In just three weeks, hundreds of independent media-makers and social justice
activists from around the country will convene in Detroit for the 9th annual
Allied Media Conference.
The AMC provides three days of hands-on media trainings, accessible discussions
and exceptional dance parties, with the goal of advancing the human right to
communication. This conference is unlike anything you’ve ever been to before
(unless you’ve been to the AMC before). It combines DIY media, women of color
feminism, youth culture, and popular education.
The organizations and individuals who travel to the Allied Media Conference
from across the country represent the cutting edge of the independent media
movement, from radio producers and magazine publishers to hip hop artists and
youth organizers.
Prometheus Radio Project from Philadelphia will light up Southeast Michigan
with tools and tactics for expanding access to low power FM radio. People’s
Production House will lead a session on “Reporting Immigration: Strategies
for Avoiding Myths and Broadening Debate.” There will be workshops on
stencil-making, DIY animation, and how to wi-fi.
INCITE! Women of Color Against Violence will host an entire track of sessions
on everything from zine-making to online organizing. Detroit Summer, a local
youth organization will collaborate with youth organizations from around the
Midwest to present a youth-led track of workshops. And the pre-conference
Symposium on Popular Education will bring together youth and educators using
media as a tool for liberatory education.
Detroiters will represent in full force at this national conference, leading
sessions such as “The History of Black America as told through Music,”
“Community-based Literacy Campaigns,” and “the Future of Public
Access.” Youth from Detroit Summer, will share their trail-blazing community
media model, Live Arts Media Project, on the keynote plenary.
Veteran movement leader Grace Lee Boggs says, “If you come to Detroit for the
Allied Media Conference, you’ll be astonished at what young people are doing
here and around the country to transform the media from the ground up.”
She and Detroit pioneers Charles Simmons and Elena Herrada will welcome
visitors to Detroit at the Opening Ceremony Friday night, followed by a bowling
party at the nation’s oldest bowling alley. The Saturday night show will feature
Detroit pillars of independent music—D. Blair, Invincible and Underground
Resistance.
Conference registration is on a sliding scale. The deadline for low-cost
housing, bike rentals, and childcare is Wednesday, June 6. Visit
www.amc2007.org for registration details and up-to-date information about the
program schedule.
