For International Archives Day, inspired by Claes Oldenburg’s I Am for an Art (1961).

I am for an archive that is political, emotional and social, that is an activist in the world, that does something other than sit on its arse in a repository.

I am for an archive whose influence extends into people’s lives.

I am for an archive that is transparent, accountable, honest, consistent and fair.

I am for an archive that contains paper, that relishes the textures and smells, the physicality of documents as well as their content. And I am for archives that contain video, and sound, and objects, and computer games, and more. I am for archives that specialise, and I am for archives that generalise.

I am for an archive that makes people conscious of the fact digitised records are important, but only the tip of the iceberg; I am for an archive that encourages people to delve below the waterline.

I am for an archive that is digital.

I am for archives that are standards-based, connected, networked, interoperable and harvestable. I am for archives with well structured metadata.

I am for an archive that is searchable by Google, citable on Wikipedia, discoverable through YouTube, and visible on Twitter. I am for an archive that has an API.

I am for an archive with persistent links.

I am for an archive that considers everyone a potential user, that actively seeks out new users and connects with them. I am for archives that look beyond academics and researchers.

I am for archives that speak plainly; I am for an archive that does not require an understanding of obscure terminology or abstract ideas to discover or access records.

I am for archivists that interrogate their own language, processes and purpose by speaking to their users. I am for archivists that ask their users questions. I am for archives that are willing to change based on the answers to those questions.

I am for an archive that looks out as well as in. I am for an archive that is self-aware.

I am for archives that are participatory.

I am for archivists who are passionate and driven by public knowledge and social good, who will go out of their way to assist, who are aware of their place in the community and their connection to other collections and repositories. I am for introverted and extroverted archivists. I am for punk archivists.

I am for archivists who are collaborative, who seek opportunities to work with others inside and beyond their institutions.

I am for archivists who love their job and value their role; and I am for archives that value the expertise and experience of their staff; and I am for institutions that value their archives and their archivists.

I am for archivists being paid what they are worth.

I am for archives that know their own history, are proud of their past, and preserve the story of their records and institutions; and I am for archives that are not bound or restricted by that history. I am for archives that are not afraid of change.

I am for an archive that is contextualised and contextualises its records. I am for an archive that creates and captures knowledge as well as preserves it; that tells stories, exhibits records and produces meaning. I am for archives that are more than a catalogue.

I am for an archive that is not intimidating.

I am for an archive that is not dusty or anodyne or sterile.

I am for an archive that sometimes shows people up.

I am for archives created by troublemakers, whistleblowers, leakers, hackers and miscreants, as well as for archives that manage the official story.

I am for archives that stretch and seek, that disregard limitations, that are adventurous and brave.

I am for an archive that does not insist on white gloves.

I am for an archive of the arts, and the sciences, and politics, and the personal, and the communal, and the individual, and the social, and the commonplace, and the arcane, as well as of governments and large organisations.

I am for archives that listen to the question, rather than falling back on a default answer. That consider options rather than just reading regulations. I am for archives that know the rules, and I am for archives that sometimes break them.

I am for an archive that captures and preserves the experiences of all people, not just those in power. I am for archives that represent multiple genders, classes, sexualities and ethnicities. I am for archives that are left and right and centrist and other.

I am for an archive that represents the marginalised. I am for archives that fight the power, and archives that rage against the machine.

I am for an archive that advocates.

I am for an archive that is pluralised.