If someone is having an encounter with a police officer, nowadays others may be able to tune into the interaction through live streaming on social media. The form has become integral to organizing around social justice, said Lauren Footman, president of the NAACP Pennsylvania Youth and College Division.
“Yes it raises awareness, but it’s kind of like a double-edged sword,” she said. “We have to be careful not to over-expose and re-traumatize marginalized communities.”
Activists can learn practical solutions for social-media issues at the inaugural Queering Racial Justice Institute, which takes place from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Sept. 10 at the Philadelphia African American Museum, 701 Arch St.
Registration costs $25-$150, depending upon what the participant can afford.
After a plenary on queer freedom as a divestment from whiteness, there will be 10 workshops on everything from Islamaphobia to becoming a better ally to transgender people.
Footman will facilitate two workshops, one on social media in organizing and another on gun violence.
Bilal Morris, director of local social-media strategy at iHeartRadio, will co-facilitate the social-media workshop. He’ll help activists optimize their reach and impact through data analytics.
The gun-violence workshop will offer a primer on advocating to state and federal legislators for policies, in addition to programs that can combat the culture that leads to gun crime, especially in large cities like Philadelphia, Chicago and Milwaukee.
About 150 people from the Philadelphia region are expected to attend.
The idea for Queering Racial Justice grew out of the Racial Justice Institute, which takes place on the first day of the Creating Change conference hosted each year by The National LGBTQ Task Force.
“We found that’s becoming such a sought-after day that we wanted to host another institute,” said Russell Roybal, deputy executive director of the Task Force.
Philadelphia will host the 2017 conference from Jan. 18-22. Roybal said the Task Force would like to host a Queering Racial Justice Institute in the host city of each Creating Change leading up its start.
“We hope that people will take what they learn and make sure they’re incorporating racial justice in their everyday work,” Roybal said. “Racial justice is integral to LGBT liberation. We live our lives at the intersection.”
He added that, while the Task Force is spearheading Queering Racial Justice, it was important to the organization to have strong local partners. In addition to the state chapter of the NAACP, Philadelphia Black Pride and the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania support the institute.
“Intentional and strategic collaboration of partners is definitely a goal of ours,” Footman said. “A lot of times in these spaces, people are like, ‘We’re tired of talking. We need some direct options we can pursue to feel like we’re really making a change.’”
For more information on Queering Racial Justice or to register, visit www.thetaskforce.org/qrji-program.html.