includes biographies of six notable persons, from Ryerson University.
• 23 Historical Black Canadians You Should Know - From CBC.
• Black Sleeping Car Porters - Article about labour rights for workers on Canadian railways from Canadian Museum of Human Rights.
• Under a Northern Star - Seven essays on Black individuals and communities in Canada from Library and Archives Canada.
• Portraits of Black Canadians - Audio clips about historical topics and individuals from Radio International Canada.
• Black Canadians in Uniform: A Proud Tradition - Overview of different military conflicts and biographies ("Profiles of Courage") from Veterans Affairs Canada.
• Reconsidering the Underground Railroad: Slavery and Racialization in the Making of the Canadian State - Article from Journal of the Society of Social Studies.
• The Underground Railroad: Canada in an International Arena - Virtual exhibit from Library and Archives Canada.
• The Story of Slavery in Canadian History - Short article from Canadian Museum of Human Rights.
• Legacies and institutions - Profiles of Black groups and professional organizations in Canada's history from Government of Canada.
• Black History Month: These Trailblazing Black Athletes Transformed Canadian Sports - Short article from The Conversation.
• Many Rivers to Cross: The African-Canadian Experience - Virtual Exhibit about migration, culture, justice and more from Multicultural History Society of Ontario.
• Inspirational Black Canadians to Know - Brief biographies of many contemporary (and some historical) figures from Elle.
• Slavery Movement in Canada - Virtual exhibit from Library and Archives Canada.
• Historic Black Canadian communities - From Government of Canada.
• What's the Point of Black History Month in Canada? - From Canadian Geographic.
• Journey to Justice - Documentary by National Film Board of Canada.
• The Black Church in Canada - Articled from academic in McMaster Divinity College.
• Early Black Canadian History - Article outlining impact of American events on Canadian history from the Emancipation Festival.
• Black History in Canada: Education Guide - Short PDF summarizing elements of Black history in Canada from Historica Canada.
• About Black History Month - From Government of Canada.