Thanks to everyone who joined us at the Crip Sex panel at the AMC 2012. The Pirate Pad stopped working during the presentation so we will be using the AMC video in order to provide notes and resources. We will keep you posted and make them accessible to you as soon as we can. Thank you! Also, check out the #AMC2012 #AMCaccess #cripsex tags on Twitter.
Jun
25
hello friends!!
here in seattle we’re still fundraising away for our collective access needs! click the link below to visit the dual power fundraising page, where you can buy any of our releases, a snazzy cca patch, or awesome face painting!
Jun
04
Are you going to the 2012 Allied Media Conference? Are you disabled/chronically ill? Let us know!
Please email the following form, any questions, and/or any other info you’d like us to know to creatingcollectiveaccess@gmail.com 🙂
name:
email:
phone/cell:
pronoun preference:
who’s traveling with you?
what access needs do y’all have?
what resources/skills can you share?
what would make this conference better for you and/or other folks with disabilities and chronic illness?
are you interested in volunteering with creating collective access?
have you already registered through the allied media conference website?
are you staying in the dorms (most folks involved with cca choose to stay in the dorms)? have you registered for housing yet? would you like to be hooked up with potential roommates?
Creating Collective Access is a cosmic practice space happening all over the AMC, with the goal of making the conference more accessible and awesome for folks with disabilities and chronic illnesses. We are practicing the kind of community access, support, and love we know is possible, building fierce community and support by and for disabled and chronically ill folks! We are building on past work at the AMC to create a sustainable model for crip-led, community-supported access. By building relationships, care, crip/disabled solidarity and solidarity with allies we are empowering those who have been traditionally marginalized, especially queer and trans* people, women, and gender non-conforming disabled/chronically ill people of color. We are resisting the individualization of access in movements and envisioning new ways of building community and being in movement spaces.
May
14
Check out our IndieGoGo fundraiser for CCA 2012: http://www.indiegogo.com/creatingcollectiveaccess
The Allied Media Conference is a national conference that takes place in Detroit every summer, and brings together the worlds of social justice, technology, media making, and popular education. Since 2010, it has been a gathering place for disability justice activists (as well as activists for many other social justice issues), and it has provided a space to grow the emerging disability justice framework. Creating Collective Access began in 2010 with a group of queer physically disabled women of color working to make the AMC accessible for people with disabilities and chronic illnesses, especially queer and trans* disabled people of color. We grew exponentially in 2011 and are hoping to continue our work at the 2012 AMC.
Creating Collective Access is a cosmic practice space happening all over the AMC, with the goal of making the conference more accessible and awesome for folks with disabilities and chronic illnesses. We are practicing the kind of community access, support, and love we know is possible, building fierce community and support by and for disabled and chronically ill folks! We are building on past work at the AMC to create a sustainable model for crip-led, community-supported access. By building relationships, care, crip/disabled solidarity and solidarity with allies we are empowering those who have been traditionally marginalized, especially queer and trans* people, women, and gender non-conforming disabled/chronically ill people of color. We are resisting the individualization of access in movements and envisioning new ways of building community and being in movement spaces.
What We Need and What You Get
We are working to raise $2500 to help cover travel and accessibility costs (like renting wheelchair scooters, for example) as well as food and attendant care for our organizers and some of our members.
Without this money, Creating Collective Access cannot happen, and it is fundamental to the growth of the disability justice movement as well as to the environment of the AMC.
In return, we are gifting our collective brilliance! Including custom writings by Savannah, tarot readings by A’ishah, vegan baking by Rachel, custom herbal packages and consultations by Christine, reiki from billie and Christine, non-toxic body products from billie’s company fierce bodies, and media from dual power productions.
The Impact
Creating Collective Access at the Allied Media Conference has provided a space for disability justice activists to create a model of collective access that we can then bring back to our own communities. Because of Creating Collective Access, our disability justice movement at the AMC, people have created collective access projects in their own communities. CCA in 2010 led to To the Other Side of Dreaming (dreaminghome.tumblr.com), a project for two queer disabled women of color to move across the country and live in community. What we’ve learned from the AMC has also grown our ability to bring the disability justice framework into other social justice environments, in the hopes of making our movements fully inclusive and sustainable. It has changed the shape of the AMC as well – our work has led to the conference as a whole becoming more accessible and inclusive for everyone.
Your donation helps us to grow this work for our third year at the Allied Media Conference.
Other Ways You Can Help
Share this link with your networks!
Tell your story! How has media shaped access in your life? Share your stories with us at creatingcollectiveaccess@gmail.com to be featured on our blog.
