“Cite black women- Christen Smith”
“We have really strong evidence that women are undercited and that people of colour are undercited.”- Diana Kwon
I read this article provided in moodle as part of the Citation Reading activity based on which is what I write down my thoughts, reflections and action.
Academic citation systems form the backbone of scholarly work, designed to acknowledge prior knowledge and credit past contributions. However, these systems are far from impartial or purely functional. They often privilege certain voices—predominantly those of white, male scholars—while marginalizing perspectives that challenge dominant norms. This exclusionary trend perpetuates what theorists like bell hooks have termed a “white heteromasculine hegemony,” which narrows the diversity of thought within academic discourse.
- Courtesy: (Kwon, D., 2022)
Scholars such as Sarah Ahmed and Patricia Hill Collins have critiqued these entrenched systems, advocating for citation practices that honor marginalized voices. Ahmed argues that citation is not a neutral act but rather a political one, and thus researchers have a responsibility to disrupt traditional hierarchies. Similarly, Collins calls for a greater inclusion of feminist and Black feminist perspectives to resist the reproduction of oppressive structures. Such conscientious citation practices enrich the academic landscape, fostering dialogue and collaboration across diverse intellectual traditions.
Another though which struck was, when I read these articles, I used to think why people coin new words like eg: “white heteromasculine hegemony “ by Bell hooks and others instead of using the existing words and make people understand what it really means as against the mindsets or set agenda from people. For example, disabled (handicapped), Intersectionality (Multiple discrimination) etc., Also will a tag line in a T-shirt change people thoughts?
But yes, it made an impact when these black women said “Cite Black Women” as in the snapshot below:
Initially I used to question the need for these linguistic innovations, viewing them as unnecessary complications to existing terminology. However, upon engaging with the critical works of scholars and activists, it becomes clear to me that these new terms are essential tools for dismantling outdated paradigms and promoting equity. Language, like citation, is not neutral. The words we choose either reinforce or resist existing power structures.
I also attended a “Ant-Racism development workshop” which forms part of Anti Racism Action Plan on 12th December 2024. In which we were asked to share about instances of racism, when I said citation, people were quite surprised to know how this can be a form of racism, but when I explained that this is not something intentionally all the time, but there is bias to cite papers of more whites than skin of colour. Citations often privilege established voices.
My action (minimalistic as much as I can to begin with):
Recently I was reviewer for a research article from China, somehow most of the references are from Chinese authors, in fact after I read the article and attended our ARP tutorial on citation, I suggested them to include experts all around the globe to be versatile and a more inclusive knowledge production.
Reference
Kwon, D., 2022. The rise of citational justice: how scholars are making references fairer. Nature News Feature, 22 March. [Correction published 6 April 2022]. Available at: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-00787-4 [Accessed 3 January 2025].