Digital Witnesses: The Power of Looking March 3, 2021

HELLO, EVERYBODY, AND WELCOME TO THIS VIRTUAL EVENT, HOSTED BY THE BERKMAN KLEIN CENTER, DIGITAL WITNESSES, THE POWER OF LOOKING. MY NAME IS ELLERY ROBERTS BIDDLE. AND I AM A BKC ALUM. I CURRENTLY WORK WITH RANKING DIGITAL RIGHTS PROJECT. IT'S A PLEASURE TO BE BACK AT THE BERKMAN KLEIN CENTER. ONE OF MY FAVORITE HOMES IN THE DIGITAL RIGHTS UNIVERSE THAT WE ALL INHABIT. IT'S A REAL PRIVILEGE TO BE SPEAKING TODAY WITH THESE THREE REMARKABLE WOMEN, SCHOLARS, ACTIVISTS, JOURNALISTS WHO I WILL NOW INTRODUCE. WE WILL BEGIN TODAY WITH ALLISSA RICHARDSON. DR. RICHARDSON IS AN AWARD-WINNING JOURNALIST, PIONEER IN MOBILE Journalism AND ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF JOURNALISM AT THE UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA'S ANNENBERG SCHOOL. SHE RESEARCHES HOW MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES USE MOBILE AND SOCIAL MEDIA TO PRODUCE INNOVATIVE FORMS OF JOURNALISM, ESPECIALLY IN TIMES OF CRISIS. -- DR. RICHARDSON IS ALSO THE AUTHOR OF BEARING WITNESS WHILE BLACK, AFRICAN- AMERICANS, SMARTPHONES AND THE NOW PROTEST JOURNALISM. HER JOURNALS APARTMENTS APPEARED IN THE JOURNAL OF COMMUNICATION. JOURNALISM STUDIES. CONVERGENCE AND THE BLACK SCHOLAR, AMONG OTHERS. NEXT UP WE HAVE HANNANE FERDJANI. HANNANE IS A JOURNALIST IN NIGER. SHE WORKED FOR AFRICA NEWS, EURO NEWS AND FRANCE NEWS COVERING BUSINESS, POLITICS AND SECURITY. AND DONE IMPACT REPORTING ON BOKO HARAM ON POPULATIONS IN THE LAKE CHAD REGION. AS A NEIMAN BERKMAN KLEIN FELLOW IN JOURNALISM AND INNOVATION SHE STUDIED HOW TO DEVELOP JOURNALISM METHODS WHEN COVERING NATIONS UNDERGOING DIGITAL TRANSFORMATIONS, WITH A FOCUSED ON ENSURING RIGOROUS AND EFFECTIVE REPORTING. TODAY SHE HOSTS BEYOND THE NOISE, AN INDEPENDENT DIGITAL JOURNALISM PROJECT FOCUSED ON PROVIDING RELIABLE INFORMATION AND DEBUNKING FAKE NEWS AND MYTHS CIRCULATING ONLINE IN AFRICA. AND WE'LL CONCLUDE WITH NANA NWACHUKWU. NANA IS A KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT ADVISOR FOR THE UK DEPARTMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT. FOR MORE THAN A DECADE, SHE HAS WORKED ON ECONOMIC POLICY, GOVERNANCE AND INTERNET RELATED ISSUES AND SHE'S CURRENTLY TRACKING AND MONITORING THE MANIPULATION OF FACEBOOK AND TWITTER COMMUNITY SAFETY GUIDELINES. SHE IS FINISHING HER MASTERS DEGREE IN INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF YORK IN THE UK WHERE SHE IS RESEARCHING THE OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES OF TECHNOLOGY IN IMPROVING HUMANITARIAN RESPONSE. SO TO GET US STARTED, I WANTED TO JUST INVOKE THE NAME OF A DEAR COLLEAGUE AND BERKMAN KLEIN SCHOLAR AND WRITER, An Xiao Mina, WHOSE BOOK MEMES TO MOVEMENTS CAME TO MIND AS I WAS READING AND THINKING ABOUT WHAT EVERYONE IS GOING TO BE SHARING TODAY. I WANTED TO READ A TINY EXCERPT FROM HER INTRODUCTION WHERE AN TALKS ABOUT AND LINKS DIFFERENT SORT OF CURRENTS OF DIGITAL ACTIVISM IN THE -- THE PROTESTS IN FERGUSON MISSOURI IN 2014 FOLLOWING THE POLICE MURDER OF MICHAEL BROWN, AND THE PROTEST MOVEMENT IN HONG KONG THAT HAS BEEN THROUGH SEVERAL WAVES BUT A MAJOR ONE OF WHICH OCCURRED IN 2014. SO SHE SITUATES US IN FERGUSON AND WRITES OF THE PROTESTERS. "AS THEY RAISED THEIR HANDS AND FISTS ANY ALSO RAISED THEIR PHONES, TO DOCUMENT, SHARE AND NETWORK WITH PROTESTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. I WATCHED MY SOCIAL MEDIA FEEDS FLOOD WITH IMAGES OF PEOPLE WITH THEIR HANDS SHOWING, PALMS FACING THE CAMERA. THE PHOTOS REENACTED AS A PERFORMATIVE GESTURE, THE CHANT THAT WAS QUICKLY BECOMING SYNONYMOUS WITH THE FERGUSON PROTESTS. HANDS UP, THE CHANT LEADER WOULD CALL OUT. DON'T SHOOT, THE CROWD WOULD RESPOND. MEANWHILE, HALF A WORLD AWAY IN THE SUBTROPICAL METROPOLITANS OF HONG KONG TENSIONS WERE GROWING OVER ISSUES OF DEMOCRATIC RIGHTS AND UNIVERSAL SUFFRAGE. A MONTH LATER IN SEPTEMBER 2014, THE SIMILARITIES BECAME IMPOSSIBLE TO IGNORE. STUDENTS HANDS WERE RAISED TO THE SKY IN A GESTURE AGAINST POLICE VIOLENCE. AND SHE NOTES HOW THESE SITUATIONS HAVE SO MANY DIFFERENCES BUT THAT'S THE STRIKING SIMILARITY OF THE HANDS UP GESTURE, REFLECTING COMMON CONCERNS ABOUT POLICE VIOLENCE. AND SHE -- AND SHE POINTS OUT HOW ONLINE PEOPLE IN BOTH MOVEMENTS WERE KIND OF INTERACTING WITH EACH OTHER, SHARING TACTICS, KIND OF USING AND REMAKING HASHTAGS TO -- AS A SIGN OF SOLIDARITY. SHE WRITES "THE INTERNET WAS THE ESSENTIALLY TO THE RISE OF BOTH MOVEMENTS, IT MADE THEM VISIBLE TO THEMSELVES AND TO EACH OTHER. IT'S NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE NOW TO THINK OF A SOCIAL MOVEMENT WITHOUT THE INTERNET. AND AS THE WORLD COMES ONLINE COMMUNITIES ADVOCATING FOR CHANGE ARE POPPING UP GLOBALLY IN PLACES LARGE AND SMALL, CHANNELING THEIR ENERGIES TO THE STREETS AND TO THE WEB." SO I CAN'T WAIT TO HEAR ABOUT MORE MOVEMENTS. SO LET'S KICK IT OFF WITH ALLISSA.