Jun
15
Creating Collective Access is at the Allied Media Conference again this year! This is our second year and we are growing! We are getting big and juicy! This shit is for real!!!Are you a crip and/or someone with a chronic illness that is going to be in Detroit this summer for the Allied Media Conference?
We know that for many of us, access is on our minds when it comes to traveling, navigating the city, movement spaces, buildings, sidewalks, public transportation, rides, the air, the bathrooms, the places to stay, the pace, the language,the cost, the crowds, the doors, the people who will be there and so so so much more.
Would you like to be connected to a network of crips and our allies/comrades who are working together to create collective access?
What is collective access? Collective Access is access that we intentionally create collectively, instead of individually.
Most of the time, access is placed on the individual who needs it. It is up to you to figure out your own access, or sometimes, up to you and your care giver, personal attendant (PA) or random friend. Access is rarely weaved into a collective commitment and way of being; it is isolated and relegated to an after thought (much like disabled people).
Most of the time, access is placed on the individual who needs it. It is up to you to figure out your own access, or sometimes, up to you and your care giver, personal attendant (PA) or random friend. Access is rarely weaved into a collective commitment and way of being; it is isolated and relegated to an after thought (much like disabled people).
Access is complex. It is more than just having a ramp or getting disabled folks/crips into the meeting. Access is a constant process that doesn’t stop. It is hard and even when you have help, it can be impossible to figure out alone.
We are working to create mutual aid between crips and beyond! We try and work from an anti-capitalist framework. This framework is a big part of what holds us together. Last year, we shared food and resources, we found last-minute housing for each other, some of us fronted money for food and some of us who had long-distance phone plans made phone calls.
Things we are thinking about as possibilities for collective access in Detroit:
- collective eating and food gathering. having a central accessible place where we eat together. This space could also be kid friendly to help provide mutual aid for parents and their children. We may go on joint food runs to the grocery store or to pick up food and bring it back.
- collectivizing rides–pooling transportation for those who need it. helping to coordinate rides to and from places.
- sharing information/communication. helping us be in touch to share information (about access, ableism that is happening, workshops, resources, etc.), connect and provide a working network of crips through out the AMC.
The Network: We imagine that there will be pockets of planned access happening. We cannot anticipate or meet everyone’s medical or access needs and we are sure that for a lot of you, you have your PAs, folks who you feel comfortable with and trust already lined up. Our hope is to create a network that can connect these access pockets together. We hope we can help each other and share resources: you can’t walk long distance, but i can speed in my chair down to the end of the block and get food; i can’t read, but you can, so you help me find my workshop in the schedule; you can help make calls to organize the food gathering and eating, while i carry the food up into the room. We hope that together we can create a culture of collective access.
A Note on “Pods”…
We figure that most disabled folk who are coming to Detroit will have some kind of access plan in place, whether it’s with a PA, friend(s), care-giver, etc. Most folks will be coming to Detroit with/in a pod. So, our work will be to try and connect these pods together, since we totally acknowledge that most access is done through relationships and it is really important for folks to feel comfortable with the folks who are helping them with access AND because we can’t possibly anticipate nor do we have the capacity to meet everyone’s access and medical needs.
If you’re coming alone and not in a pod, but still want to be part of this – don’t worry! Email us and let us know your needs and what you can offer! Let’s work together!
We are still working on this process and trying different things out! Would you like to join us in practicing what this could look like? Do you have ideas? Are you an ally/comrade who wants to help out or be on call?
Please email creatingcollectiveaccess[at]gmail[dot]com with the following info so we can get you on a contact list!
1. Your name (and your pod members’ names, if you are in a pod)
2. Your contact info, including e-mail addresses and cell phone numbers (and of course, your pod members’ as well)
3. Access needs. What kinds of things might you need with regards to access? What things can you offer? For example, “there are three of us: I am disabled, my PA and my friend are also disabled. We will have one van and one disabled parking permit. I have access to a credit card that I can front. I am great at coordinating folks. My PA is an ASL interpreter. We will definitely need help getting to and from our community housing to the building where the workshops are. We all need help lifting/carrying heavy things.”
4. A pod name, if you have one!
CRIP LOVE!
Jun
10
What does collective access look like with less than three weeks to plan, you ask? Well, we are wondering the same thing!
This is a work in progress and, as is the case with most access, we won’t know what things will look like until we actually get to Detroit. We are excited to try this out and lovingly practice the kind of access we dream about, knowing that we are interacting with an ableist and inaccessible world. And we know there is a ton of learning that will be part of this, for all of us! This is community run, so here we go!
*
Given the time crunch and our capacities, here is what we are thinking for Detroit: (1) PODS! (2) FOOD and TRANSPORTATION!
