Edit Your Pride

The Edit Your Pride event is an edit-a-thon that seeks to address issues relating to Wikipedia editorial representation of queer artists and cultural practitioners working in the African continent. Organised by Iziko South African National Gallery in partnership with WikimediaZA, the maiden event was held back in October, 2020 in virtual format to celebrate the LGBTQIA+ Pride month.

The primary purpose of the event is, in the short term, to increase awareness of Wikipedia and how to start editing it with the long term intention of growing the Wikipedia editing community in South Africa and increase diversity. The secondary purpose is to increase and improve content on Wikipedia.

Venue and Format

The event took take place in Johannesburg and in Cape Town on 15 October 2022.

Summary

This years' edit-a-thon follows on the footsteps of the first event with the aim of activating new users, raising awareness about Wikipedia and the content gaps that exist on the topics of LGBTQIA+ communities, especially in the African context, and translate LGBTQIA+ related articles that are already in the English Wikipedia to South African Languages. We are also looking to attract academic interest in the project by discouraging participants to use Wikipedia as an academic source but rather, teaching them the correct academic use of Wikipedia.

Johannesburg

City, location: Johannesburg (In- person)
Address: The Forge, 87 De Korte Street, Braamfontein, Johannesburg
Date and time: 10:00 - 12:30
Event page, registration link: Free to join
Important to note: Please bring your laptop, tablet, phone (a device that will enable you to connect to the internet)

Cape Town

City, location: Cape town (In- person)
Address: Iziko South African Museum, 25 Queen Victoria Street, Cape Town
Date and time: 09:30 - 15:30
Event page, registration link:
Important to note: Please bring your laptop, tablet, phone (a device that will enable you to connect to the internet)

List of articles

This is a non-exhaustive list which we've compiled of queer artists and cultural practitioners and organisations from or working in Africa that have an article on Wikipedia. You can add articles to edit to this list.

Impact

A total of 14 people participated on the event with 11 participants in Cape Town and 3 participants in Johannesburg. In Cape Town the focus was on discussing Wikipedia culture and how to make your first edit. Very little actual editing was done on the day, instead participants discussed how the Wikipedia community works and how best to start becoming an editor. Participants were enthusiastic about joining the community and the South African chapter. All participants joined the South African community mailing list.

You can see the project dashboard here: https://outreachdashboard.wmflabs.org/courses/Wikimedia_South_Africa/Edit_Your_Pride