[spectre] Black Media Congress Berlin 2004 Announcement

[Andreas Broeckmann]

From: "love" <love at cyberNomads.de>
Subject: Black Media Congress Berlin 2004 Announcement
Date: Tue, 2 Mar 2004 20:21:56 +0100


WE INVITE YOU TO PARTICIPATE IN THE

BLACK MEDIA NETWORK




Black Media Networks in the African Diaspora


World wide progress between the colonialism of the Berlin Congo 
Conference 1884 and concepts of Afrofuturism in the Black Atlantic



In Cooperation with:

  Bundeszentrale fuer politische Bildung, ISD BUND e.V., HKW

Concept: Michael Kueppers & Abdel Rahman Satti

Location: House of World Cultures Berlin



Mission

The Black Media Network (BMN) was co-founded in 2002 by cyberNomads 
and ISD Berlin e.V. to address the misrepresentation of minorities in 
the media and the stereotypical use of images of people of African 
descent. But also to increase the number of voices and debates 
concerned with positive change in a multi-cultural society.


Vision

BMN vision is to network with socially conscious media professionals 
around the globe. We view the increasing numbers of artists, 
journalists of African descent as an important part of creating 
socially conscious media professionals who pursue storytelling about 
people, places, and issues typically ignored by the mainstream media. 
The marginalized black history of resistance in our communities can 
be unearthed with the power of online media and global network 
events.     




Black Media Congress Berlin 2004

29 - 31 October, 2004


  Storytelling and Cultural Equality

BMN seeks also to recapture the lost and emerging stories outside the 
mainstream media. It views this work as critical for these 
communities and serves as an outlet for new forms of cultural 
expression. Legitimising these voices gives them authority, places 
them on equal footing with the myriad of voices that make up the 
fabric of German society. The authentication of these disparate 
voices advances our communities and society as a whole.



Inspiration is everywhereŠ

Nothing gets your juices flowing like seeing what others are doing 
well. To ignite some passion of your own, check out Diasporic success 
stories. Who knows, you might be there to inspire someone else 
someday. Everyone involved in a Black Media Network program gains 
something from the experience.



A)        Professionals: by building positive experiences and a 
greater Black Diasporic knowledge - precise information about media 
projects and initiatives - building new contacts and learn from case 
studies

B)        Observers: get an overview of case studies and can lobby 
for support, spread the word, be informed about positive change

C)   Community: discussions and strategies for the implementation of 
a Black Media Watchdog as part of European community spirit against 
racism and xenophobia



What's the online presence of cyberNomads?

If you are familiar with our activities you may have noticed that our 
website <http://www.cybernomads.net/>www.cyberNomads.net is in the 
process of being upgraded and redesigned over the last months. We are 
in the process of publishing an online dossier with the title African 
Diaspora  Presence in Germany. Together with partners from embassies, 
Black media and NGO's from our German community, we will use the 
website as a platform for information, education and networking.



The online coverage for Black Media Congress Berlin 2004 will 
generate a political debate and provides input for our cultural 
archive that is the first digital databank of its kind in Europe.

Further Information

For access to the entire site go to 
<http://www.cybernomads.net/>www.cyberNomads.net, new users, group 
leaders and individuals should go to ecommunity/ cyberpass and Sign 
Up.




Who are cyberNomads?

Abdel Rahman Satti

studied acting during the late eighties in HFF Potsdam, East 
Germany.  During the nineties he worked on a variety of cultural and 
migrant projects across Europe, that related to history and culture 
of the Diaspora of people of African descent. Back in Germany he 
designed together with Sun Leegba Love the online project 
cyberNomads.net on behalf of ISD Berlin. Since then he has been busy 
with the visual documentation of current affairs for community 
projects and project management. He studied film and holds a degree 
from the London Institute. His graduation film was shown at festivals 
in Milan, Zanzibar and LA. Apart from heading cyberNomads.de, Satti 
has produced and directed various documentaries. He works on a film 
script, that explores the complex relationship of an African father 
and his Afro-German son. He was part of Talent Campus at Berlinale 
2003 and is responsible for the video archive and documentary work of 
cyberNomads.de.





Michael Kueppers aka Sun Leegba Love

studied literature and philosophy at Heinrich-Heine-University as 
well as Video and Performance at the academy of fine arts in 
Duesseldorf. He received a one year scholarship from Duke University, 
USA studying African American literature with Henry Louis Gates jr. 
and postmodernism with Frederick Jameson. He holds certificates as 
multi media producer and interactive video producer. His activities 
included manager  of a cultural center, director for interactive 
internet TV, event and public relations manager. As co-founder of the 
agency cyberNomads.de he develops Diaspora community concepts as 
trans-cultural and hybrid media formats. As the poet Sun Leegba Love 
he was choosen to represent Contemporary German Literature at Goethe 
Institute NYC and Nuorican Poetry CafŽ. Since 1989 he has written, 
directed and produced some 50 plus hybrid media and literature based 
performances in cooperation with artists from all fields - and 
directed an interactive DVD movie on the Afro German experience. Sun 
Leegba Love has written two unpublished poetry collections and 
appeared in a variety of video productions that have been in rotation 
on MTV and VIVA.