THANK YOU SO MUCH ELLERY. I LOVE THAT INTRODUCTION. I LOVE THE FACT THAT WE ARE GROUNDING THIS IN THE FACT THAT THESE DEVICES HAVE GIVEN ORDINARY PEOPLE THE POWER TO PROTEST ALL AROUND THE WORLD. I WANT TO ANCHOR OR START US OFF WITH SOME OBSERVATIONS I MADE AS A "MOJO" HERE IN THE U.S. AS I WAS CRISSCROSSING THE THE WORLD GOING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN DIFFERENT POINTS IN AFRICA AND HERE. I'M GIVING A BRIEF HISTORY OF WHAT BLACK WITNESSING HAS LOOKED LIKE IN THE U.S., AS I CALL IT IN MY BOOK. AND TALK ABOUT HOW SOME OF THE TACTICS ARE INDEED SHARED INTERNATIONALLY. AND SO I ALWAYS LIKE TO TALK ABOUT TEN YEARS AGO, WHEN THE iphone FIRST CAME OUT WITH ITS FIRST FRONT AND REAR FACING CAMERA. ANDS THIS IS A COMMERCIAL THAT MY JOURNALISM STUDENTS AND I MADE TEN YEARS AGO TO SHOW WHAT WAS POSSIBLE IN JOURNALISM. WE CALLED OURSELVES THE MORGAN MOJO LAB. AND WE WERE SITUATED AT MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY IN BALTIMORE, MARYLAND. AND IT'S A HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGE. AND SO MY STUDENTS WERE THE FIRST ONCE IN THE WORLD TO WORK IN A MOJO ONLY ENVIRONMENT, MOBILE FIRST ENVIRONMENT. AND WE WERE INVITED AROUND THE WORLD TO SHOW PEOPLE WHAT IT IS WE WERE DOING IN OUR TINY CLASSROOM. AT ONE PARTICULAR CONFERENCE WE WERE INVITED BY GLOBAL GIRL MEDIA TO COME TO SOUTH AFRICA TO REPLICATE OUR PROCESS AND OUR CURRICULUM. AND SO WE WENT AT THE TAIL END OF THE WORLD CUP. AND WE TAUGHT MANY, MANY GIRLS THERE HOW TO PRODUCE MOBILE JOURNALISM. WHILE I WAS ON THE CONTINENT IS WHEN I REALLY STARTED TO NOTICE THAT POINTS NORTH WERE IN GREAT TURMOIL. AS MANY OF YOU PROBABLY REMEMBER, THE ARAB SPRING ERUPTED. AND DURING THAT TIME I WAS GETTING MOST OF MY NEWS ABOUT THE ARAB SPRING FROM TWITTER. AND I WAS NOT GETTING IT FROM THE BROADCAST STATIONS THAT YOU MAY THINK OF MOST OFTEN. ONE OF THE THINGS I SHOULD ALSO SAY, THOUGH, IS THAT AS I BEGAN TO SEE UNREST REALLY SPREAD THROUGHOUT MOROCCO AND -- WELL ACTUALLY TUNISIA AND LIBYA, I WAS INVITED BY MOROCCO, I SHOULD SAY, JUST AS THEIR KIND OF VIOLENCE BEGAN TO RAMP UP TO REPLICATE THE MOJO LAB THERE TOO. WE TAUGHT 40 DIFFERENT GIRLS ALL ACROSS THE NATION HOW TO DO MOBILE JOURNALISM SO THAT THERE WOULDN'T BE VIOLENCE CONTINUING IN THAT NATION. AND SO I REALLY STARTED TO REALIZE THAT I COULD DO INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGES WITH MY STUDENTS, HAVING STUDENTS IN BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, TALK TO MY STUDENTS IN SOUTH AFRICA OR MOROCCO JUST USING THESE DEVICES. I SHOULD ALSO MENTION THAT I WANTED TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL AFTER ALL OF THESE EXPERIENCES ABROAD, BECAUSE I REALIZED THERE ARE PEOPLE WHO ARE PAID TO READ AND WRITE AND JUST TALK ABOUT WHAT THEY READ AND WROTE. AND THOSE PEOPLE ARE CALLED PROFESSORS. AS A WORKING JOURNALIST AT THE TIME I HAD NEVER THOUGHT OF ACADEMIA BUT I SAW JUST HOW MUCH TIME ACADEMICS HAD TO ANALYZE WHAT THEY WERE DOING, PARSE WHAT THEY WERE DOING, MAKE SENSE OF IT AND THEN SHARE BEST PRACTICES. AND SO THE FIRST WEEK OF MY GRAD SCHOOL Ph.D. EXPERIENCE, MIKE BROWN WAS KILLED. ONCE AGAIN, I REALIZED THAT I'M LEARNING ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING IN FERGUSON, NOT FROM BROADCAST TV BUT THROUGH BLACK ACTIVISTS ON TWITTER. AND MANY OF THEM LIKE THE ONES FEATURED HERE HAVE LITTLE MORE THAN THEIR CELL PHONE AND A WI-FI CONNECTION. THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS BY NOW WE WERE THREE YEARS OUT FROM THE ARAB SPRING. AND THREE YEARS AWAY FROM THE OCCUPY WALL STREET MOVEMENTS, WHICH WERE ALSO MEDIATED BY MOBILE DEVICES. YET I WASN'T SEEING ANY LITERATURE ABOUT FERGUSON AT ALL. I SAW A TON OF ARTICLES, RIGHTFULLY SO, ABOUT THE ARAB SPRING, AND A TON OF ARTICLES ABOUT THE MOBILE PHONE'S IMPACT ON OCCUPY. BUT I KEPT SEARCHING, SAYING SURELY SOMEBODY IS GOING TO WRITE SOMETHING ABOUT BLACK PEOPLE'S USE OF CELL PHONES, AND HOW THIS HAS BEEN A COMPLETELY NEW WAY OF GETTING THE MY DAD WATCHING THIS VIDEO OF RODNEY KING BEING BEATEN ALMOST TO DEATH. AND I REMEMBER MY DAD WHO IS A SON OF THE CARIBBEAN SAYING, JESUS, THEY DON'T DO THIS TO PEOPLE BACK HOME. I THOUGHT BACK HOME? WELL THIS IS MY HOME. WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO MAKE OF THAT? WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN TO YOU? WHAT'S HAPPENING TO MY BROTHER? AS MANY OF YOU KNOW, LOS ANGELES WHERE I'M BASED NOW ERUPTED AFTER THESE FOUR POLICE OFFICERS WERE