Join us for a three-part online workshop connecting artists, designers and content creators who aspire to contribute to movements for collective liberation with grassroots organizers & educators working in the areas of solidarity economy/economic democracy, climate justice and abolition (the “portals” of SJI’s Portal Project.)

Each event will correspond with soon-to-be released booklets published in conjunction with UIC’s Social Justice Initiatives’ Portal Project and Haymarket Books, and in advance of SJI’s “Through the Portal: Growing the World We Want” conference happening in Chicago this September 20 - 22.

Artists will be invited to participate in a brief workshop (45 - 60 minutes) with individuals working deeply within the “portals” of Economic Democracy, Climate Justice & Abolition. They will do an introduction to these areas of work ( a 101 style presentation) and share examples where artistic and cultural production have been pivotal in these movements. Then, artists will be able to engage in a spacious Q&A with the organizers about questions they may have about these areas of work.

We invite artists and culture workers who are new to grassroots social movements around the economy, climate and abolition who are interested in learning more and creating work which challenges the imagination of art consumers. There is a CALL TO ART connected to “Through the Portal: Growing the World We Want” conference where artists may submit work. We intend this series to support artists in the creation of their work related to the gathering.

August 7 - 2 ET - 3:30 ET - Francisco Perez (Center for Economic Democracy / Economics for Emancipation) & Camila Tapia-Guilliams

August 14 - 2 ET - 3:30 ET - Mark Chavez (Climate Justice Alliance) 

August 21 - 2 ET - 3:30 ET - Richie Reseda (Question Culture)
 

***Register through Ticket Tailor to receive a link to the live-streamed video on the day of the event. This event will also be recorded and captioning will be provided.***

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Speakers

Francisco Pérez (Platanomics) is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Utah and senior economist at the Center for Economic Democracy. He’s the former director of the Center for Popular Economics, a nonprofit collective of political economists whose programs and publications demystify the economy and put useful economic tools in the hands of people fighting for social and economic justice. He is one of the main designers of Economics for Emancipation. Learn more: www.platanomics.com

Camila Tapia-Guilliams (they.them.elle) is a mixed media artist and solidarity economy organizer based in Baltimore, MD. In their work they weave together narratives of care, cooperation, and resistance to create interactive experiences about anti-oppressive and democratic practices. Camila is a co-founder and Worker-Owner of Transverse Cooperative, an artist-owned co-op based in Baltimore that serves movements for collective liberation with art, design, and cultural strategy and organizes arts and culture workers towards better living and working conditions. Camila is also the Training and Consulting Coordinator with the U.S. Federation of Worker Cooperatives, the national membership organization of worker co-ops. Recently, Camila was a member of NCBA & CDF's Co-op Leaders and Scholars, sat on the board of Guilded Cooperative, and was an organizer with Anticapitalism for Artists.

Mark Chavez is a storyteller who lives with his family in the Northern Rockies. His writing has appeared in Flux Hawaii and Taiji Terasaki's TRANSENDIENTS: Immigrant Stories of Place. In between doing communications work for Climate Justice Alliance and raising two young kids, he is working on a debut middle grade novel and collection of short stories.

richie reseda practices transformative justice in his relationships and daily life. He is a formerly-incarcerated music and film producer, content creator, cultural organizer, and creative director. He produced the feature film, SONGS FROM THE HOLE. He co-created and co-hosted the Spotify Original podcast Abolition X, and creative-directs for The For Everyone Fashion Collective. While in prison, he founded the worker-owned media collective Question Culture, and co-foundedSuccess Stories, the feminist-accountability program chronicled in the CNN documentary, “The Feminist on Cell Block Y.”

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This event is sponsored by Haymarket Books, SJI Portal Project, Art.coop, and Artists for Radical Imagination. While all of our events are freely available, we ask that those who are able make a solidarity donation in support of our important publishing and programming work.