Monday, February 13, 2017

CFP: Radical Libraries, Archives, + Museums | 2017 Allied Media Conference (Detroit - June 2017)

The 19th annual Allied Media Conference is going to be happening this year in Detroit, in June. For the third year, there is a subject track being put together around librarianship, called Radical Libraries, Archives, + Museums. What follows is the Call for Proposals. If you have any questions, simply write me back off list, or contact any of the coordinators listed at the bottom of the Call for Proposals. We would love to draw on the wealth of knowledge and experiences of Michigan librarians and library workers. 

If this looks like something you are interested in, simply follow this link to submit a proposal:



Libraries, archives, and museums do media-based work that educates, informs, and creates bridges to culture and technology. Radical Libraries, Archives, + Museums will address a broad range of media-based organizing themes: envisioning galleries, libraries, archives, and museums as centers supporting movements for social equity; providing information and cultural heritage to social justice workers; serving as places to explore how to use art, media, and technology for social transformation. In this track, we will specifically consider the role of librarians, archivists, and curators in strengthening the knowledge, culture, and collective memory of communities impacted by social and economic disparity.

Coordinators of this track are Celeste Â-Re, Shoshanna Wechter, Bekezela Mguni, Sine Hwang Jensen, Laurel Johnson, Veronica Leigh-Milliner, Karina Hagelin.

Radical Libraries, Archives, + Museums Call for Participation
We are seeking collaborators to shape our track at AMC2017. Libraries, archives, and museums (LAM) are more than places for collecting and storing books and exhibiting artifacts. LAMs can be living, transformative spaces where artists, educators, technologists, and activists convene to access, document, share, organize, and find solutions to issues that impact their communities.

We welcome proposals for sessions that will be accessible to participants of all ages and backgrounds, and interpret the work of galleries, libraries, archives, and museums through the lens of media-based organizing. In previous years we have covered subjects such as restorative justice practices in teen librarianship, starting seed libraries, zine libraries, and tool libraries, and community archives that center the narratives of people of color.

We are especially interested in sessions that:
●      Challenge traditional gallery, library, archive, and museum structures, institutions, and organizations;
●      Discuss best practices for community-based organizations that provide books, technology or internet access, creative materials, or collaborative opportunities centering people of color, queer and gender nonconforming folks, disabled people, incarcerated people, and undocumented people;
●      Consider the role of librarians, archivists, and curators in strengthening the knowledge, culture, and collective memory of communities impacted by social and economic disparity and state-sanctioned violence;
●      Address racism, white supremacy, and issues of inclusion in galleries, libraries, archives, or museums.

Beyond the themes outlined above, if the idea of Radical Libraries, Archives, + Museums resonates with you, we’d love to hear from you.  The deadline to submit proposals is March 13th.

For questions about Radical Libraries, Archives, + Museums, or to discuss session ideas with our coordinating team, please contact Celeste Â-Re at gr8scribe@gmail.com, Shoshanna Wechter atmy.name.is.shoshanna@gmail.com, or Sine Hwang Jensen, me.sine@gmail.com


If this looks like something you are interested in, simply follow this link to submit a proposal:


Shoshanna Wechter
Reference Librarian
Ypsilanti District Library
229 W Michigan Ave
Ypsilanti MI 48197