ACQUITTED. AND EVEN WITH THE VIDEO I SAW THIS AS A WATERSHED MOMENT FOR MOBILE WITNESSING AND I SAID SURELY SOMEBODY WROTE ABOUT THIS AND I SCOURED MORE. THERE AREO THERE WERE A FEW ARTICLES HERE AND THERE BUT THE MAJORITY OF THEM WERE ABOUT THE LEGAL CASE ITSELF AND NOT THE IMPACT OF THE VIDEO. THAT'S WHEN I BEGAN TO GET THIS IDEA THAT I NEEDED TO GO BACK IN TIME TO REALLY TRACE HOW MANY TIMES AFRICAN-AMERICANS HAVE HACKED TECHNOLOGY TO SHINE A LIGHT ON INJUSTICES. AND SO THAT'S HOW THE GENESIS OF THIS BOOK CAN BE DESCRIBED IS REALLY A FRUSTRATION WITH THE FACT THAT MY PEOPLE WEREN'T BEING FEATURED IN THE CANON. I SAW ALL THIS INNOVATION, BLACK INNOVATION, IN TERMS OF USING THESE TECHNOLOGICAL TOOLS THAT WERE NOT DESIGNED FOR US IN THE FIRST PLACE, TO REALLY GET THE WORD OUT ABOUT THINGS THAT HAD BEEN PLAGUING US FOR SUCH A LONG TIME. IN ORDER TO DO THAT I KNEW I NEEDED TO GO FAR BACK IN TIME, NOT JUST TO THE RODNEY KING VIDEO THAT'S NEARLY 30 YEARS OLD BUT EVEN FARTHER BACK THAN THAT. SO I LANDED ON -- BECAUSE IT CAN BE VERY DIFFICULT TO FIND BEGINNING AND END POINTS FOR THINGS LIKE THESE. I SAID EVEN THOUGH I KNOW BLACK HISTORY DOESN'T START IN SLAVERY. I KNOW WE STARTED ORIGINALLY IN AFRICA. MANY OF US DON'T KNOW WHERE. AND WE'VE BEEN TORN APART FROM THAT, FROM THE CONTINENT, TORN APART FROM EVEN KNOWING OUR TRUE, TRUE ORIGINS. AND I THINK THAT THE WAY THAT THAT IS FRAMED OFTEN IS -- IT'S FALSE. I HAVE NO OTHER WAY TO SAY THAT. THE JEWISH HOLOCAUST OF COURSE IS FRAMED AS A GREAT TRAGEDY THAT AFFECTED MILLIONS. AND I KNOW 6 MILLION. I KNOW THAT NUMBER. WE DON'T HAVE A TRUE NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO WERE STOLEN FROM THEIR HOMELAND AND SOLD INTO THE TRANS-ATLANTIC SLAVE TRADE. WE HAVE ESTIMATES LIKE THIS ONE. WHEN I SAW THIS SLATE MAGAZINE ANIMATION OF JUST HOW SLAVERY PICKED UP AND TOOK OFF, I KNOW THAT BECAUSE THERE WERE BLACK WITNESSES WHO COULD SHARE THAT INFORMATION, WITNESSES LIKE FREDERICK DOUGLASS, WHO TRIED TO TELL TELL US IN NOT ONE, NOT TWO, BUT THREE AUTOBIOGRAPHIES, WHAT THE SLAVE TRADE ACTUALLY WAS.. AND SO WHEN I BEGAN TO STUDY THIS AS A PHD STUDENT, I THOUGHT WHY ISN'T THIS FRAMED AS A HOLOCAUST? I THOUGHT THE JEWISH COMMUNITY HAS DONE A FANTASTIC JOB OF LINKING BACK AND CONNECTING EVERY CURRENT ATROCITY OR EVERY CURRENT ANTI-SEMITIC ACT TO THE ORIGINAL SIN OF THE HOLOCAUST. BUT AFRICAN-AMERICANS HAVE BEEN TRYING SO HARD TO DO THAT TOO, TO LINK BACK ALL OF THE SYSTEMIC INJUSTICES TO THE ORIGINAL SIN WHICH IS THE SLAVE TRADE. WE HAVE NOT BEEN AS SUCCESSFUL, BECAUSE PEOPLE DON'T SEE IT AS A HOLOCAUST. AND WHEN I BEGAN TO INTERVIEW FOR THE BOOK MANY PEOPLE WHO STUDY FREDERICK DOUGLASS AND STUDY ALL OF THE LOSS THAT OCCURRED, I THOUGHT THIS WAS THE ORIGINAL USE OF TECHNOLOGY TO REALLY HACK OR SHINE A LIGHT ON INJUSTICE. AND MANY OF THE HISTORIANS THAT I INTERVIEWED SAID, IF YOU WERE TO DRY UP THE ATLANTIC OCEAN, THERE WOULD INDEED BE A TRAIL OF BONES THAT LEADS FROM AFRICA TO POINTS WEST. AND THAT HORRIFIED ME, THINKING THERE WERE ALL THESE LOST SOULS AND ALL THESE LOST STORIES THAT JUST WEREN'T BEING TOLD. AND SO I HAD TO THINK ABOUT, WHERE CAN I START THIS STORY ABOUT BEARING WITNESS WHILE BLACK FOR ME? THERE ARE NUMEROUS ENTRY POINTS AS YOU SAW ON THE MAP. I DECIDED TO FOCUSED ON THE U.S. IN IT I TALK ABOUT PEOPLE LIKE IDA B. WELLS WHO TOOK THE BATON FROM FREDERICK DOUGLASS AND STARTED TO DOCUMENT LYNCHING IN HER LIFETIME. SHE WAS ABLE TO SNEAK DOWN FROM POINTS NORTH, DOWN SOUTH, TO TRACK AT LEAST 4,000 LYNCHINGS IN HER LIFETIME, WINNING THE PULITZER PRIZE POSTHUMOUSLY LAST YEAR FOR DOING SO. AND AS WE TRAVEL THROUGH TIME, PEOPLE LIKE THE LATE JOHN LEWIS WERE MASTERS AT USING TECHNOLOGY TO PLEAD THEIR CASE. BACK THEN, THE NEWS CYCLE ONLY LASTED 15 MINUTES IN THE EVENING, HENCE THE TERM 15 MINUTES OF FAME. AND SO WE DIDN'T HAVE THESE 24-HOUR NEWS CYCLES. YOU HAD TO STAGE YOUR DEMONSTRATION AROUND THE TIME THAT WALTER CRONKITE AND HIS COLLEAGUES WERE GOING TO BE DOWN THERE. JOHN LEWIS KNEW THAT THE SIT-IN, THE DEMONSTRATION, THE PROTEST, THE MARCH HAD TO TAKE PLACE AT A STRATEGIC TIME. HE USED THE MEDIA TO PLEAD HIS CASE. SO THAT BRINGS US TO THE NEW VAN GUARD I'M TALKING ABOUT TODAY AS WE OPEN IT UP TO QUESTION AND ANSWER AFTER OUR OTHER GREAT SPEAKERS. I WAS INTERVIEWED 15 TOP CITIZEN JOURNALIST ACTIVISTS WHO WOULD NEVER REFER TO THEMSELVES AS JOURNALISTS BUT INSTEAD IN THE BOOK CALL THEMSELVES TRUTH SEEKERS, TRUTH TELLERS, HISTORIANS, FAMILY HISTORIANS. AND SO SOME OF