Fall 2009Pre-Event Planning Document

Executive Summary

“Intersecting Diasporas: A Mini-Symposium” is salon-style dialogue designed to cultivate the understanding of diaspora and diasporic identity.

This planned symposium will be a lively forum for cross-cultural conversations to explore the histories, cultural heritage, similarities, and differences evident in the intersection of African Americans with post-colonial African, Latin, and Caribbean immigrant groups. The conference hopes to target emerging scholars from the San Francisco Bay Area.

The term “intersecting” is key because most ethnic and cultural development occur in some relationships to other ethnic and cultural groups, but also their intersect with other axes such as gender, sexuality and class.

The aim of Intersecting Diasporas is to serve as a pilot project for the Museum of African Diaspora. The mini-symposium is a unique forum that will engage emerging scholarship, build relationships and a viable network, as well as establish an innovative partnership amongst local universities, community groups, and museum stakeholders.

Invited guests and speakers will include emerging scholars as well as current graduate students whose research interests are on cultural production and identity formation. Invited speakers will be mostly from the field of African American Studies as well as related fields, such as Ethnic Studies and Anthropology. Several professors or established scholars will also be invited to serve as moderators, to lead discussion, and to address the conference.

This short conference is a public forum that is planned during MoAD’s hours of operation. As a pilot to gauge success for as well as augment the planned year-long “Intersecting Diasporas” series, this mini-symposium is planned in a conservative manner so as to incur minimal expenditure, yet engage constructive dialogue. There may be costs for refreshments, but refreshments are tentative at the moment and/or may require underwriting prior to the event.

This particular symposium, in its shorten form, will serve as an introduction to the whole serie of symposium designed by Sheree (MoAD). As well, it will serve as a pilot project for the longer 6-part series intended at MoAD. Testing activities is always relevant, then make sure they’ll work effectively and will meet the needs of the target audience. In that idea, the mini-symposium will serve as a draft, but also a model on which subsequent version can be based.

The three-hour mini-symposium will consist of four coordinated presentations of substantial interest and relevance to diaspora and its implications. There will be breaks for discussion and scholarly input.

At the moment, the projected date for the mini-symposium is set to be on either Friday, October 23, 2009 or Saturday, October 24, 2009. With either option, the conference can commence at 1:00pm and conclude around 5:00pm.

This project will take place in three phases, all of which will be detailed in the following section:I. Pre-Symposium (establishing theme; inviting speakers; confirming speakers; finalizing program; stakeholder, community, public and media outreach; developing marketing collateral)2. Symposium (project execution)3. Post-Symposium (follow-up communication; archiving all project materials; reporting)

Why MoAD?

MoAD is a fitting framework to engage in the global discussion on diasporic cultural development. As a first voice museum, discussions about representations in the framework of the institution are fundamental as they provide credibility to the museum and reflect an image of a critical institution. Such a discussion makes MoAD being part of something bigger: that way, the museum, as a private/public open space dialogue, helps research development. The program suggested also respond to the museum’s mission and values by raising questions about the African diaspora itself.

This sustainable strategy of encouraging local (which fosters environmental stewardship), emerging scholars (which is also a cost-efficient model) to bring forth their ideas in an intellectual forum outside the classroom will allow MoAD to foster new community partnerships and collaborations with the academic community (which generates higher levels of accountability for MoAD) and reach news audiences (which, in turn, fosters cultural diversity).

Project Plan (details, deliverables, and expected outcomes)

In this section, we will detail the three phases for this 9-week “Intersection Diasporas: A Mini-Symposium” project along with expectations and deliverables along the way.

Phase 1: Pre-Symposium (8 weeks)1. Theme Development

Intersecting Diasporas:

Working themes:“Representation in African Diaspora”“The Performance of Diversity”

The diasporic movement of people is a direct result of as well as part of the process of globalization. The African Diaspora is unique in that has traveled far and wide to the Americas, the Carribbean, Northern Europe, Australia and beyond. As a result, today there is a global kaleidoscope of cultures that make up this particular diaspora.

Paul Gilroy said “It ain’t where you’re from, it’s where you’re at". MoAD presents this symposium as the first of many conversations that aims to explore the origin, movement, adaptation, and the transformation of the African Diaspora. In particular, this mini-symposium brings forth the issue of representation in the African Diaspora.

Topics for papers/presentations and for discussion can include:

Origin and Development of Diasporic Arts, Aesthetics and Performances - production and interpretation of the visual images of popular performers across the diaspora

o Diversity in the African Diaspora – diversity of cultures

o The Performance of Diversity – issues of orientalism, transnationalism, globalization, iconicity, authenticity

o Commodification and circulation of the African diasporas performances and their aesthetics in the global world

o Visuals and images of the African diaspora

2. Finding Speakers – Develop list of invitees amongst university graduate and doctorate students, professors, administrators of programs across colleges and universities across the Bay Area. Plan to invite up to 12 relevant student-speakers (in case of unavailability) and up to 3 moderators (in case of unavailability) and up to 2 keynote speakers (in case of unavailability). In some cases, the latter two speakers’ lists can be interchangeable. Also, it is not pertinent for the moderators to be academics.

