In the podcast episode "Adventures with Digital Organizing," organizer and educator Mariambe Kaba talks about how digital advocacy strategies can work in tandem with event organizing to lead to change. Event organizing is a large part of much activist work, whether it's organizing meetings, negotiations, protests, teach-ins, or direct action. Yet in our focus on media products, event planning might not be at the forefront when you think about crafting advocacy media.
For this multimodal experiment, I challenge you to create an event related to your chosen issue. Of course, due to COVID-19 there are restrictions and safety concerns with in-person events. Due to this, you could either plan a digital event, or just add a note that you're planning your event for a future scenario where COVID-19 isn't a concern. Or, though this is a challenge, you could plan an in-person event that takes COVID-19 precautions and restrictions into account, like an outdoor gathering.
Your event could be (and any of these could be digital or in-person):
A protest or other form of direct action (sit-in, strike, blockade, boycott)
A vigil, tribute or memorial
An advocacy organization meeting or meeting for a new student organization
An accountability or planning meeting
A teach-in
A fundraiser
A speaker series
A performance linked to the issue, like a concert, play, art gallery, or dance
Public comment at a local, state, or federal level government (like a coordinated presentation during the public comment section at a city council meeting)
A call-in, email, or letter-writing campaign
Feel free to go beyond these options as well, or check in with me if you want to talk through another possibility. After you've chosen your event, use this multimodal experiment to brainstorm some specifics. You should address each of the following topics, using the questions posed here to guide you:
Audience/Collaborators: Who are you targeting through this event? Are you looking to get new stakeholders involved, or to gather together existing activists? Consider who your audience is, and what they might want or need from your event. How might you collaborate with others in your planning, and what prior knowledge of your audience would you draw on?
Accessibility: If you're planning an in-person event, consider how you might design the event with a diverse range of abilities in mind, making sure there is wheelchair access into the building or that the path for your march is wheelchair accessible, that you have health professionals on hand, and that you have an ASL interpreter. If you're planning an online event, consider how you could incorporate closed captioning or ASL, give people multiple ways to participate, and make relevant materials available before and after the event. Discuss how you'll draw on principles of universal design in your planning.
Purpose/Call to Action: What outcome are you looking for in your event? To get so many new people signed up to take action? To pressure public officials to make a public response? To create connections between stakeholders in different areas? Talk about the best possible outcome for the event and ways to shape your planning toward that purpose?
Logistics: Depending on the kind of event you choose, logistics might range from a rough outline of a potential schedule, to the spaces you'll draw on, to the people you'll invite, to how you'll promote the event, to the materials and tech that you'll need (loudspeaker? sound system?) You don't have to outline everything, but touch on what you feel is most relevant, and feel free to bullet point or just sketch out your ideas.
For your multimodal response, you should include a reflection that addresses those four points, as well as a sample piece of media for the event. This could be a t-shirt, poster, social media post, or agenda, but it should be something that would either be used to promote the event, or would be circulated during the event itself. Feel free to do a messy mock-up here, the goal is to start to see how the event might come together rather than to create a fully polished product. Your reflection can take the form of a write-up, audio recording, or Miro brainstorming board. A more brainstormed, list-format works here. You don't need to respond in an essay format. Work with the approach that makes the most sense to you for your chosen event and focus.
As you write your response, consider how you'll balance the goals you have in mind for the event (keeping them manageable, actionable, and forward-looking) with constraints such as timing, space, or potential technical issues. Back up your decisions for the event with some explanation of why you chose this approach. This response could definitely be a part of your Project 3!
Submit your experiment to Moodle by Thursday, November 19 at 10pm. **Note** This due date is set for Thursday so as not to cut into your break time and to give you the weekend off, but let me know if you’d like to work out another option.
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