THEM ARE ALICIA GARZA, THE FOUNDER OF BLACK LIVES MATTER. I SPOKE TO THE FAMILY ATTORNEY FOR GEORGE FLOYD AND ALTON STERLING AND WALTER SCOTT. I HAVE PEOPLE IN HERE LIKE DAVID BANNER, A FORMER FULL-TIME RAPPER AND NOW ACTIVIST. ALSO SCHOLARS ARE HERE. EVE EWING IS HERE, CLINT SMITH IS HERE. BOTH FROM HARVARD UNIVERSITY. AND MARISSA JOHNSON WHO FAMOUSLY INTERRUPTED BERNIE SANDERS ON HIS CAMPAIGN TRAIL. I WANT TO SHARE THAT SOME OF THESE ACTIVISTS HAVE GONE ON TO INTERNATIONAL FAME FROM A CELL PHONE HERE IS DEAFEN ALLENS ICONIC PHOTOGRAPH NOW ON THE FRONT OF TIME MAGAZINE, AS HE WAS DOCUMENTING HIS NATIVE BALTIMORE AND THE UNREST THAT OCCURRED IN THE WAKE OF FREDDY GRAY'S KILLING IN 2015. THIS PICTURE HANGS IN THE SMITHSONIAN MUSEUM ONE OF THE MOST PRESTIGIOUS MUSEUMS IN THE NATION. HE ALSO LOANED ME A PHOTOGRAPH FOR THE COVER OF MY BOOK, HE DID IT AGAIN. THIS SUMMER BECOMING ONE OF ONLY THREE AMATEURS TO GRACE THE COVER OF "TIME" MAGAZINE WITH THIS ILLUSTRATION- PHOTOGRAPH ACTUALLY OF A PEACEFUL DIE-IN IN BALTIMORE THAT WAS RESPONDING TO GEORGE FLOYD'S KILLING. AND SO I ALSO WANT TO NOTE THAT AS A BLACK WOMAN, I ALSO FEEL COMPELLED TO BEAR WITNESS WHILE BLACK. NOT ONLY AM I A CURATOR AND COLLECTOR OF BLACK STORIES SO THAT THEY DON'T DIE AND THEY'RE NOT MISREPRESENTED OR PUSHED TO THE SIDE. I THIS SUMMER WORKED WITH A TEAM GRX IMMERSIVE LABS TO PRODUCE MY FIRST DOCUSERIES. MY FIRST FILMS. THESE FILMS REALLY TRACE WHAT ACTIVISM LOOKED LIKE IN MINNEAPOLIS, WASHINGTON, D.C., ATLANTA AND L.A. AND WE DID IT IN THIS NEW FRONTIER, AGAIN HACKING TECHNOLOGY AND PUSHING THE NEEDLE FURTHER FROM CELL PHONES TO THIS TIME DOING IT WITH IN 360. AND SO THESE VIDEOS ARE MADE FOR VR HEAD SETS. AND WE WERE ABLE TO SELL THIS PRODUCTION TO OCCULUS FACEBOOK AND HAD A GREAT OPENING DEBUT OF IT LAST WEEK. BUT WE LINK IN TIME MUCH LIKE I DO IN THE BOOK THE FORMER ACTS OF JOURNALISM TO TODAY'S. AND SO AS I WRAP, I WANT EVERYONE TO THINK ABOUT JUST THESE THREE OVERLAPPING ERAS OF DOMESTIC TERROR THAT AFRICAN-AMERICANS HAVE FACED IN THE 200 YEARS THAT THEY'VE BEEN HERE. AND I COULD START IN SLAVERY WHICH LED TO LYNCHING, WHICH THEN MORPHED TO WHAT WE HAVE NOW, POLICE BRUTALITY. AND IN THIS ICONIC MAGAZINE COVER BY THE GREAT KADIR NELSON ONE OF MY FAVORITE ARTISTS. HE DID IN ONE PAINTING WHAT I ATTEMPTED TO DO IN MORE THAN 300 PAGES OF BOOK. AND THAT'S STITCH TOGETHER WHAT THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN IN TERMS OF TRYING TO USE TECHNOLOGY TO GET THE WORD OUT ABOUT INJUSTICES THAT ARE METED OUT AGAINST US. AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAINTING YOU SEE A DIAGRAM OF WHAT AFRICAN-AMERICANS WOULD HAVE GONE THROUGH AND WHAT WE CALL THE MIDDLE PASSAGE, HOW THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN STACKED AND LINED UP INTO THE HULLS OF THESE SHIPS. YOU SEE WHIPPED PETE AT THE BOTTOM ON OF THE RIGHT-HAND SIDE, THE VERY FIRST SLAVE WHO SAT FOR A PHOTOGRAPH FOR JOURNALISTS SO PEOPLE COULD SEE WHAT HIS BACK LOOKED LIKE AND WHAT THE BRUTALITY OF SLAVERY LOOKED LIKE. YOU SEE IN THE MIDDLE THE RODNEY KING VIDEO I MENTIONED. UP ABOVE THAT YOU SEE EMMETT TILL. YOU SEE I AM A MAN, THE PLACARDS THAT REPRESENT THE LAST PROTEST THAT DR. KING LED BEFORE HIS ASSASSINATION FOR MEMPHIS SANITATION WORKERS. MEDGAR GARR EVERS A MAN WAS LYNCHED YESTERDAY HERE THE ICONIC FLAG THAT FLEW OUTSIDE THE NAACP BUILDING. YOU SEE ERIC GARNER, TRAYVON MARTIN, SANDRA BLAND IS HERE, AND THERE ARE SO MANY PEOPLE WHO COULDN'T FIT IN GEORGE FLOYD'S FRAME EVEN THOUGH HE WAS LARGE AND MIGHTY. AS I CLOSE OUT, I JUST WANT US TO REMEMBER, THAT BLACK WITNESSING IS NOT NEW. IT'S SOMETHING THAT'S BEEN GOING ON AT LEAST FOR AMERICANS FOR THE LAST 200 YEARS, AS WE HAVE HACKED NEW TECHNOLOGIES TO SHARE WHAT IS GOING ON. AND WE HAVE TO REMEMBER THAT EACH GENERATION OF WITNESSES IS GETTING YOUNGER AND YOUNGER. LAST SUMMER A CHILD LED US. A 17-YEAR-OLD GIRL DARNELLA FRAZIER WAS THE ONE WHO FILMED GEORGE FLOYD'S TRAGIC KILLING. BUT I THOUGHT EVEN SMALLER THAN THAT IS THIS LITTLE GIRL, DEANNA REYNOLDS. I DEDICATED THE BOOK TO HER, SHE IS THE STEP DAUGHTER OF PHILANDO CASTILE. SHE WAS ONLY FOUR YEARS OLD WHEN SHE SAT IN THE BACKSEAT OF THE CAR AND WATCHED OFFICER YANAZ SHOOT HIM TO DEATH. FOR THE LITTLEST WITNESSES I THINK WE OWE IT TO THEM TO CONTINUE TO PUSH THESE BOUNDARIES OF JOURNALISM AND TECHNOLOGY. AND I'LL STOP RIGHT THERE. I'M GOING TO PASS IT TO HANNANE.

THAT WAS VERY MOVING.

THANK YOU.

AND NOW WE'LL HEAR FROM HANNANE.

