If you've been blogging for a while then, chances are, you will be familiar with the BlogWorld Expo, the uber-conference where bloggers from all the world converge to talk about multiple bloggy things like "Creating Killer Content" or "Podcast 101" (to name some of the seminars they apparently held in 2010). But if you're a lefty blogger like myself then the Blog World kind of conferences do not really sound that interesting: aside from being driven by a capitalist instrumental logic that is concerned with the commodity-form of blogging, our anti-capitalist corner(s) of the generally imperial-capitalist blogosphere is generally devoted to issues that are not about pictures of our kitties, or how to set up a digital kitchen, or whether or not the real estate blog is dead. (And the very fact that I am overusing the words "blog" and "blogging" and now "blogosphere" in this post is making me cringe.)
So I'm interested in proposing a DIY Anti-Capitalist blog conference, at some unchosen point in the future, for those of us who have blogs that are specifically leftist and thus blog about anti-capitalism, marxism/communism/anarchism, anti-imperialism/anti-colonialism, radical feminism, anti-racism, queer radicalism, etc. I've commented on so many of your blogs and linked some, and some of you have commented here and linked to my blog as well. We're knit together, I suppose, by a commitment to anti-capitalist politics, and different articulations of these politics, and it would be interesting to turn this into a real world conference like our apolitical counterparts do––but a less ostentatious, less flashy (I do not know how to teach salsa dancing), and definitely not corporate funded conference. Sort of an academic conference-lite where our "papers" about our blogging and blog-praxis will be delivered in true bloggy form: ranting, dialogic, quirky, and/or semi-academic.
What say you?
So I'm interested in proposing a DIY Anti-Capitalist blog conference, at some unchosen point in the future, for those of us who have blogs that are specifically leftist and thus blog about anti-capitalism, marxism/communism/anarchism, anti-imperialism/anti-colonialism, radical feminism, anti-racism, queer radicalism, etc. I've commented on so many of your blogs and linked some, and some of you have commented here and linked to my blog as well. We're knit together, I suppose, by a commitment to anti-capitalist politics, and different articulations of these politics, and it would be interesting to turn this into a real world conference like our apolitical counterparts do––but a less ostentatious, less flashy (I do not know how to teach salsa dancing), and definitely not corporate funded conference. Sort of an academic conference-lite where our "papers" about our blogging and blog-praxis will be delivered in true bloggy form: ranting, dialogic, quirky, and/or semi-academic.
What say you?
Sounds great. Possibly worth appending to another event -- e.g. Left Forum, other conference -- with shadow panels, alternate track?
ReplyDeletePossibly... I was just throwing the idea out there out of curiousity. We could shadow panel, as you suggest, or we could also just set up our own thing... but it really has to do with interest.
ReplyDeleteI would definitely go, if I could make all the necessary arrangements. I think it is a great idea. Feminist blogs sometimes do it, generally in New York, which has prevented me from going.
ReplyDeleteWell if there's enough interest, then we can figure out these things in the planning stage. Definitely should be kid friendly, or at least figure out arrangements to make it accessible. Of course, the fact that most of us are probably financially limited will lead to a number of problems.
ReplyDeleteI think this is a very interesting idea. My blog has been on hiatus, but I hope that it will get going soon again once my counterpart's schedule clears up. Even if I am not an active/visible participant in the conference, I am definitely interested in attending something like this and even helping in the preparations/logistics.
ReplyDeletePerhaps to help cover some costs related to making this project more accessible we could solicit funding from some progressive unions or community organizations.
You should be active/visible at the conference, just as your blog should start up again! Soliciting funding is a good idea, but so is trying to find some event we can promote that people who are not us bloggers would like to attend and would be willing to donate.
ReplyDelete