The Black Women’s Diaries Project is guided by principles rooted in Black and feminist Digital Humanities, manuscript and archival studies, and the ongoing work of recovering and making accessible the writings of American white women and people of color.
The BWDP seeks to center the voices of Black women past and present, as well as the communities about which they write.
The BWDP reads Black women’s diaries for the everyday and ordinary, as well as the extraordinary. We recognize, however, that the diary is not a complete representation of a person’s life. While diaries can be supplemented with other materials, we cannot fully know these diarists, distanced as we are by time, culture, and identity.
The BWDP recognizes that collaboration is at the heart of recovery work and the Digital Humanities. As faculty, students, librarians, archivists, and readers, we come to decisions regarding the project through shared understanding and constructive dialogue. We recognize and value one another’s strengths and facilitate the acquisition of new skills and knowledge.
In our work with archives, we respect each institution’s decisions regarding the manuscripts they steward in their collections, honoring their efforts to protect these diaries and preserve/provide access to them. Whenever possible, we offer our labor and expertise to support their ongoing preservation efforts.
The BWDP recognizes the importance of community partnerships to our research on and production of digital editions of the diaries we work with. Our work with community partners is mutually beneficial, with shared goals arising out of careful and respectful communication.
We value and recognize all collaborators’ labor on the BWDP. We maintain ethical labor practices according to the values of our project.
- We take the time necessary to understand the manuscripts we transcribe and any subsequent research in its historical and cultural context. We hold space to ask questions, make changes, and discuss feelings resulting from the work we do. We do not rush team members through this interpretive work.
- Students working with the BWDP receive either college credit (via one-credit research labs, multi-credit independent studies, or 3-4 credit classes) or financial compensation for their work (via student employment, internships, or fellowship opportunities).
- All contributors to the BWDP receive credit for their work on our website, as well as in other project outputs.
- We respect our contributors’ right to privacy and anonymity while also naming collaborators who consent to public affiliation with the BWDP.
The digital editions of diaries featured on the BWDP website are openly available to anyone with access to a web browser and an internet connection. We are also happy to share any of our team’s content with interested fellow travelers, as long as the work of our team members is credited.
