Archives Equity Initiative

Historical Narrative Remediation and Revisionist History are two ways of describing what happens when the story we think we know about an event from the past doesn't line up with the evidence we have in the present.

By examining the tangible evidence of the past event held in an archive-whether that be handwritten or typed letters, manuscripts, or personal accounts, published documentation and reporting on the event, or audio, video or transcribed interviews from persons involved-a more clear understanding of the past event can be established. These primary sources should be the basis from which historical narratives or histories are constructed. When they are not, remediation of the narrative, or revision of the history, must occur.

Archivists and historians working to address gaps in the archival record or inconsistencies in historical narratives must be willing to critically interrogate their sources, which is why researchers and scholars place the ultimate trust in primary source evidence. As new primary source evidence is uncovered through backlog processing, or is made available to the public for the first time by way of digitization initiatives, it is important that organizations, institutions, and communities do their best to make sure the stories they tell, especially about individuals, are based in fact.

By incorporating archival evidence into research, historical narratives become more robust and grounded in fact.