The Authority File

In the final episode of this four-part series, Dr. Naila Keleta-Mae, Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Arts at the University of Waterloo, discusses the concept of translucency that appears in her book, Performing Female Blackness. She explains how the concept connects to a phrase she pens in the text, “This is who I perform.” Grappling with the autonomy of the “performer,” Naila describes the power and control enacted by the artist, and how it conflicts with opposing cultural and environmental elements. She also chats about her Black & Free research project, which centers Black culture and art through various publications, creative works, programming, and public and private sector partnerships.

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In the third episode of this four-part series, Ronald Williamson, co-editor of The History and Archaeology of the Iroquois du Nord, provides historical context for the Iroquois du Nord, a series of Haudenosaunee settlements on the north shore of Lake Ontario in the 1600s. He describes the conflicts between the French, English, and Dutch during this time period, in addition to background on the Beaver Wars. Ron also explains why Haudenosaunee satellite settlements were typically occupied for 20 years before moving to new areas. Last, he digs into the characteristics of the Haudenosaunee nations in the 17th century, paying particular attention to their relations with neighboring Indigenous groups and Europeans. Ron covers various diplomatic strategies, language use, and geographic scope.

Editor’s Note: “Iroquois du Nord” refers to a series of Haudenosaunee settlements in the 1660s-70s on the north shore of Lake Ontario. As Ron explains in episode 332, “Iroquois” was a European term assigned to Haudenosaunee peoples, which are comprised of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and Tuscarora. To learn more, Richard Hill, a Tuscarora and a contributor to the book, discusses Haudenosaunee territory and archives in an interview with The Canadian Encyclopedia.

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In the third episode of this four-part series, author of Performing Female Blackness Dr. Naila Keleta-Mae describes the modes of engagement she employs in her book, research, and creative works. A multidisciplinary artist and Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Arts at the University of Waterloo, Naila combines academic prose with artistic mediums—poetry, play excerpts, song compositions—to demonstrate their unique uses and strengths. As she explains, academic text allows for extensive citations, connections to fellow researchers, and the opportunity to flesh out theory; song, on the other hand, grants an efficiency in language and power in refrain or melody. In addition, Naila shares her hopes for how readers will interpret and relate to Performing Female Blackness. This episode also features a clip of Naila’s song “Free,” which is off her album Fire Woman and included in the book.

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In the second episode of this four-part series, Ronald Williamson, Founder and Senior Associate of Archaeological Services Inc., dives deeper into his coedited volume, The History and Archaeology of the Iroquois du Nord. First, he outlines the lack of published material available on the archeology of the Iroquois du Nord, a 17th-century series of Haudenosaunee settlements on the north shore of Lake Ontario. Further, Ron walks through the questions surrounding the location of a site in Burlington, discussing how understandings of glass bead assemblages helped to disprove previous theories. Last, he highlights the complexities of land acknowledgements, and explains the inclusion of the Haudenosaunee in Toronto’s acknowledgement.

Editor’s Note: “Iroquois du Nord” refers to a series of Haudenosaunee settlements in the 1660s-70s on the north shore of Lake Ontario. As Ron explains in episode 332, “Iroquois” was a European term assigned to Haudenosaunee peoples, which are comprised of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and Tuscarora. To learn more, Richard Hill, a Tuscarora and a contributor to the book, discusses Haudenosaunee territory and archives in an interview with The Canadian Encyclopedia.

Missed an episode? Subscribe to our monthly newsletter, Choice Podcast Updates, and check out the Authority File Round-Up on our blog, Open Stacks!

In the second episode of this four-part series, Dr. Naila Keleta-Mae, a multidisciplinary artist and Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Arts at the University of Waterloo, discusses blending her artistic and academic sides in her book, Performing Female Blackness. As the subject, artist, and researcher of her title, Naila explores how these identities worked in tangent—not opposition—to produce a more robust and honest work. She explains the various risks involved when employing artistic expression and personal history in scholarship, and interrogates the issue of who in academia “…gets to just be a person and do the research, whatever that may be, and who has to always position themselves and assert their humanity, often through the demonstration of some kind of pain and evocation of empathy.” Last, she chats about the vulnerability of incorporating art in her scholarship, the influence of region and country in her book, and how the personal is the political.

Missed an episode? Subscribe to our monthly newsletter, Choice Podcast Updates, and check out the Authority File Round-Up on our blog, Open Stacks!

