Leeway to present at Allied Media Conference
Philadelphia--Leeway Foundation board members and grantees will join an ever-growing network of media-makers and social justice organizers to present at this year's Allied Media Conference (AMC) in Detroit, Michigan. The conference will be held July 16-19 at Wayne State University.
The mission of the 11th annual conference is to share tools and tactics for transforming communities through media-based organizing on an international scale. Leeway is organizing "Speaking for Ourselves: Transgender Identity in Independent Media," a panel featuring Philadelphia-based media artists Molik Harvey (ACG '07), Interim Board President Naima Lowe, and bex* joined by Detroit-area journalist/musician Stephanie Loveless. Also presenting at the conference is dancer/activist Misia Denéa (LTA ‘06, ACG ‘05), who along with Althea Bairdand the Nzinga Arts Collective, is facilitating "Media Through Movement: How to Map Our Stories Through Our Bodies and Words".
Leeway’s Executive Director Denise M. Brown was instrumental in helping a local group secure a bus to take Philadelphia-area activists and media makers to the conference. The Philadelphia Foundation is sponsoring the bus trip. If you would like more information on the trip please contact Althea Baird by email: althea.baird[at]gmail.com.
ABOUT THE CONFERENCE
This year’s conference will advance AMC’s vision for a just and creative world. It will be a laboratory for media-based solutions to the matrix of life-threatening problems we face. For the past 10 years, AMC has evolved their definition of media, and the role it can play in our lives — from zines to video-blogging to breakdancing, to communicating solidarity and creating justice. Each conference builds off the previous one and plants the seeds for the next. Ideas and relationships evolve year-round, incorporating new networks of media-makers and social justice organizers. The 2009 AMC will draw strength from converging movements to face the challenges and opportunities of the current moment.
The AMC first emerged as the Midwest Zine Conference in 1999 and later as the Underground Publishing Conference. The AMC now focuses on using participatory media as a strategy for social justice organizing. More info is available at alliedmediaconference.org.
SESSION INFO
Speaking for Ourselves: Transgender Identity in Independent Media
Presenters: bex*, Stephanie Loveless, Molik Harvey, Naima Lowe
Saturday July 18, 9:00am-10:30am
In the past few years there has been an emergence of mainstream media attention to the experiences of trans people. With increased attention, it is important for trans individuals and their allies to speak for themselves to the broader community with an emphasis on overcoming myths, negative stereotypes, and misconceptions. Trans-identified independent filmmakers face challenges head-on as they navigate the under-resourced field of independent media and with limited opportunities and skewed perceptions about their identity. Panelists will share insights on the fundraising, distribution, and creative sides of making independent media and their vision for the future of storytelling, outreach, and global opportunities. This dialogue will include diverse perspectives from experienced and emerging artists and explore the cultural impact of media made by trans artists themselves, as well as discuss avenues for implementing more positive images in the media. The Leeway Foundation presents this showcase and artist discussion.
Media through Movement: How to Map Our Stories Through Our Bodies and Words
Presenters: Misia Denéa, The Nzinga Arts Collective, Althea Baird
Saturday July 18, 4:00pm-5:30pm
Negro Spirituals, Field Hollers, Freedom Songs, B-Boying/B-Girling, Stepping, Gumboot Jigging and Storytelling all have common threads, accompanying liberation movements when marginalized groups use art, singing, and dance to break the chains of oppression. Getting on the good foot, laying down our burdens by the riverside. This restorative workshop will teach us as activist, media justice workers and everything in between that we owe it to ourselves to step away from documenting others stories and get back into our own bodies to express our inner truths, dispel our myths and step into our greatness. We will focus on yogic principals of centering the mind, stretching the body, journaling and optional audio recording our expressions, our experiences. Workshop participants can opt to keep these audio recordings as a memento or reminder to take a break from arduous cycle of shooting and editing. Confidentiality will be a priority.
