Take a Moment...
The call for submissions has ended
The Take a Moment coordinators, Rachel Harris and Sarah Lake, would like to thank those who submitted text and images as well as the reader-viewers who took a moment for representation and participated in this anti-racism series.
Take a Moment for Representation: An Anti-Racism Series
The protests and social media posts that followed the murder of George Floyd have awoken the world to the systemic racism that has long been part of institutions of power across society. Beyond the United States, systemic racism also exists in Canadian contexts, which include police departments as well as our educational infrastructures in the form of schools, universities, archives, and libraries.
Caught within the constant flow of hundreds and thousands of images that characterize our digital age, let us take a series of un-interrupted moments for solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, for self-reflection on systemic racism, and for making space for Black representation. Let us explore how images and texts have a role to play in the fight for a more inclusive and just society. How can digitized images and the stories they tell help destabilize the normalization of whiteness within our educational infrastructures and beyond?
In this 2020-2021 library exhibition series, we are taking a moment to slow down. Let us pause with one impactful image per month and an accompanying original text to be featured in Concordia University Library’s inaugural digital exhibition. We are looking for collaborators (Concordia students, faculty, staff, or alumni from diverse backgrounds) to participate in one of two ways.
- You are inclined to submit as an artist: Submit an image of your own work in any visual medium that deals with systemic racism or Black representation. Include a text that speaks to the work. It can be very short - one word to one sentence to a paragraph in length (approx. 1 - 250 words).
- You are inclined to submit as a writer: Select an image compliant with copyright that speaks to how Black people have mattered in the past, matter in the present, and will continue to matter in the future. Upon selection of one impactful image from Black history, which is very much a living history, we are asking for an original text. In 250 - 500 words that speak to the spirit of the anti-racism movement, let your reader-viewers at Concordia and beyond know from your point of view what is in the image, where it comes from, and why it matters.
Deadlines to receive the next month's submissions for this series are as follows: Feb. 14, 2021, Mar. 14, 2021, Apr. 14, 2021, and so forth. Submissions are reviewed on the 15th of each month.
For inspiration and more information see Anti-Black & Systemic Racism resources.
Please refer to our FAQ for details.
Image title: "A CN Porter Assisting Two Children Board a Train." n.d. Black and white photograph. Canadian Science and Technology Museum Collection, Image No.: CN005805. (Photograph courtesy of © Canada Science and Technology Museum Archives). (Source)
See this month's featured image of the Take a Moment for Representation: An Anti-Racism Series.
Submission Guidelines
All submissions that align with the call, the word limit, and that align with the following writing-for-the-web guidelines will be strongly considered:
- Paragraphing. Each paragraph has a clear topic sentence. Short paragraphs facilitate a dynamic design layout.
- Sentences. Short sentences enhance online readability.
- Action verbs. Active rather than the passive tense increases the clarity and energy in the text.
- Proofreading. Before submitting, proofread for spelling errors, for subject-verb agreement, and sentence clarity.
FAQ
Images are available for use in the following places:
Wikimedia Commons:
Wikimedia Commons is a digital library that supports the free use of images and other media. For example, if you are interested in the Black Panther Party, a search for Black Panther will provide you with images to browse. Images in Wikimedia Commons are either part of the Public Domain or they tend to have a Creative Commons licence that looks like CC BY-SA 3.0 license.
See: https://commons.wikimedia.org/
George Floyd & Anti-Racism Street Art Database:
The George Floyd & Anti-Racism Street Art Database is a collection of images of street art produced in response to the anti-racism movement. Images include tags, graffiti, murals, stickers and installations on walls, pavement and signs. If selecting an image from this Art Database, make sure to verify the Creative Commons license.
See: https://georgefloydstreetart.omeka.net
Concordia University Library Special Collections:
Special Collections holds many Black history fonds that contain unique archival photographs. Learn more about accessing and using Special Collections materials by exploring the Archives and Special Collections Shared Catalogue and by Visiting Special Collections.
In Canada, copyright is governed by the Copyright Act (R.S.C. 1985, c. C-42) which regulates the use and reproduction of intellectual and artistic creations.
Copyright protects works from being copied, performed or distributed without the permission of the copyright holder, usually the author or the creator of the work, and provides exceptions for special circumstances ("Copyright Guide").
The selected image for this project should be compliant with copyright. If the image has a copyright holder (other than yourself), please ensure that you have their permission to copy and distribute the image.
Works that do not have a copyright holder are in the public domain, which means that they can be copied and distributed.
Other works may have a Creative Commons licence attached to them whereby the right’s holder has already given permission for distribution under certain conditions (for example, you must credit them; you must not use the work for commercial purposes, etc.). The conditions for reusing a work vary according to the licence used.
For more about these topics, please consult our “Copyright Guide.” If you are still in doubt, contact the Library Exhibition Committee.
Yes, it is possible for more than one person to contribute to the same text. Please identify the author(s) accordingly. The author may be a Concordia association, a student group, or an individual, for examples. Submit all the names of the authors. If, however, an author chooses to remain anonymous, please indicate as much in the notes field of the submission form.
Yes, it is possible to use your own image. Please place your name in the artist name field of the submission form.
If you have further questions?
Take a Moment Coordinators: Rachel Harris and Sarah Lake
Please contact: lib-exhibitions@concordia.ca
