The Silence of Our Friends

Women of Color Want To Go To The AMC!

I've got some updates, They'll be in red for those of you who have already read the post...

Thank you to everyone who donated so that I can keep my traction unit. I'm down to less than $100 to pay for it, and we can definitely scrape that together ourselves without much difficulty. You have no idea how relieved I am! I get to keep it! YAY!

But...there are others who need your help in the next few weeks, the Allied Media Conference is coming up and several bloggers are going but can't cover their expenses. The AMC is open to anyone of any age, race, ethnicity, etc, but is about alternative media and media justice. The focus is on marginalized communities and people having their opportunity to communicate to the world. This was a sticking point for many of us who went to WAM!, we felt like much of that conference was for people looking for "fame and fortune", the ones who already have an audience, who are being heard, but want to add to it and make a career out of it. They want more than just being a popular blogger, they want to also be a pundit or mainstream media personality, or have book contracts, or a gig with a big name magazine publisher. WAM! is all about capitalism and careerism, and the AMC is about being heard in the first place, just being heard. I think that's why it's so much more important as a conference to WOC and other marginalized communities. Do you see why it is so frustrating when white feminists project their desires on us, when they say, "You're just jealous!" of a book deal or popular blog, because they think everyone else wants fame and fortune just like them? This is what they hope to get out of blogging, for WOC we want to be heard and taken seriously and for people to be inspired to act on what we write. Media as a means of social justice is the goal.

Anyway, I know I've asked for my readers to help me out, now I am asking you to help out some others if you are able.

Little Light also needs your donations and she's getting a late start on the fundraising. So if you are able drop some change into her tip jar too. If this writing isn't worth a donation, I don't know what is: The Seam of Skin and Scales.

I stole the script for Sydette/BlackAmazon's paypal button from a cached copy of a webpage at Having Read the Fine Print, so that you can donate to get her to the AMC. Click the button and send her to Detroit!

Ms CripChick has reached her goal and is no longer fundraising. Thanks to everyone who donated!

Lex will be there! Please help her to cover some of the expenses.

Mamita Mala is going too, and wants to take her children. As I said, the AMC is for all ages, there are activities for the children to learn how to get their own message out. Give her a helping hand.

Noemi and Vicki are also fundraising for the AMC.

Tigera Consciente will be traveling to the AMC also. The Paypal button is a little ways down the sidebar, but it's there!

Kameelah is also going to the AMC and needs some help to get there.

Aaminah was planning on attending, but the last I heard she will be unable to go. If circumstances change I'll update this post.

The same is true for Sudy at A Womyn's Ecdysis, she will not be going. Instead she is going to the Philippines! I don't know if she is fundraising for that trip, and she doesn't have a paypal button on her site that I can find anyway. I will update when I find out more.

I just wanted to say one last thing. When I was fundraising I had some people apologize that their donations couldn't be more. Don't do that! Just think if 100 people are embarrassed that all they have is $5 to donate and don't do it, then the person fundraising still has ZERO dollars, but if they all gave $5 then the person fundraising has $500! Also my plan is to give something every week from what I have, it might not be much, but it helps, and I will choose a new person from the list to give to, or if I have something like 20 or 30 dollars, I might choose two and give $10 or $15 each. We have about 5 weeks to go until the AMC, let's see what we can do together to make sure that this trip isn't a hardship for any WOC to go.

posted by Donna at 2:28 PM |