Abstract
This chapter revisits the creation and results of cultivating mobile journalism and film making skills with middle and high schoolers in Long Island. The youth digital film production effort was in response to a hate crime. An immigrant was killed by a group of young males after a suspected spree of other attacks. After the murderous incident, immigrant parents and students of the local schools feared for their lives. Working towards narrative goals, the organizers set out to teach students how to use mobile and computer technologies for filmmaking. Using themes of human rights, they also focused on responding to hate crimes and immigration issues. The chapter offers further key discoveries, lessons, and positive outcomes of the program. The programs provided academic and workforce development skills as well as using computer technology for digitizing narratives. The program also offered informal academic purposes, along with opportunities and recommendations from the findings for other digital filmmaking endeavors.
TopBackground
The summer media and human rights workshop was in response to a hate crime in 2008 when Marcelo Lucero, an Ecuadorian immigrant was attacked and killed by a group of young males who were out “beaner hopping”. A derogatory term used to describe the despicable act of group attacks on people perceived as undocumented immigrants. In 2009 the Southern Poverty Law Center released Climate of Fear, detailing other incidents of violence against Latino immigrants in the community over the last decade. The findings of this report triggered an investigation by the Department of Justice into the Suffolk County Police Department. Tensions at schools escalated against immigrant students. Parents and teachers concerned for the safety of their children suggested that their children never walk alone and always walk in a group, to and from school.
Key Terms in this Chapter
1.5 Generation: Term refers to foreign-born children of immigrants. Many arrive under 12 years old. Many are bilingual and bicultural and may live in hybrid household which consists of documented and undocumented family members.
Mobile Activism: Addressing social justice issues by using mobile technologies for documentation or mobile engagement to promote social change. Examples were found to be, and more pronounced with events such as Arab Spring, Eric Gardner killing, George Floyd murder etc.
Latinx: A term that neutralizes the Spanish gender of Latino or Latina which describes people of Latin American cultural or ethnic identity in the United States. Latinxs is the plural form.
Digital Narratives: A multi-media presentation of one’s narrative or story including elements such as images, sound, text, video and/or social media.
Youth Film Production: Process by which video is produced by young adults. Several programs exist in schools and non-profits.
Hypermedia: A system with various forms of interactive information such as text, graphics, video, audio, and data all linked together via hyperlinks.
Bullying: Aggressive behavior that seeks to harm, coerce, or intimidate another who appears vulnerable or inferior. Serious behavior in school targeted against marginalized groups.
Counter Stories: An opposing narrative (counter narrative) discussed in CRT in education by Ladson-Billings and Tate (1995) AU65: The in-text citation "Ladson-Billings and Tate (1995)" is not in the reference list. Please correct the citation, add the reference to the list, or delete the citation. as a means to name one’s own reality or voice. A tool to express one’s lived experience contrary to the dominant narrative of the dominant culture.