The Beginning of cyberNomads

The diasporic experiences of the cybernomads team served as a pool 
for a variety of contacts around Europe. The name cyberNomads was 
chosen in 2001, after Satti saw an internet cafŽ in the Mauretanian 
desert with the same name. Contacting various organisations, all 
started pretty soon with an old 300 MHz Pentium computer, which was 
used to draft the first ideas for the project. Contacting various 
organisations, all started in spring 2001 with an old 300 MHz Pentium 
computer, which was used to draft the first ideas for the project. 
Love«s long term passion for the documtation of the diasporic 
experience and his private archive together with the concept for an 
internet presence dating back to as early as 1996 enabled them to 
rather rapidly develop a working concept. The final pitch for the 
project was forwarded (a 66 pages proposal called Afro Media Online) 
to the Head of Multimedia at BpB (Federal department for Political 
Education in Germany) in summer 2001. In the fall of 2001 BpB decided 
to co-fund the realisation of the digatal architecture for 
<http://www.cybernomads.net/>www.cyberNomads.net - a community 
project for ISD Berlin e.V (Initiative Black Germans and Blacks in 
Germany). On January the 1st in 2002 cyberNomads went to work in the 
old Jewish quarter in the heart of East Berlin. A strategy plan for 
the community involvement was developed. In anyMotion GmbH a company 
was found that supplied the software for a professional content 
management system to start a platform uniting the various isolated 
platforms in the fragmented diaspora of germany. Simultaneously the 
Bertelsmann Foundation invited the project as one of the 15 best 
social business ideas from over 600 entries worldwide. The Mothership 
Databank Archive was launched in the autumn of 2002. In January 2003 
cyberNomads had to give up its office due to government spending 
cuts. Since then cyberNomads maintain the website voluntarily from 
home and spend lots of hours for the necessary editorial work.

cyberNomads vision and long term goals

Our long-term goal is to establish a powerful lobby and platform for 
survival and interaction among euro-centric power structures that 
divide and rule various fragmented black, migrant and gender 
communities. There is demand for innovation, best practive but also 
resistance and networking. The idea of the cyberNomads Online 
"Mothership" Databank can be successful because of the living people 
who create the network. The students, journalists, educators and 
users are all responsible for its growth. This project has the chance 
to be successful because it is, truly, a grassroots community. This 
community will digitally reflect and publish information about their 
activities online and has the chance to become a brainpool for new 
ideas. The participants themself enhance an understand the vitality 
and complex issues that face our communities. The publishers have a 
pride in ownership which no preconceived "top-down" organization can 
engender. We want to offer community support for those in need, and 
further universal understanding about the challenges facing people of 
African descent in Europe. cyberNomads operates to develope the 
cultural and spiritual aspects of community and supports the creative 
uses of 21st Century technology to self-empower the community and 
enable it to interact as competent and valued citizens. cyberNomads 
works at enhancing a cultural Black perspective using untold stories 
and a platform for sharing and discussion in a changing global market 
place.

cybernomads acquiration of Content for the Mothership Databank

Starting as early as in 2001 cyberNomads travelled to various events 
of importance for the African Diaspora in Germany. cyberNomads 
documented on audio and video using Mini DV and MiniDisc. As a result 
cyberNomads accomodates probably the largest german Multi Media 
Archive for people of African descent. The archive will be online as 
soon as there is funding for editorial work. In spring 2003 
cyberNomads succesfully developed and realised a Multi Media Spoken 
Word Performance in Berlin's rather prestigious museum Martin Gropius 
Bau. cyberNomads thus introduced spoken word by people of African 
descent to a major german mainstream art institution. During summer 
2003 cyberNomads conceptualised an Online Dossier that features 
academic experts, community activists and artists, establishing an 
overview on history, media, academia and art of Afro Germania. Topics 
range from the presence of African civil servants during the middle 
ages until the latest formation of the refugee movements or HipHop 
collective like Brothers Keepers. The Online Dossier is called 
"African Presence in Germany" and will be featured on the website of 
the Federal Department for Political Education 
<http://www.bpb.de/>www.bpb.de as well as on 
<http://www.cybernomads.net/>www.cyberNomads.net . It can be used in 
schools, universities and other educational institutions around 
Germany. Another community project - the first German International 
Literary price for the African Diaspora - is officially announced in 
cooperation with the House of World Cultures at Black Media Congress 
Berlin 2003. The event will take place in fall 2004. The team of 
cyberNomads continues to grow beyond the focus of education and 
politics and embraces a diasporic community that works in tandem with 
our efforts to selfempower and correct stereotypes. Projects can be 
checked through our international mailing list and on our website: 
<http://www.cybernomads.net/>www.cyberNomads.net. You are now 
partaking in another of cyberNomads projects The Black Media Congress 
Berlin. Last year we hosted The Black Media Congress Berlin 2002 
under the title "Soul Power and Cyberspace" mainly for german 
speaking grassroots activists and media professionals of African 
descent. The Black Media Congress Berlin 2003 under the heading 
"Network Europe - Best Practices from Grassroots to Mainstream" aims 
at a Pan African Diaspora Media network in Europe. Speakers from 
England, France, Holland and germany updates and informs interested 
media professionals, artists, activists and students on the situation 
around Europe. The Black Media Congress Berlin 2004 will logically 
focus on a world wide diasporic community. Our long-term goal is to 
establish a powerful lobby and online platform. The interaction in a 
euro-centric power structuresdividing and ruling our various 
fragmented black, migrant and gender communities is a great 
challenge. cyberNomads continuously seek more projects, partners and 
sponsors in vision and perspective.

Contact: Abdel Rahman Satti under: 
<mailto:satti at cybernomads.de>satti at cybernomads.de,

Tel.+49-179-2858173

Michael Kueppers under:<mailto:love at cybernomads.de>love at cybernomads.de,