[PeDAGoG] Politics and practices of an autonomous technology: voices from the May First membership

[Melanie Bush]

This may be of interest:

A recently released report by May First Movement Technology, "P

*olitics and practices of an autonomous technology: voices from the May
First membership*," based on extensive interviews, explores why and how
social
justice movement organizers and activists are building a sustainable and
powerful alternative to corporate technology.

At a time when public confidence in corporate technology is at an all
time low, the authors ask: "
*How could we design technologies in a consensual way, in order to support
both people and our planet?"*

The report attempts to answer the question, based on the 18 year history
of May First Movement Technology and the reflections of staff and members.

According to Alice Aguilar, the co-chair of May First and one of the
authors of the report, "It's not possible to have a truly collective
approach to technology without cultivating a radically inclusive space
that is representative of our movements. For us, building autonomous
technology and movement organizing go hand-in-hand - we can't win
without understanding how inseparable they are."

The report features interviews with organizers in the US, Mexico,
Canada, the UK and Colombia engaged in working on issues ranging from
media to abortion rights to community organizing. The content centers on
the experiences of building collective technology, but also includes the
challenges of organizing across borders and languages, creating
inclusive and democratic processes and cultures, and integrating the
diverse politics of the left. In other words, it's about the future of
our movement.

The report was written by May First board members Jes Ciacci, Estrella
Soria, Alice Aguilar and Melanie Bush. The authors are available for
interviews. Contact info at mayfirst.org for more information.

The report is available here:
English https://mayfirst.coop/en/post/2023/autonomous-technology
Spanish https://mayfirst.coop/es/post/2023/autonomous-technology).

The report explores questions such as:


* How could we design technologies in a consensual way, in order to support
both people and our planet?   Is it really possible to collectively build
our own Internet infrastructure?  *

*“Say briefly, speak slowly and listen profoundly” *This report is
about collectively
owned technology but really describes movement organizing in the 21st
century!
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