Potential guests:

o Louis Chude-SokaiProfessor of Literature at UC Santa Cruz. A writer and scholar whose work explores the African Diaspora, his The Last Darky: Bert Williams, Black on Black Minstrelsy and the African Diaspora was published this year. Louis was the organizer and moderator for MoAD’s first symposium on the Black Francophone world, Paris is Burning (Again) held at MoAD on April 13, 2006

3. Finalizing Program – Cultivate relationships and finalize speakers, speaking points, and program.

Draft Program Structure:

Participants: 3-5 students presenting – ideas, thesis, etc. surrounding a topicProfessor Introduction – major academicModerator – professor, museum professional, or etc.Critique – Panel of Professors

Draft Program:

Welcome – 20 minutes - 1pmMC – Introductions - 1:30pmKeynote Speech –overview of the topic, the need for this conversation – 1:40pm4 students (15 minutes each) – total of 1 hour -- 2:00pm – 3:30pmAcademic Critique – 15 minutes – 3:50pmRoundtable Discussion – 4:30pmMC – Farewell – end by 5pmAfter Party – Otis?

4. Developing Collateral – Develop website materials, press release, and all other outreach materials.

5. Conducting Outreach – Establish lists to groups, community organizations, museum members, Board members, other primary and secondary stakeholders, and potentially interested populations across the Bay Area, including university undergraduate groups; reach out to everyone on list strategically (through those who already have solid contact)

6. Administration – Finalize logistical details, such as number of volunteers needed, order of refreshments, setup.

This first part will take place starting in the first week of September 2009 and the first 3 points will be completed by mid to late September. Outreach efforts will commence once the program and speakers are finalized from late September to late October.

Phase II: Symposium (1 day) - On the day of the symposium, we will set-up the museum space and audio visuals, ensure refreshments are in place, and greet guests in a timely manner.

Phase III: Post-Symposium (1 week) - Immediately following the symposium, all project materials will be archived; the conference will be reported, and all statistics gathered and visitor numbers will be reported as part of a revised grant application for the six-part, year-long series of academic conferences known as Paris is Burning (Again)/Intersecting Diasporas.

Timeline

TIMEFRAME CHECKLIST

September – Week 1 Finalize project plan and timeline Develop theme, titles, flow of symposium Begin writing “Call for Presentations”

September – Week 2 Finalize themes, titles, flow, concept of symposium Finalize call for presentations Develop lists of potential keynote speakers, moderators, experts Develop list of universities, students to reach out to

September – Week 3 Contact/invite speakers Contact/call for presentations/outreach to students, universities Determine location for after-party if we will have it; build relations Develop logo, blurb, and basic marketing collateral – same can be used for website and e-invitation, same theme can be adapted for programme & all other marketing materials Open registration for conference (via MoAD website?) Find donors – for various portions of this conference

September – Week 4 Develop marketing materials – press release, e-invitation Follow-up with speakers, start confirming them Keep reaching out to student groups – invite using e-invitation and direct them to portion of website Correspond with speakers, students, community organizations, members, Board members, and other populations we can invite

September end/October begin – Week 5

Finalize day’s program Draft printed materials (day’s program, press release, poster, etc.) Continue outreach with All groups Field questions and inquiries from students and others Maintain contact with speakers, those involved with conference

October – Week 6 Confirm speakers Keep track of registrants, conduct more outreach if necessary – target is to have 100 people there, by this time if there are not already 80% registered, conduct more active outreach

October – Week 7 Outreach efforts continued Finalize speakers, student presenters, all program elements come together Confirm with “after-party” venue Thank donors, give them special invitation Confirm up to 6 volunteers for event; let them know their R&R Media Outreach Confirm food, refreshments, guards, photographer, etc.

October – Week 8 Print program Talk to reporters again Last-minute questions, issues Email blast to lists

October – Day of Mini-Symposium

Point-Person for Invited guests, speakers, presenters Point-Person for AV, food, logistics, set-up, volunteers Point-Person for Media Volunteers – for welcome, refreshments, seating

October – Week 9 Archive anything and everything (lists, marketing materials, Call for Presentation, Press Release, Press coverage) Send thank-you Report Results

Budget

By keeping project operation costs low, we may be able to break even for this event. Through concerted efforts to harness sponsorship, MoAD may be able to generate revenue.

ITEM PROJECTED COST

Honorarium for any potentially high-profile keynote guest $200

Light Snacks (100 x $2) $300

(Non-Alcoholic) Beverages (100 x $3) $300

Costs (Estimated) $800

ITEM PROJECTED INCOME

Collected Visitor Donations (50 x $5) $250(50 x $10) $500

Income (Estimated) $750

TOTAL BUDGET: $800 (ESTIMATED)

Eventual Event Display