I'm not gonna lie, this data made me nauseous. The numbers are damning. But someone needed to do it and I'd rather it be me doing the labor than a marginalized person.
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Let's go.
#RITAdata
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Dear Romancelandia,
I have scraped the data, done the math, and made the pretties. 20 years of RITA winners, plus two of finalists. BIPOC and white.
It's as bad or worse than you think.
Follow #RITAdata! #weneeddiverseromance #ritagh #amwritingromance #ritassowhitepic.twitter.com/xUm4KhHAKy
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First, an introduction to what this is, why it exists, and some of the limitations of the output. The full report, raw data, and this slideshow are available here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jcpnlRSEPziq-PUHOIbO9tMA0TH6S6qDH1RrVZHa8oM/edit?usp=sharing …
#RITAdatapic.twitter.com/IAFdUYsVaQ
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The RITAs average a 4% representation of BIPOC. 4%. The US population is nearing 40% everybody-who's-not-white.
#RITAdata#RitaSoWhite#weneeddiverseromance#ritagh#amwritingromancepic.twitter.com/SGcVwanQGs
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Some facts pulled from the data. Susans are just as likely to win as BIPOC. Winners are more likely to be a white author with multiple awards than a BIPOC. In 20 years, BIPOC won in only 7 of them. Among finalists, BIPOC rep is 3.75%-5.23%
#RITAdatapic.twitter.com/Db6PlssBrt
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In 2019 only 3 BIPOC finaled. If all of them won, it would be the highest representation in 20+ years. In 4 years only 1 BIPOC won. In 2 (2017 and 2018) two won. The other 13 years had NO BIPOC winners.
#RITAdata#weneeddiverseromance#ritagh#amwritingromance#ritassowhitepic.twitter.com/aa2g1HJaFl
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Let's talk categories. These change every few years, but there's enough consistency to get some data. Only 7 out of 20 categories have had a BIPOC winner in 20 years, most of them only once. The next best have two each.
#RITAdata#RITAGHpic.twitter.com/9NlGjPHHfU
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Some more stark facts. Male-identified writers have more RITA wins than Black women. Thank you to
@AuthorCharish for pointing out that RWA was founded by a Black woman!! And a list of major BIPOC names who have never won a RITA, often because they refused to enter.#RITAdatapic.twitter.com/XDrR07HqTP
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And finally, a call to action. It doesn't have to be this way. But change will not be easy, nor will it come without growing pains. Those are not excuses not to try.
#RITAdata#weneeddiverseromance#ritagh#amwritingromance#ritassowhitepic.twitter.com/APlDw9KKaA
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Again, the full report, raw data, and this slideshow are available here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1jcpnlRSEPziq-PUHOIbO9tMA0TH6S6qDH1RrVZHa8oM/edit?usp=sharing … I'll be updating via
#RITAdata as new data comes in. If you'd like to use the data, do! If you'd like to help expand the data, let me know!Show this thread -
So please, SHARE THE
#RITADATA!!!! It's in handy snippets and pretty graphics so you can! Spread it far and wide!Show this thread -
I'm going to go make dinner now, and I'm in a non-US time zone, so I won't be around to handle any massive tide of response that may happen. Go forth and do battle, Romancelandia. The stakes are high, the road is long, but you have a LOT of good people on your side.
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Addendum: I'm thinking a survey is the next step, plus a team of volunteers digging up past years' info. If you'd like to get involved just let me know!
#RITAdataShow this thread -
CORRECTION: Sherry Thomas has won TWICE, once in 2010 and once in 2011. I had mislabeled one of them. That means there are SEVENTEEN total BIPOC wins (notably, no B or I wins though). with two authors with two wins each. Thank you to
@alexisdaria for spotting!#RITAdataShow this thread -
Several people have pointed out that lumping everyone who isn't white into one category is... not ideal. I didn't want to mislabel anybody so I left that out. Currently drafting a survey where ALL AOC can have their experiences counted with more nuance.
#RITAdataShow this thread -
Also looking for a reliable source of more past finalist lists. I have some leads but every bit helps! If you want to volunteer to help in some way, do let me know!
#RITAdataShow this thread -
CORRECTION TO THE CORRECTION IN LINKED TWEET: 17 is the total number of AOC/BIPOC across both winners and finalists. There are 10 wins.https://twitter.com/bronniesway/status/1109894206452125696 …
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It's 11pm here so I'm signing off for the night. Thank you so much to everyone who has spread the word, kindly offered feedback and data, and all around been awesome. I haven't seen any trolls yet but if they come for you and not me? Let me at 'em.
#RITAdata
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Thread continues in Part 2:https://twitter.com/bronniesway/status/1110182750886248453 …
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Thread continues in Part 3:https://twitter.com/bronniesway/status/1111619801254952960 …
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End of conversation
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