WELL, THANK YOU SO MUCH, ALLISSA FOR THIS VERY THOUGHTFUL AND I WANT TO SAY ALMOST EMOTIONAL PRESENTATION. THANK YOU. THAT WAS ENLIGHTENING. I'M GOING TO TRY TO SHARE MY SCREEN NOW. THERE YOU ALL RIGHT. SO JUST TO FOLLOW UP AND MAYBE TO ADD TO WHAT ALLISSA HAS TALKED TO US ABOUT, I WILL FOCUS, BECAUSE IT'S BASICALLY BEEN MY AREA, GEOGRAPHICALLY OF INTEREST, I THINK MY ENTIRE CAREER, ON THE AFRICAN CONTINENT AND SUBSAHARAN AFRICA IN PARTICULAR. I WANT TO SAY FIRST AND FOREMOST WHEN SPEAKING OF THE USE OF AND UTILIZATION OF DIGITAL TOOLS TO SORT OF CALL OUT OPPRESSION AND TO FIGHT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS AND TO BE -- SIMPLY BE AN ACTIVIST, THERE IS A SENSE THAT AWARENESS HAS TO BE BASICALLY THE BASIS OF EVERYTHING. AND WHAT WE NOTICE ON THE AFRICAN CONTINENT IN PARTICULAR IS THAT INTERNET PENETRATION HAS GROWN, INCREASINGLY, AND HAS GROWN STEADILY IN THE LAST FEW YEARS, WHICH HAS MADE IT EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO ACCESS INFORMATION, SO THE TRADITIONAL CHANNELS OF INFORMATION THAT WE USED TO HAVE, WHICH WERE BASICALLY BROADCAST TELEVISION AND -- AND NEWSPAPERS ARE NO LONGER THE ONLY SOURCES OF INFORMATION AVAILABLE. AND WHICH THAT HAS MADE IT MORE AVAILABLE FOR A GREATER NUMBER OF PEOPLE TO GET ACCESS TO INFORMATION. AND WITH THAT OBVIOUSLY THEN SOCIAL MEDIA HAD A ROLE TO PLAY. SO ACCORDING TO A RECENT STUDY BY THE UNDP, THE GROWING USE OF FACEBOOK, TWITTER AND AFRICAN NEWS APPS AND OTHER FORMS OF SOCIAL MEDIA IN AFRICA HAVE INCREASED CITIZENS AWARENESS OF POLITICAL EVENTS AND CHANGED PERCEPTIONS BOTH NATIONALLY AND INTERNATIONALLY. IT'S ALSO GIVEN LESS CELEBRATED ACTORS A VOICE IN GLOBAL AND LOCAL DISCOURSE. THAT MEANS THAT YOU WOULD HAVE PARTICULAR SMALL GROUP OF PEOPLE WITH A CERTAIN ACADEMIC BACKGROUND AND MAYBE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL BACKGROUND THAT WOULD HAVE THE ABILITY TO THE INFLUENCE THEIR COMMUNITY AND TO RAISE AWARENESS ON CERTAIN ISSUES. AND THAT HAS SHIFTED TO A WIDER -- TO A WIDER SPECTRUM OF PEOPLE. FOR EXAMPLE, INCREASING TWITTER USE IN KENYA IS SAID TO BE LINKED TO CITIZENS' INTEREST IN CHALLENGING MISREPRESENTATION BY THE INTERNATIONAL MEDIA IN TERMS OF HOW VIOLENCE AND ELECTION CAMPAIGNS ARE REPORTED. SO YOU'LL SEE THAT MANY AFRICANS ACROSS -- IN ALL 54 NATIONS HAVE CHALLENGED NEWS CHANNEL -- TRADITIONAL WESTERN MAINSTREAM PLATFORMS SUCH AS CNN IN THE WAY THAT THEY HAVE REPORTED ON CERTAIN EVENTS, BECAUSE THEY HAVE DEEMED CERTAIN COVERAGE -- COVERAGES AS DATED AND NOT FULLY REPRESENTATIVE OF THE SCALE AND SCOPE OF THE REALITIES THAT THEY ARE FACED WITH. AND THEY COULD DIRECTLY CHALLENGE SUCH NARRATIVES THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA. SIMILARLY, IN NIGERIA, SOCIAL MEDIA HAS REPORTEDLY BEEN ENCOURAGED AS A RESULT OF THE NIGERIAN MAINSTREAM PRESS'S RELUCTANCE TO SPEAK AND TO REPORT ON SENSITIVE ISSUES. MAINLY ISSUES THAT HAD TO DO WITH NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS AND ALSO CALLING OUT POWERFUL CORPORATIONS FOR CORRUPTION ISSUES AND CORRUPTION SCANDALS. SO WHAT WE REALLY ARE SEEING IS THAT SOCIAL MEDIA IS AN INSTRUMENTAL TOOL FOR A YOUNGER GENERATION OF AFRICANS, IN PARTICULAR TWITTER IS A FORM OF SOCIAL MEDIA THAT HAS REVOLUTIONIZED POLITICAL DISCOURSE AND ENABLED AFRICAN POPULATIONS TO COMMUNICATE IN NEW WAYS. UNLIKE OTHER PLATFORMS, TWITTER IS EASILY ACCESSIBLE THROUGH A MOBILE PHONE, AS ALLISSA MENTIONED AS WELL, AND THAT GIVES ORDINARY CITIZENS A VOICE ALSO IN INTERNATIONAL DISCOURSE. AND I THINK THAT WHAT IS ALSO STRIKING AND WHAT WAS STRIKING IN RECENT MONTHS, PARTICULARLY DURING THE -- I GUESS IN 2020, IS THAT FOR INSTANCE THE BLACK LIVES MATTER RESURGENCE IN THE U.S. DEFINITELY HAD AN ECHO ON AFRICAN SOIL. AND IT DID THROUGH TWITTER IN PARTICULAR GALVANIZE A CERTAIN SENSE OF FRUSTRATION THAT BLACK LIVES MATTER WAS NOT NECESSARILY SOMETHING THAT HAD TO BE CONSTRICTED TO THE AMERICAN CONTEXT BUT ALSO COULD MAKE SENSE IN THE AFRICAN CONTEXT AS WELL. THAT'S WHY WE SAW MOVEMENTS SUCH AS ZIMBABWEAN LIVES MATTER, EMERGE AND BASICALLY SAY POLICE BRUTALITY IS ALSO A REALITY WE HAVE TO FACE ON A REGULAR BASIS -- AS MUCH AS THE BASIS FOR THE OPPRESSION IS NOT NECESSARILY RACE, BECAUSE WE ARE TALKING ABOUT BLACK NATIONS, THERE IS STILL A SENSE THAT BLACK LIVES MATTER EVERYWHERE. AND THEREFORE WE SHOULD ADVOCATE FOR THAT AND SHOWCASE SOLIDARITY IN A WAY WHEN DISCUSSING BLACK LIVES MATTER. THERE WAS ALSO A WAY FOR KENYANS TO USE TWITTER WHEN PROPAGATING A MESSAGE IN RELATION TO THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION IN 2013. THEY WERE USING THOSE CHANNELS TO DISCUSS THE STAKES OF THE ELECTION AND THAT IS JUST ONE EXAMPLE AMONGST MANY. THE POWER OF SOCIAL MEDIA IS, YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY -- CAN'T BE DISCUSSED WHEN IF COMES TO RAISING CERTAIN ISSUES AND PUTTING THEM OUT THERE IN THE PUBLIC SPHERE TO BE DISCUSSED. NOW SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGNS IN PARTICULAR HAVE GROWN MORE INTENTIONAL AND THEY'VE BECOME INTEGRAL PARTS OF ADVOCACY STRATEGIES IN RECENT YEARS. I WANT TO TAKE THE EXAMPLE OF NIGERIA