(1) we figure that most disabled folk who are coming to Detroit will have some kind of access plan in place, whether it’s with a PA, friend(s), care-giver, etc. Most folks will be coming to Detroit with/in a pod. So, our work will be to try and connect these pods together, since we totally acknowledge that most access is done through relationships and it is really important for folks to feel comfortable with the folks who are helping them with access AND because we can’t possibly anticipate nor do we have the capacity to meet everyone’s access and medical needs.
let us know about your pod! Who is in your pod? You can even name your pod! What kinds of things might you need with regards to access? what things can you offer?
some examples might be: our pod is named the Glitter Otters! There are 3 of us: i am disabled, my PA and my friend who is also disabled. we will have one van and one disabled parking permit, i have access to a credit card, i am great at coordinating folks. We will definitely need help getting to and from our community housing to the building where workshops are, we both need help lifting/carrying heavy things, and she can’t walk more than a block.
If you’re coming alone and not in a pod, but still want to be part of this–don’t worry! email us and let us know your needs and what you can offer! let’s work together!
*
(2) we are trying to organize folks to help out with two main tasks: food and transportation.
FOOD: if you’re interested, we would love to assign people to help out with different meals. We are planning to have a centralized eating place, at least for dinners, so we will need folks who want to help coordinate/get (affordable) food there and grocery shopping and anything else that comes up! We are hoping to form a group of folks who are committed to helping with food, and folks can certainly sign up for a night or two–let us know your capacity and let’s work together! We also need to figure out how to get people to the food, which leads us to…
TRANSPORTATION: how will folks be getting from place to place? will you have a car/van that you can share? can you drive? can you help coordinate rides via cell phone? let us know if you would like to be one of a handful of folks helping to coordinate rides if people need them. We would love to get a good idea of what kinds of resources we are working with (how many wheelchair accessible vans might we have at our disposal?) so that once we are on the ground, we can work to pool those resources. Are you and your PA heading out from your hotel for the day? perhaps you could swing by and pick up someone else?
*
So, if you want to be connected to this ever-growing network of crips for things like collective eating and help finding transportation and rides PLUS community building and support, let us know! email us at creatingcollectiveaccess[at]gmail[dot]com.
Jun
02
Are you a crip and/or someone with a chronic illness that is going to be in Detroit this summer for the Allied Media Conference and/or the US Social Forum?
We know that for many of us, access is on our minds when it comes to traveling, navigating the city, movement spaces, buildings, sidewalks, public transportation, rides, the air, the bathrooms, the places to stay, the pace, the language,the cost, the crowds, the doors, the people who will be there and so so so much more.
Would you like to be connected to a network of crips and our allies/comrades who are working together to create collective access?
What is collective access? Collective Access is access that we intentionally create collectively, instead of individually.
Most of the time, access is placed on the individual who needs it. It is up to you to figure out your own access, or sometimes, up to you and your care giver, personal attendant (PA) or random friend. Access is rarely weaved into a collective commitment and way of being; it is isolated and relegated to an after thought (much like disabled people).
Access is complex. it is more than just having a ramp or getting disabled folks/crips into the meeting. Access is a constant process that doesn’t stop. It is hard and even when you have help, it can be impossible to figure out alone.
We are working to create mutual aid between crips and beyond! Things we are thinking about as possibilities for collective access in Detroit:
- collective eating and food gathering. having a central accessible place where we eat together. This space could also be kid friendly to help provide mutual aid for parents and their children. We may go on joint food runs to the grocery store or to pick up food and bring it back.
- collectivizing rides–pooling transportation for those who need it. helping to coordinate rides to and from places.
- sharing information/communication. helping us be in touch to share information (about access, ableism that is happening, workshops, resources, etc.), connect and provide a working network of crips through out the AMC and the USSF.
The Network: We imagine that there will be pockets of planned access happening. We cannot anticipate or meet everyone’s medical or access needs and we are sure that for a lot of you, you have your PAs, folks who you feel comfortable with and trust already lined up. Our hope is to create a network that can connect these access pockets together. We hope we can help each other and share resources: you can’t walk long distance, but i can speed in my chair down to the end of the block and get food; i can’t read, but you can, so you help me find my workshop in the schedule; you can help make calls to organize the food gathering and eating, while i carry the food up into the room. We hope that together we can create a culture of collective access.
We are just trying this out! would you like to join us in practicing what this could look like? do you have ideas? are you an ally/comrade who wants to help out or be on call?
Please email creatingcollectiveaccess[at]gmail[dot]com.
Creating Collective Access 