Policies

Harmful Content Warning for Digital Maryland

Digital Maryland contains historical materials that may reflect biased, offensive, or harmful viewpoints and language due to past cultural attitudes. Some content may depict violence or graphic events preserved for historical significance. We aim to provide respectful descriptions using contemporary understanding. However, some records may contain outdated, racist, sexist, ableist, homophobic, xenophobic or otherwise offensive terms inherited from past creators and cataloging practices. We welcome feedback to improve descriptions and reduce harm at digitalmaryland@prattlibrary.org. Thank you for your understanding as we work to make Digital Maryland an inclusive space honoring all individuals and communities.

Digital Maryland Land Acknowledgement

Digital Maryland would like to acknowledge that we live and work on the traditional ancestral and unceded lands of the Piscataway Conoy and the Susquehannock tribes. Indigenous people have lived here since the 10th millennium BCE, and their relationship with this land involved traveling, trading, and hunting in the region we now call Baltimore. We also acknowledge the enslaved and exploited people of Africa and their descendants whose stolen labor allowed Maryland, and the United States, to grow as it is today.Digital Maryland acknowledges that archives and special collections often exclude minority and oppressed voices. In order to change this, we strive to use our resources to actively find and include materials from those previously excluded from the traditional archival record to fully represent the history and experiences of Maryland. We are committed to working towards social justice with the descendants of these populations, and to use our talents and resources to work to mitigate past and present injustices.If you have suggestions for potential projects, or notice community voices lacking presence on Digital Maryland, please contact us at digitalmaryland@prattlibrary.org.