The History and Archaeology of the Iroquois du Nord delves into the mystery surrounding the Iroquois du Nord, a series of Haudenosaunee settlements on the north shore of Lake Ontario in the 17th century. Ronald Williamson, co-editor of the title and Founder and Senior Associate of Archaeological Services Inc., joins The Authority File to discuss the lack of published material on the archeology of these sites and how he hopes this title will act as a starting point for future study and discovery. In this four-part series, he also provides general historical context for this time period, characteristics of the Haudenosaunee during these settlements, and Indigenous art and other site materials—pottery, glass beads, decorated antler combs—explored in the book.

In this first episode, Ron provides an overview of his work as an archaeological and cultural heritage consultant and his ties to the academic world as adjunct faculty. In addition, he chats about the history of the Iroquois du Nord, how the book came together, and its publication as part of the Mercury Series, a publishing partnership between the University of Ottawa Press and the Canadian Museum of History.

Editor’s Note: “Iroquois du Nord” refers to a series of Haudenosaunee settlements in the 1660s-70s on the north shore of Lake Ontario. As Ron explains in this episode, “Iroquois” was a European term assigned to Haudenosaunee peoples, which are comprised of the Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, and Tuscarora. To learn more, Richard Hill, a Tuscarora and a contributor to the book, discusses Haudenosaunee territory and archives in an interview with The Canadian Encyclopedia.

Missed an episode? Subscribe to our monthly newsletter, Choice Podcast Updates, and check out the Authority File Round-Up on our blog, Open Stacks!

Performing Female Blackness, the latest title from Dr. Naila Keleta-Mae, considers Black life through the intersectional lens of race, gender, and nation. Utilizing mediums of poetry, prose, journal entries, and drawings, Naila works to demonstrate how Black women are expected to perform in private and public spaces. In this four-part series, Naila, a multidisciplinary artist and Associate Professor in the Department of Communication Arts at the University of Waterloo, discusses her decision to incorporate personal stories in the text and why allowing her artistic and academic selves to coexist allows for a more vulnerable and authentic body of work. She also dives into the influence of region, the concept of translucency, and her Black & Free research project.

In the first episode of this series, Naila explains her area of research in Black theater, performance, and gender, including her University of Waterloo class that went viral for its focus on Beyoncé’s self-titled 2013 album. She also introduces us to her book and walks through her wide-ranging definition of “performance” that goes beyond entertainment and artistic performing. Last, Naila explores how social media fits into the idea of performance, interrogating the effects of creating an image, voice, or brand for an online audience and how gender and race factor into these constructions.

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In the final episode of this four-part series, Emily Farrell, Global Commercial Director for Open Research at Taylor & Francis, and Jennifer Townes, Open Access Librarian at Emory University, discuss current OA milestones and future wish list items. Our guests explore how open access is driving open research, particularly in areas of open data and open peer review. They also examine how 2022’s OSTP Nelson Memo—which provides updated guidelines on making federally funded research freely available—has impacted their positions. Both guests chat about the need to support researchers in the humanities and social sciences with open access adoption, while Jenny highlights changes in library messaging and Emily provides an overview of how Taylor & Francis is uniquely positioned to respond to the memo. To close, Jenny and Emily provide their big asks when it comes to OA, including more collective models addressing open books, equal attention paid to HSS, and a more equitable and sure-footed relationship between publishers and librarians in open publishing.

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In the final episode of this four-part series, Barbie Keiser, information resources management (IRM) consultant and Reference and Instruction Librarian at Northern Virginia Community College, reflects on future developments in artificial intelligence and open access. First, she focuses on positive progress in AI by spotlighting tools that can assist with job interviews, video transcriptions, and enhancing libguides. Overall, Barbie supplies exciting, helpful, and small-scale AI projects in academia that go beyond chatbots like ChatGPT or Google’s Bard. Walking through the current OA landscape, she then highlights the complexity of green, gold, and diamond OA and advocates for simplifying the open publishing ecosystem. Further, she acknowledges that paywalled content will most likely be here to stay, though as government mandates and cross-organizational efforts take hold, the “future is open.”

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In the third episode of this four-part series, our guests dig into current challenges to open access funding and sustainability. Emily Farrell, Global Commercial Director for Open Research at Taylor & Francis, stresses the need to collaborate among stakeholders and shares hopes that efforts are now moving toward a more communicative and collective strategy. Jenny Townes, Open Access Librarian at Emory University, explains some of the OA uncertainty from librarians, including the fear of shifting the burden of cost. Finally, Jenny and Emily offer ideas on why research integrity has become such a hot topic. They flesh out issues like paper mills and ChatGPT, along with developing new approaches to research assessment in order to address these concerns.

Missed an episode? Subscribe to our monthly newsletter, Choice Podcast Updates, and check out the Authority File Round-Up on our blog, Open Stacks!