A DECLARATION OF MEDIA INDEPENDENCE

Media Justice: Media for All the People Media filled with stereotypical and demeaning imagery. Media that denies our basic humanity and renders us invisible. Media that promotes and justifies our oppression and murder. Too few outlets from which to tell our stories, to speak truth to power. The connections between media -- its form, content, and who owns it -- is inextricably tied to issues of social justice, power, and equity. From the criminalization of youth and immigrants to the so-called "War on Terrorism," the mainstream media has continued its historical role as a willing propaganda machine for corporate interests, and has blocked dialogue and debate on the publicly owned airwaves. Communication is a human right, yet our communities are denied this fundamental right every day. This will not change until we hold all institutions, public and private, to a higher standard of accountability, one that ensures that media serves the needs of all the people.

We hold this truth to be self-evident, that people of color are members of an ongoing continuum of struggle for fair and just media: from the indigenous and enslaved peoples who fought to speak in the shadow of genocide, to the historic fight to develop and sustain independent ethnic newspapers, to the courageous organizers who stood up for fair television coverage in the '60s, to the public access battles of the '70s, to the cyberspace and multimedia pioneers of the '80s and '90s, to the thousands who recently marched, protested, and sat-in to challenge increasing media concentration, people of color are the most critical indicator of how democratic media really is. Today, Media Justice organizers are working to build meaningful participation from communities of color and indigenous communities to claim the undeniable right to communicate -- to liberate our airwaves, networks, and cultural spaces. We aim to fundamentally change the ownership structure, language usage, and policy discourse around media within the United States and internationally, so that those communities most directly affected by media inequities can own the movement and bring into reality the vision behind Media Justice.

We also recognize the interconnectedness between our literacy as media producers/cultural workers, the fight for media accountability and just media policy, and the need for community-owned and controlled media institutions and networks. Therefore, we define the Media Justice movement to include those working in the areas of media advocacy, media accountability and policy, cultural work and training in media production, alternative journalism, and virtual/real world technology organizing.

Why Media Justice?

Media Justice speaks to the need to go beyond creating greater access to the same rotten corporate media structure. We are interested in more than paternalistic conceptualizations of "access," more than paper rights, more than taking up space in a crowded boxcar along the corporate information highway. Media Justice takes into account history, culture, privilege, and power. We seek new relationships to media and a new vision and reality for its ownership, control, access, and structure. We understand that this will require new policies, systems, and structures that will treat our airwaves and our communities as more than markets for exploitation.

We believe that communities of color, indigenous communities, and other oppressed and underrepresented communities need to stake out a distinct space within and apart from the media democracy/reform movement -- similar to the environmental justice movement's relationship to the mainstream environmental movement. We believe this is necessary in order to meaningfully address differences in focus and approach to media organizing. At the heart of our work is a rigorous power analysis, with race, class, and gender at the center. We are not content to have these issues relegated to one segment of a "mainstream" discussion. We need a unique space so that our communities can move forward the visions and strategies for this work that are grounded in their own reality, which we believe will lead our society towards a truly free and democratic media.

Moving Media Justice Forward!

In the Spring/Summer of 2004, community groups and networks will meet at the first Media Justice Summit to discuss issues, develop a set of core principles, and invite others to participate and widen the circle of those familiar with and connected to Media Justice organizing. The Media Justice Summit Organizing Committee is eager to increase the number of people explicitly working towards Media Justice. If you're interested in learning more or would like to endorse this statement, please contact us at info (at) mediajustice.org .

Media Justice is a powerful and necessary step toward liberating our institutions and building the world we want.
Are you ready? Then let's get free.

Art McGee, Afrofuturism Collective
Thenmozhi Soundararajan, Third World Majority
Makani Themba-Nixon, The Praxis Project
Malkia Cyril, Youth Media Council
Jeff Perlstein, Media Alliance