British Museum apologizes for using Canadian translator’s work without permission

The British Museum says it has removed a Canadian translator’s work from its exhibition after using the translations without permission, attribution or compensation. 

The museum says Yilin Wang’s translations of poems by 19th century revolutionary Qiu Jin were displayed in the “China’s hidden century” exhibition, as well as its brochures, though it says the catalogue acknowledges her work. 

The institution says it has apologized and offered to pay Yilin Wang for the time her translations were displayed.

The British Museum says “unintentional human error” led to the slight. 

On Twitter, Wang says her translations are labour intensive pursuits, and her work should be properly acknowledged.

The British Columbia-based writer says she’s still in communication with the museum. 

“This has been an incredibly and needlessly frustrating experience after experiencing copyright infringement,” Wang tweeted. “I urge the British Museum to actually engage with me in good faith to show that they are truly apologetic. Otherwise, I do not and cannot accept their apology.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2023.

The Canadian Press