land
This project was completed over two years and in three apartments; during this time I have lived and worked on the traditional, occupied, and unceded territories of the Qayqayt, Tsleil-Waututh, Musqueam, Stó:lō, Skwxwú7mesh, W̱SÁNEĆ, and lək̓ʷəŋən First Nations. This is a long and likely not exhaustive list, and there is a stark and unsettling contrast between the relative ease with which I’ve moved through this land and the violence with which it was dispossessed from the First Nations who lived on, cared for, and had sacred relationships with it for millennia.
Historically, publishing in Canada has been a tool for colonization. While I have carried out the work supporting this report in good faith and with the intention of repairing harm and critically examining inequitable and destructive industry practices, I am also conscious of the fact that the space in which this information moves is one that has been used to disenfranchise, dehumanize, and otherwise enact violence upon Indigenous Peoples. The history of Canadian book publishing set us on a path to inequity, and if we are to correct that path, we must first acknowledge it.
professional
Thank you to Dr. Hannah McGregor, Leanne Johnson, and Bianca Spence for their time and attention to my work. I’m especially grateful to have had the chance to work so closely with my supervisor, Hannah, without whose guidance this report would not have been possible. I feel truly lucky to have had a supervisor who was as empathetic as she was rigorous.
personal
Thank you to my partner, Mark and my family for their endless support and encouragement—for keeping me fed, listening to me talk through sticky issues, and cheering me on.
I was first moved to undertake this work because the thought of the women in my Master of Publishing cohort facing sexism in the industry outraged me. The 2018/19 Master of Publishing cohort is a group of extremely intelligent, dedicated, and talented women. It was an honour to learn alongside you all, and I hope that for each of us the conditions described in this report are the exception, not the rule.