WHICH I'M SURE NANA WILL EXPAND ON WITH MORE KNOWLEDGE THAN ME. BUT JUST TO GIVE A BIT OF -- A BIT OF A COMPARISON THROUGH TIME, IF WE LOOK AT THE EVOLUTION OF SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTABILITY DISCOURSE IN NIGERIA, FOR INSTANCE, IN 2014 WE SAW THE HASHTAG #BRINGBACKOURGIRLS SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN GATHER SUPPORT FROM PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD THAT WERE CONCERNED ABOUT THE PLIGHT OF THE 276 SCHOOL GIRLS KIDNAPPED BY A TERRORIST GROUP, BOKO HARAM. AND THAT INTERNATIONAL UPROAR CONTRIBUTED IN GALVANIZING THE FIGHT BY THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT TO FIND THEM, BECAUSE THEY WERE SORT OF HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR -- FOR THEIR DISAPPEARANCE. AND IF YOU FAST FORWARD TO ENDSARS WHICH WE SAW SPREAD LIKE WILDFIRE ON SOCIAL MEDIA IN THE END OF 2020. THERE WAS CLEARLY A DIFFERENCE THE WAY THAT THE SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGNS PLAYED OUT. IN THE EARLY DAYS OF THE PROTESTS, MANY OBSERVERS NOTICED THAT -- AND MADE THE CASE THAT WHAT COULD EXPLAIN THE REASON WHY THIS DIGITAL PROTEST IN PARTICULAR, AND ESPECIALLY THIS WAVE OF THE ENDSARS MOVEMENT GAINED MORE ATTENTION IS BECAUSE THE PROTESTERS ONLINE APPEARED TO BE ATTEMPTING TO SHAME BRANDS AND JOURNALISTS BY TAGGING THEIR TWITTER HANDLES AND TWEETS AND ASKING THEM WHY THEY WEREN'T COVERING THE PROTESTS. SO PEOPLE WERE USING THE TWITTER SPHERE TO REALLY CRITICIZE AND REALLY LIKE DO THAT IN A VERY ORGANIZED WAY. THEY ALSO USED TWITTER AS WELL AS OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS TO RALLY SUPPORT FOR PROTESTERS ON THE GROUND, INFORM THOSE THAT WEREN'T ON THE GROUND ABOUT WHAT WAS GOING ON AND ALSO IN A WAY AVOID AND BYPASS REPRESSION BY POLICE FORCES AS WE KNOW THE RETALIATION BY -- BY THE ARMY AND ALSO ARMED FORCES WAS PRETTY VIOLENT AROUND THE END OF THE YEAR 2020. NOW, I THINK THAT AS MUCH AS -- I'M SORRY -- THAT WAS MEANT TO ILLUSTRATE WHAT I WAS SAYING ABOUT ENDSARS. I THINK AS MUCH AS WE ARE TALKING ABOUT GREAT DIGITAL TOOLS HAVE BEEN FOR AFRICANS ON THE AFRICAN CONTINENT BUT ALSO IN THE DIASPORA WHEN ACTING AS ACTIVISTS THERE IS ALSO A SENSE WE HAVE TO BE REALISTIC ABOUT THE SITUATION AS IT IS AND ALSO THE DISPARITIES AND ACCESS TO THE INTERNET ITSELF. SO ACCORDING TO A 2019 AFROBAROMETER SURVEY, TODAY -- I MEAN NOT TODAY, 2019, ONLY 19% AND 22% OF AFRICANS RESPECTIVELY USE THE INTERNET AND SOCIAL MEDIA THAT FREQUENTLY AS THE CHANNEL FOR INFORMATION. THAT IS TO SAY OF COURSE THERE IS STILL THAT LIMITATION BECAUSE OF ECONOMIC REALITIES. WE -- WE UNDERSTAND THAT BASICALLY HAVING INTERNET ON YOUR PHONE IS A COSTLY THING. AND IT STILL MEANS THAT THERE IS A DIGITAL DIVIDE THAT IS QUITE PRESENT. YOUNGER, BETTER-EDUCATED, WEALTHIER, MALE AND URBAN DWELLING AFRICANS ARE MUCH MORE LIKELY TO ACCESS SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE INTERNET. WHICH IN MY VIEW ALSO MEANS THAT CERTAIN ISSUES ARE STILL NOT PUT TO THE FRONT OF, YOU KNOW, PUBLIC DISCOURSE, BECAUSE THEY DON'T NECESSARILY HAVE ECHO. SO IF YOU ARE IN A RURAL AREA, AND THERE IS ABUSE HAPPENING, WHETHER IT COMES FROM GOVERNMENT OR LOCAL AUTHORITIES, THEN IT'S GOING TO BE HARDER FOR YOU TO EXPRESS THAT, AND TO CREATE A MOVEMENT AROUND IT. AND WHEN IT COMES TO DIGITAL ADVOCACY THERE ARE LIMITATIONS. I THINK FOR THE AFRICAN CONTINENT IN PARTICULAR, THOSE LIMITATIONS HAVE TO DO WITH GOVERNMENTS AND RESTRICTIVE GOVERNMENTS THAT HAVE A VERY DATED PERCEPTION OF WELL THEIR POWERS AND HOW CITIZENS ARE TO BEHAVE WITHIN THE STATE, THE STATE STRUCTURE. SO GOVERNMENTS USE VERY REAL CONCERNS AS EXCUSES TO TARGET THEIR OPPONENTS AND DISSIDENT VOICES SELECTIVELY, IN WAYS THAT STIFLE OPPOSITION, FAIR ELECTIONS AND ACCOUNTABILITY. THIS MANIFESTED ITSELF IN A NUMBER OF AFRICAN COUNTRIES, ESPECIALLY WITH THE SPREAD OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. AND AROUND MARCH 2020. THERE IS THIS NATIONAL ORDER, NATIONAL SECURITY ARGUMENT THAT A LOT OF AFRICAN GOVERNMENTS HAVE PUT TO THE FOREFRONT. AND AS THEY SAID, THEY'VE HAD TO TAKE ON THE FIGHT AGAINST WHAT HAS BEEN DUBBED AN INFODEMIC. THE SPREAD OF HARMFUL MISINFORMATION AND DISINFORMATION ON SOCIAL MEDIA, RELATIVE TO THE SANITARY CRISIS. AND THE NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES OF THIS FIGHT AGAINST FAKE NEWS IN A WAY HAS BEEN ARBITRARY MONITORING AND RESTRICTIONS ON SPEECH AND DISCOURSE EMERGING ONLINE. OBVIOUSLY WE KNOW THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PROTECTING NATIONAL ORDER AND CITIZENS AGAINST FAKE NEWS AND SIMPLY ALIENATING PEOPLE'S FREEDOM OF SPEECH. