Wiki — The new meaning of “Free Access”

Wikipedia is our 21st century model of “free knowledge”. This is knowledge uninhibited, free, and accessible to all (who have internet that is). As a college student perhaps we have a civic duty to contribute to those Wikipedia pages that we hold vast amounts of knowledge on. Our universities provide us with the access to databases that regular tax-paying citizens cannot have access to, unless they pay hefty fees. By doing so, we are contributing to the world of “free knowledge”. One such example, is an “edit-a-thon” that is being held this July 13, 2015 in New York at the Museum of Modern Art. It’s called the Black Lunch Table and is focused on “creating, improving, and updating the Wikipedia articles pertaining to the lives and works of Black artists”. These edit-a-thons provide knowledge within its own particular context to spread, communicate, and pass itself on. By using such “edit-a-thons” we are able to contribute forms of knowledge through various mediums — in this case Black artists that require acknowledgment. This, I find to be amazing! And college students whose colleges provide them with access to text and documents should be wholly taking advantages of such “edit-a-thons” because they are able to share with the world at large, what knowledge is being hidden from them by expressing it on a summarized wiki-pedia page. Furthermore, it is a civic responsibility to help make this knowledge accessible to those who do not have the means to purchase such books, nor the time to read a $35.00 article. These wikipedia pages provide a human right.

Citation: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Meetup/Black_Lunch_Table