Grants:PEG/Marinwatts/Queering Wikipedia
Goal
editMedia Masters Alliance will offer monthly wikipedia editing gatherings for LGBTQ youth in NYC ages 13-24 and will introduce young folks to the in's and out's of Wikipedia. We will encourage our youth participants to become cognisant of the way information can shape cultural understanding and how they can become actively engaged in promoting, creating, and mining content that is diverse and reflective of the expansive range of realities and histories that exist, specifically ensuring inclusiveness of often marginalized and left out actions and communities such as LGBTQ, people of color, poor and the disabled.
Throughout these community gatherings, folks will learn wiki markup, which will allow them to author wikipages highlighting the lives and work of LGBTQ folks, people of color and other communities that have been consistently written out of history while also building community and enhancing technical and research skills.
Plan
editActivities
editGeneral: Beginning May 29th, 2015 and ending December 2015 we will begin hosting monthly "Queering Wikipedia" meetings where we invite LGBTQ youth (13-24) to learn, share, create and edit articles within wikipedia.
Additional proposed dates and events:
May 29th: Beyond Tolerance 7 at Vangaurd High School[1]
June: (Proposed) Media MA to host a Queering Wikipedia editation at the 2015 Allied Media Conference
July: Participate in Wiki Loves Pride!
We will cover the following in our monthly wikipedia gatherings:
LGBTQ youth community building
General themed research - monthly themes and subject specific for our Queering Wikipedia gatherings
Wikipedia editing instruction
Wikipedia educational material and "tips and tricks"
Impact
editTarget readership
editWikimedia LGBT and Wiki Loves Pride!
Fit with strategy
editMedia Masters Alliance (Media MA) is a media training program specifically directed towards lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) and allied youth (13-24) and our mission is to empowers LGBTQ and allied youth through media. We offer media education, technical skills training, and opportunities to work with creative professionals through mentorship, hands-on training and professional development workshops, as well as opportunities to engage with their community. Our media programs provide youth with a safe space to flourish creatively and professionally, and the opportunity to create media that more accurately reflects their lived experiences.
Media MA is beginning to offer monthly wikipedia editing gatherings, where LGBTQ youth, ages 13-24 will be brought together to introduce young folks to Wikipedia. This program will increase participation and reach within the Wikipedia community. Our goal is to encourage youth participants to become cognisant of the way information can shape cultural understanding and how they can become actively engaged in promoting, creating, and mining content that is diverse and reflective of the expansive range of realities and histories that exist, specifically ensuring inclusiveness of often marginalized and left out actions and communities such as LGBTQ, people of color, poor and the disabled.
Throughout the program, folks will learn wiki-markup, which will allow them to author wikipages highlighting the lives and work of LGBTQ folks, people of color and other communities that have been consistently written out of history.
Measures of success
editWe will consider the project successful if:
At least 30 LGBTQ youth attend the 6 NYC Queering Wikipedia events from May through December 2015 (Some may attend multiple times, but will only count once)
At least 7 LGBTQ youth attend the Beyond Tolerance 7 workshop on May 29th 2015
At least 15 LGBTQ youth attend the Allied Media Conference Queering Wikipedia gathering in Detroit, MI in June 2015
At least 30 new LGBTQ youth accounts are created before December 2015
At least 75 articles are created and/or improved at all locations combined
We would really love to see at least 15 LGBTQ youth attend each Queering Wikipedia meeting/gathering. Our goal is to build a youth community invested in adding, editing, and investing in the Queering of Wikipedia.
Resources and risks
editResources
editAs an organization, we have support from multiple community based organizations and can rely on them for event space and additional needs. We have also been providing media programming for LGBTQ youth for the past two years and have consistent youth participation and will be increasing our outreach efforts.
We also rely on and are grateful for the support of our wikipedia friends and editors who have been providing us with training to support this program.
We are not experts and have just recently begun learning how to edit Wikipedia. As we are just now learning, we may run into difficulties teaching without a seasoned wikipedian. Another great risk would be that we have too many participants and not enough instructors.
Budget
editPlease provide a detailed breakdown of project expenses according to the instructions here. See Budget Guidelines. Grantees are subject to line-item scrutiny of expenses. Changes to the approved budget beyond 10% in any category must be approved in advance.
Project budget table
editOutreach and promo materials: $500 USD
General educational material “tips and tricks” and event specific documents to support themed editathons: $500
Food and Metro Cards: $900 ($100 per event)
Space rental with computers: $900 ($100 per gathering)
3 Travel grants to host Queering Wikipedia at the Allied Media Conference
$150 registration ($50 per person)
$600 ($50/night dorm per person )
$900 plane ticket ($300 per person RT NYC - Detroit)
$4,450
Media MA will provide LGBTQ youth education and facilitation
Media MA will provide LGBTQ youth outreach
Media MA will arrange for outside research field trip to LGBTQ archives and events
Wikimedia NYC will provide training for the Wikipedia markup and educators
Wikimedia NYC will provide general support :)
Discussion
editCommunity notification
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Endorsements
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