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT UNFORTUNATELY IS STILL VERY MUCH POSSIBLE, AND ESPECIALLY IN THE SUBSAHARAN AFRICAN CONTEXT. IN RECENT YEARS WE HAVE SEEN ANGOLA, TANZANIA, UGANDA, MALAWI, SWAZILAND,ZAMBIA, JUST TO NAME A FEW, INTRODUCED HARSH LAWS THAT REGULATE SOCIAL MEDIA USE. IN PRACTICE, MANY OBSERVERS JUST THINK THAT THIS IS A WAY TO INSTILL DOUBT AND FEAR IN SOCIAL MEDIA USERS AND TO ENCOURAGE SELF-CENSORSHIP SO AS TO AVOID THE WRATH OF THE STATE MACHINERY FOR VOICING GRIEVANCES ABOUT GOVERNMENT AND LOCAL INSTITUTIONS. CITING NATIONAL SECURITY, FOR INSTANCE, I'M GOING TO TAKE THE CASE OF UGANDA WHICH HELD A GENERAL ELECTION IN THE MONTH OF JANUARY. THE GOVERNMENT ON JANUARY 13th ORDERED A TOTAL INTERNET SHUTDOWN AND PARTIALLY RESTORED IT DAYS LATER. BUT SOCIAL MEDIA TO THIS DAY REMAINS BLOCKED. YOU CANNOT ACCESS FACEBOOK ON -- ON UGANDAN SOIL, BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT IS STILL -- AS MUCH AS -- THE INCUMBENT PRESIDENT HAS BEEN RE-ELECTED. AND OBVIOUSLY THE OPPOSITION CITED FRAUD DURING THE ELECTION. WELL, THERE IS JUST THIS PERIOD OF TIME WHERE THEY WOULD RATHER NOT HAVE TOO MANY CONVERSATIONS HAPPENING AROUND THE ELECTION, SO SOCIAL MEDIA REMAINS BLOCKED. AND THERE IS ALSO ENOUGH EVIDENCE TO BELIEVE THAT THEY MIGHT NOT GIVE ACCESS TO SOCIAL MEDIA ANY TIME SOON, SEEING AS FACEBOOK IN THE LEAD-UP TO THE ELECTION, FACEBOOK TOOK DOWN HUNDREDS OF PRO GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTS THAT THE SOCIAL MEDIA GIANT CLAIMED EXHIBIT COORDINATED INAUTHENTIC BEHAVIOR. RECENTLY, THE PRESIDENT SAID THE COUNTRY WOULD CONSIDER PERMANENTLY BLOCKING THE SITE. I GUESS IF I WANT TO WRAP UP- I DON'T WANT TO END ON A NEGATIVE AND PESSIMISTIC NOTE. BUT I THINK THAT WITH THE AFRICAN CONTEXT IN MIND, THERE IS A DEFINITE SENSE THAT THE DIGITAL ERA IS OPENING DOORS AND OPENING WAYS FOR ACTIVISTS AND WITNESSES OF -- OF, YOU KNOW, THE EVENTS ARE HAPPENING AROUND THEM IN COMMUNITIES TO REALLY TAKE A STANCE AND BE EFFECTIVE IN LIMITING OPPRESSION AND FIGHTING FOR THEIR RIGHTS. BUT THERE IS STILL LIMITATIONS TO THAT FIGHT. AND FOR AS LONG AS WE DON'T MANAGE TO SECURE AND REALLY BRING FORTH DEMOCRATIC TOOLS THAT WILL BE INHERENT TO THE SYSTEMS WHERE ALL OF THIS IS HAPPENING, THERE WILL BE LIMITATIONS TO THIS KIND OF ADVOCACY. AND THAT'S ALL FOR ME. SO I'LL JUST LET NANA TALK. THANK YOU.

NANA.

HI, EVERYONE. GOOD EVENING. I'M REALLY GLAD TO HAVE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE THIS CONVERSATION. SO I'M JUST OKAY. SO I'M GOING TO TALK THROUGH SOME OF THE POINTS ON THIS -- ON THIS SLIDE. TODAY -- SORRY SEEMS MY SLIDE IS NOT MOVING - NIGERIA LEADERSHIP ACROSS POLITICAL CYCLES BELIEVES ITS DIGITAL NATIVES ARE RUNNING A PARALLEL DISRESPECTFUL GOVERNMENT. THIS IS WHY: BECAUSE THEY'VE GONE FROM THE PARTYING, RELATIONSHIP BUILDING, FINDING PLACES TO GO ONLINE, TO GOING ON TO ORGANIZING PROTESTS AND STILL PARTYING AT THE SAME TIME, RIGHT? WALK AND TALK, LIKE THEY SAY. NOTHING DIFFERENT HAS HAPPENED. NOTHING SPECTACULAR HAPPENED, NOTHING CHANGED. IT'S SIMPLY THAT WHILE DIGITAL NATIVES GREW UP, THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT HAS REFUSED TO GROW UP. THIS IS IN THE SENSE THAT NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT TRANSITIONED FROM A MILITARY REGIME TO A DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP WHILE STILL MAINTAINING THE TENETS OF A MILITARY REGIME. THESE DIGITAL NATIVES SOME OF THEM HAVE NEVER SEEN A MILITARY GOVERNMENT BEFORE AND CANNOT REALLY RELATE. SOCIAL MOVEMENTS ARE LIKE A COLLECTIVE ENTERPRISE THAT SEEKS TO ESTABLISH A NEW ORDER OF LIFE. IN MY OPINION, THIS, YOU KNOW, CAN'T BE TRUER, ESPECIALLY FOR NIGERIA'S SOCIAL MEDIA SPACE. IT HAS MORPHED FROM BEING A PLAYGROUND FOR DIGITAL NATIVES TO A REVOLUTIONARY SOCIAL MOVEMENT PLATFORM. THIS IS BECAUSE WHILE THE GOVERNMENT FOCUSES ENERGY ON POLITICKING WITH MAINSTREAM MEDIA AND SHRINKING CIVIC FREEDOMS YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE FOCUSED ON INNOVATIVE WAYS TO BREAK THE CHAIN. YOUNG NIGERIANS HAVE LEVERAGED TECHNOLOGY, MOBILE PHONES. PULL UP YOUR PHONES WHEREVER YOU SEE ANYTHING HAPPENING. TAKE PICTURES, TAKE VIDEOS. THEY HAVE LEVERAGED THE FORMS, LEVERAGED EMAILS, SOCIAL MEDIA TOOLS TO RETAIN A GROUP ON THIS FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOM. ALSO FOR AROUND ADVOCACY, YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE MOVED FROM TAKING THESE PHONES TO TAKING PICTURES FOR THEIR WELL BEING FOR FEELING GOOD AND ALL THAT TO USING IT TO HOLD GOVERNMENTS ACCOUNTABLE. FIRST OF ALL, AROUND MOVEMENT ORGANIZING, IN 2012 NIGERIA EXPERIENCED ITS FIRST LARGEST WAVE OF PEOPLE GATHERING TOGETHER, PEOPLE WHO DON'T KNOW EACH OTHER, PEOPLE WHO CONNECTED THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA. THAT WAS OCCUPY NIGERIA. IF ANYONE REMEMBERS THE STORY. THIS WAS A MOVEMENT BACKED BY INCREASED OIL PRICES ON JANUARY 1, 2012, THE THEN PRESIDENT OF NIGERIA INCREASED THE PUMP PRICES FOR FUEL IN NIGERIA. PEOPLE WHO WERE ALREADY SUFFERING THE BITING OF THE ECONOMIC HARDSHIP TOOK TO THE STREETS. THEY ORGANIZED USING WHAT'S APP. TWITTER, FACEBOOK, PEOPLE MET UP AT DIFFERENT SPOTS, ORGANIZED VEHICLES TO PICK PICK UP EACH OTHER. PEOPLE WHO COULDN'T WALK, THERE WAS FOOD, MEDICAL TREATMENT, A LOT MORE THINGS. AND AT THAT POINT IT BECAME AN AWAKENING NOT JUST FOR THE YOUNG NIGERIANS BUT ALSO FOR THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT IN UNDERSTANDING HOW POWERFUL SOCIAL MEDIA WAS. GOING FROM OCCUPY NIGERIA, WE WENT THROUGH A MOVEMENT CALLED #SAVEBAGEGA IT WAS WIDELY SHARED HASHTAG ON