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@lostonroute66’s take on ’social justice’

Posted in Uncategorized on January 19th, 2011 by ninjaclectic – Be the first to comment

At last year’s Social Justice Camp, the über talented and funny @lostonroute66 shared some insightful reflections on defining social justice using kanji (the Chinese characters used in the modern Japanese writing system)…

Check out his 5 minute talk “Found in Translation: Social Justice”…

The one and only @lostonroute66 is on this year’s Ignite roster so come check him out Friday!

You can register here.

Hello SoJuCa friends!

Posted in Uncategorized on January 14th, 2011 by ninjaclectic – Be the first to comment

Social Justice Camp DC 2011 starts tomorrow at MLK Library.

We’re very excited by all the interesting and talented folks registered for the event, and we’re looking forward to a day of networking, sharing ideas, and learning from each other.

The library opens at 9:30am. We originally posted the start time as 9am, but you won’t be able to enter the building until 9:30. Take the stairs or the elevator to the basement, level A. We’ll have coffee and bagels. Feel free to bring your own travel mug and water bottle to help reduce waste. Bring business cards, smartphones, laptops, extention cords, notebooks, pens, snacks, anything you’ll need to get the most out of the day.

We’ll be breaking for lunch at 12:30 – 1:30. You’re welcome to bring your own lunch, or there are a lot of options in Chinatown. Please use public transportation as much as possible. Parking is very limited and pricey.

We encourage you start thinking about what you’d like to discuss and what you’d like to get out of the event… What issues do you want to explore with others who live and/or work in our nation’s capital? What projects are you most looking forward to sharing with everyone? What conversations are you most interested in having?

At the start of Saturday’s camp, all participants are invited to propose sessions for the day’s agenda. There is no official agenda until everyone shows up to the camp; we’re only going to talk about what we’re interested in.

We look forward to seeing you! And if you know anyone who might be interested in attending Social Justice Camp DC, there’s still time to spread the word!

http://sojuca2011.eventbrite.com/

Aaron, Ben, Jenn, Kelli & Regina
Social Justice Camp DC Organizers

Be sure to follow us on Twitter if you’re not already at @SocJustCampDC.

You can also see some comments from last year about topics people wanted to discuss and what they hoped to get out the day:

A word for/from Meg Biallas

Posted in Uncategorized on January 13th, 2011 by ninjaclectic – 1 Comment

I wanted to send a big thanks to Meg Biallas for her help spreading the word about Social Justice Camp 2011, which is coming up this weekend. (Be sure to register if you haven’t already!)

Meg’s been kind enough to share her thoughts about  Social Justice Camp on her Capital Comment blog as well as a very interesting site called The Blue Vine Collective (“a diverse community seeking to engage in significant life and faith questions in order to foster transformative action”).

In her own words:

I think January is the ideal month to hold Social Justice Camp. January is a fresh slate for projects, advocacy work and goal-setting. It’s also tied to the MLK Day Of Service, which gets at the very heart of the camp. The camp, or “unconference” takes place over the MLK holiday weekend, as a testament to the power of organizing for justice.

There are two reasons you should go:

1) Go to inspire others, and be inspired.

2) Go because it’s (free) / (knowledge).

Social Justice Camp brings together anyone passionate about pursuing social justice in Washington, D.C. through art, technology and collaboration.

Come and join us for Social Justice Camp 2011 and meet folks like Meg who are passionate about what they do and want to build a community that can help make DC a more just and creative place to be.

/@ninjaclectic

Social Justice Camp 2011

Posted in Uncategorized on December 29th, 2010 by ninjaclectic – Be the first to comment

Dear SoJuCa Friends,

On MLK weekend 2010, a community of activists, artists, idealists and technologists gathered in the collaborative pursuit of social justice. It was Social Justice Camp DC. It was never about creating an annual event, but we’ve been hearing the question “Is SoJuCa happening again on MLK weekend 2011?” all year. So finally, we’re excited to announce:

Yes! Social Justice Camp DC 2011 is happening!

You can register now: http://sojuca2011.eventbrite.com

You can also invite anyone who you think might be interested. Follow us on Twitter @SocJustCampDC and use the hashtag #sojuca.

We know you’re doing great work. We know you need something, and we know you have something to offer. Maybe you have an idea and you need help. Maybe you have a problem and you need to brainstorm with some new people who can offer fresh input. Maybe you’re burned out and you need encouragement. Maybe you have an answer that someone else has been looking for. We’re not here to tell you what you need, but we want to offer a place and a time where you can say what you need and meet people who have the resources you’re looking for.

At the first event in Jan 2010, we had a broad theme of social justice, technology and the arts, bringing together people working in theatre, visual arts, homeless activism, AIDS awareness, just to name a few. Technology and the arts were themes that everyone could relate to their work–from thinking about how to make your cause by telling a better story to how to improve your website or use social media.

