Dear all,
Thanks for reading and responding to our concerns, including with
thoughtful questions and comments. We’re writing with a brief response to
the different messages, with the two key aspects that have been raised.
What we propose: In case it wasn’t already super clear, we confirm that the
change in the UCoC we are suggesting is to remove the note to the Insults
section entirely: “(Note: The Wikimedia movement does not endorse "race"
and "ethnicity" as meaningful distinctions among people. Their inclusion
here is to mark that they are prohibited in use against others as the basis
for personal attacks.)”
We believe that this change would not diminish the effectiveness of the
UCoC or its further application. On the contrary, it would be in line with
its real spirit and honest intentions. As the wording currently stands, it
causes (and will cause) more harm than any possible good, and certainly far
too much confusion around intention. It particularly makes no sense to pull
out race and ethnicity in this fashion.
Timeline and process: Maggie's response is very useful in clarifying that
there could be a rapid review process to address this issue. We welcome
that, and it would be helpful to have a clear timeline and detailed process
for us to understand how this might unfold, and who might be responsible
for it.
Thank you to everyone again for your attention and care.
With love, respect, and solidarity,
Anasuya and the Whose Knowledge? team, advisors and friends
On Tue, Apr 12, 2022 at 10:13 AM Peter Southwood <
peter.southwood(a)telkomsa.net> wrote:
Race and ethnicity have already proven to be
controversial in this
context, and will probably continue to be controversial, but maybe less so
if appropriately defined. Anyway, those who make the decisions carry the
ethical responsibility, even if they can avoid legal responsibility.
Cheers, Peter
*From:* Benjamin Lees [mailto:emufarmers@gmail.com]
*Sent:* 12 April 2022 10:36
*To:* Wikimedia Mailing List
*Subject:* [Wikimedia-l] Re: Open letter on negating race and ethnicity
as "meaningful distinctions" in the UCoC
On Mon, Apr 11, 2022 at 1:06 AM Peter Southwood <
peter.southwood(a)telkomsa.net> wrote:
Definitions of terminology makes sense in any document that is intended as
an enforceable guide to behavior. Without them, whose definition applies?
Cheers, Peter
No document defines all its terms. It's particularly unnecessary to
define race and ethnicity in the context of how they're used in the UCoC
because the terms are only used in conjunction with other terms that fill
in whatever gaps might exist even under narrow definitions. Discussions
about [[Who is a Jew?]] are a red herring here.
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*Anasuya Sengupta*
+44 7367 868585
*Reimagining and redesigning the internet to be for and from us all*
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*There can be no love without justice... The moment we choose to love we
begin to move against domination, against oppression. The moment we choose
to love we begin to move towards freedom, to act in ways that liberate
ourselves and others.*
*(bell hooks)*