This time we want to start out with the same wide-open event, with the first day being dedicated as a full-day unconference, just like the all-day Saturday unconference in Jan 2010. We’ll be at a new location, MLK Library in Chinatown. It’s across the street from the Gallery Place Metro, there’s plenty of room, and we’ll have free wifi.

But for 2011, we’re also excited to be adding a couple of related events. The next day, Sunday, Jan 16, we’ll be back at MLK Library for an afternoon of workshop style sessions in order to focus on projects that can continue throughout the year.

Then the next weekend, we’re having another two-day event, spearheaded by the amazing Regina Holliday (who you’ll remember from last time). This event will take place at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church near the Van Ness Metro. This second weekend will focus on bringing together the two circles of social justice activism & health/information technology/patients’ rights. We’ll use the hastag #sojuca2 specifically related to this weekend. Friday evening, Jan 21, we’ll have Ignite presentations (the same format as last year’s Ignite event). Saturday, Jan 22, will be a full-day unconference, again focused on social justice & healhcare.

You can register for the second weekend here: http://sojuca2.eventbrite.com/

All of the when & where specifics are on the Eventbrite sites. Please email us at socjustcampdc@gmail.com if you have any questions, ideas, or want to volunteer or sponsor these events.

We’re looking forward to seeing you all soon!

Sincerely,

Aaron, Ben, Jenn, Kelli and Regina

The SoJuCa Organizers

Amanda Jones’s Ignite Presentation on Youth Homelessness

Posted in Uncategorized on October 28th, 2010 by kelshew – Be the first to comment

Chispa

Posted in Uncategorized on March 12th, 2010 by kelshew – Be the first to comment

Social Justice Camper & blogger/tweeter/photographer extraordinaire Alex Priest blogged about last night’s Chispa event. Read his review & see his photos here.

Congrats & thanks to AnnJess for putting on a fantastic & inspiring event!

It was great, as always, to see several sojuca campers!  Were you there? Tell us about your Chispa experience — comment here, on Alex’s blog, on the Chispa blog, or all three!

Two presentations last night were given by sojuca campers. Be sure & check out Loryn Wilson’s blog. Regina Holliday & Holla Back DC talked about meeting at Social Justice Camp & joining forces.

Thanks Alex! You always provide great recaps!

DC Baha’i Children’s Classes

Posted in Uncategorized on March 10th, 2010 by ninjaclectic – Be the first to comment

Follow Aaron (@ninjaclectic) and Jason (@jsnsndr) on Twitter…

Ben Merrion’s Adult Literacy Speech

Posted in Uncategorized on February 15th, 2010 by ninjaclectic – Be the first to comment

You can follow Ben on Twitter at @benmerrion1

Campers: Thank You For Being Awesome!

Posted in Uncategorized on February 2nd, 2010 by benmerrion1 – Be the first to comment

I really wanted to thank everyone for helping out with lunch on the day of the camp. When I volunteered to organize food, I thought that was going to be easy. Just get a caterer, get space (reserving the West End library was simple), and there you go.

Whoops.

We had to be out of the library at 2pm and I realized at the last minute that leaving the GW campus at 12:45 as stated on the schedule wasn’t going to work.  There was no way we could start serving about 100 people at 1pm and be out by that time.

Except we did.

And I really wanted to thank everyone at the camp, but things were a little nuts, so I didn’t get a chance to. But I wanted to thank you now.

How Social Justice Campers Were Awesome:

1) When I told people about our time constraints with the library,  campers embraced the idea of altering the schedule to include a lunch session.

2) When I realized that we would need people to help navigate campers through the maze that is West End, we had 6 people step up.

3) And not only did we have 2 servers come forward, but when  I stepped away from serving to keep the flow going, another person took my place.

4) When I did direct traffic – forming lines around the meat, no meat and vegan portions, people were cool with me pulling them to the right line. (At least they didn’t complain :))

5) People stepped up to unfold chairs and get more when we needed them.

Because of this, everyone had food by 1pm!

6) People were cool with only having 30 minutes to be in their session instead of the alloted 45.

7) Everyone started to leave at 1:30.

8) Many people helped out with folding up the chairs and putting them back as well as clean-up.

Because of this, we were out of the library by 1:45!

So, you all rock! We did the impossible. It just shows how much we can do when we do it together. That’s what this is all about!

Peace,

Ben (@benmerrion1)
Social Justice Camp DC Organizer

Albus Cavus’ DC Classroom Project

Posted in Uncategorized on January 22nd, 2010 by ninjaclectic – 1 Comment

If you’ve never heard of Albus Cavus (DC-based collective of artists, educators and visionaries who work in public space), check ‘em out.

I just heard of them while reading “Legal graffiti artists create murals around Washington, D.C. as past of MuralsDC” (very interesting WAPO story) and they sound great.

Here is a video from Ablus Cavus’ youtube channel featuring “14-year-old Dana Lopez who helped paint the new Sherman Avenue mural“:

Albus Cavus: Youtube ChannelClassroom Project