NIGERIA'S SOCIAL MEDIA SPACE. WHICH FOCUSED ON LEAD POISONING IN NORTHERN NIGERIA. THIS WAS WHERE ILLEGAL MINING HAD GONE ON FOR A LONG TIME SANCTIONED BY THE STATE BECAUSE THERE WAS KICKBACKS HAPPENING AT THE EXPENSE OF YOUNG CHILDREN WHO WERE DYING WITHOUT THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT DOING ANYTHING. BECAUSE OF PICTURES FLOODING SOCIAL MEDIA YOUNG NIGERIANS TOOK TO SOCIAL MEDIA TO HOLD THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABLE, ORGANIZING PROTESTS, TAKING TO THE STREETS. AND ALL THAT TO GET THE GOVERNMENT'S ATTENTION TO DOING WHAT IT IS SUPPOSED TO DO, TO DO RIGHT BY IT'S CITIZENS. THEN CAME BRING BRING BACK OUR GIRLS. THE MOVEMENT THAT SHOOK NIGERIANS. THE POINTS THAT WE UNDERSTOOD THAT WE WERE SORT OF AT WAR AND THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT WAS NOT PAYING ATTENTION AT THAT TIME. I WOULD SAY IN MY OPINION THIS WAS THE MOVEMENT THAT KIND OF CRASHED THE GOVERNMENT. BECAUSE AT THAT POINT THE PEOPLE HAD LOST FAITH IN THE GOVERNMENT. SO IT WAS NIGERIA'S YOUNG PEOPLE RESPONDING TO THE WAY GOVERNANCE WAS CONDUCTED IN NIGERIA AND DECIDED NOT AGAIN. THEN WE HAVE NOT TOO YOUNG TO RUN. NIGERIA YOUNG PEOPLE HAVEN'T REALIZED HOW MUCH POWER THEY HELD IN THEIR HANDS. THROUGH ALL THE MOVEMENTS THAT WE HAD ORGANIZED ON SOCIAL MEDIA, THROUGH THE WAY WE HAD BONDED, COME TOGETHER TO GET TO GET THINGS DONE. REALIZE THAT VOTING ALL THE PEOPLE INTO POWER WASN'T GOING TO BE ENOUGH. WE WANTED TO RUN FOR OFFICE. AND WHEN PEOPLE BEGAN ASKING QUESTIONS ON WHY CAN'T I RUN FOR OFFICE AT AGE 30, THEY REALIZED THAT NIGERIA'S CONSTITUTION WAS RESTRICTIVE. AND WE, AGAIN, TOOK TO ADVOCACY, PUT TOGETHER A BILL THAT CUT OFF -- THAT REDUCED THE AGE LIMITS FOR RUNNING FOR OFFICE. AND IN SO DOING GOT A AMENDMENT IN THE NIGERIAN CONSTITUTION. TO TELL YOU HOW SIGNIFICANT THIS IS, A CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT IN NIGERIA IS DIFFICULT. BECAUSE NOT ONLY DO YOU NEED TO GET IT PAST THE TWO HOUSES OF ASSEMBLY. YOU NEED THE STATE, AT LEAST 24 STATES OUT OF NIGERIA STATES TO SIGN OFF ON IT, AND WE DID THAT. THEN CAME ENDSARS -- HANNANE TALKED ABOUT HOW SOCIAL MEDIA ORGANIZING WORKED DURING ENDSARS. AND SHE WAS CORRECT. EVEN MORE SO BEYOND SOCIAL MEDIA ORGANIZING YOUNG PEOPLE CONSTANTLY TO DATE HAVE CONTINUED TO HOLD NIGERIA'S GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABLE ON TELLING THE TRUTH AS TO WHAT HAPPENED. OTHER WAYS THAT NIGERIAN YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE UTILIZED SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTABILITY: WE HAVE DRIVEN THE CONVERSATION FROM SOCIALIZATION OF DIGITAL CITIZENS TO DEVELOPING ACCOUNTABILITY, SO WE HAVE [UNCLEAR] TRACKER, WE HAVE FOLLOW THE MONEY. WE ARE DOING PUBLIC FINANCE MANAGEMENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA BECAUSE WE CAN, RIGHT? WE ARE ABLE TO LOOK AT NIGERIA'S BUDGET, HAVE CONVERSATIONS AROUND IT. THOSE SEPARATE AREAS WHERE THE MAINSTREAM MEDIA IS AFRAID TO GO BECAUSE THE GOVERNMENT HAS ISSUED WARNINGS, SANCTIONS, FINES TO MAINSTREAM MEDIA. WE HAVE DECIDED TO USE SOCIAL MEDIA TO DO THE THINGS THAT THEY THINK WE CAN'T USE IT TO DO. ON ADVOCACY AND CITIZEN EDUCATION, YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE TAKEN DEMOCRATIZATION OF INFORMATION VERY, VERY SERIOUSLY. NOT ONLY ARE WE TEACHING OURSELVES, WE HAVE REALIZED THAT WHAT'S APP BEYOND BEING A TOOL THAT MOST PEOPLE UTILIZE FOR DISINFORMATION CAN ACTUALLY BE USED FOR EDUCATION. WHAT'S APP IS ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS IN NIGERIA. WE HAVE LEVERAGED THAT SPACE TO SHARE INFORMATION AROUND DEMOCRATIC PROCESSES, OPPRESSIVE BILLS, PARTICULARLY THE SOCIAL MEDIA BILL THAT FOR THE PAST THREE YEARS HAS RE -- HAS BEEN REENGINEERED IN ONE FORM OR THE OTHER, REARING ITS HEAD. AND MOST RECENTLY IS REARING ITS HEAD AS A JOURNALISM BILL WHERE ANYBODY WHO CAN REPORT ON INFORMATION WHETHER YOU OWN A BLOG, SOCIAL MEDIA PAGE, WHETHER YOU RUN WHAT'S IT CALLED -- YOU RUN A PODCAST, THE GOVERNMENT IS NOW INSISTING THAT YOU HAVE AT A JOURNALISM DEGREE BEFORE YOU DO THAT. OF COURSE WE ALL KNOW THAT THEY ARE TRYING TO STIFLE THE VOICES OF YOUNG PEOPLE WITH MOBILE PHONES, THE YOUNG PEOPLE WHO CAN REPORT INSTANTLY ALL UNDER THE NAME OF ETHICAL JOURNALISM. WHO SAYS WE HAVE NOT BEEN ETHICAL? RIGHT? AROUND SECURITY: IN NIGERIA [UCLEAR] FORCED DISAPPEARANCES HAVE BECOME A THING. WE HAVE HAD YOUNG PEOPLE TAKEN FROM HOMES, OFFICES, TAKEN FROM JUST WALKING ALONG THE ROAD. NATURALLY THE POLICEMAN WAS SUPPOSED TO GUARD YOU. PEOPLE WHO ARE YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO GO TO WHEN A PERSON IS MISSING HAVE IN ONE WAY OR THE OTHER ENCOURAGED THESE ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES. FOR INSTANCE, WE HAVE HAD A RUNNING HASHTAG MORE THAN A YEAR THAT SAYS WHERE IS DADDY YATA. DADDT YATA IS A YOUNG MAN WHO HAS CONSTANTLY OPPOSED THE NIGER'S OPPRESSIVE GOVERNMENT. AND SUDDENLY ONE DAY HE WAS TAKEN FROM HIS HOME. TODAY NOBODY KNOWS WHERE HE IS. YOUNG PEOPLE ACROSS SOCIAL MEDIA HAVE CALLED OUT AND ASKED THE GOVERNMENT WHERE IS DADDY YATA. STILL TODAY NOBODY RESPONDED TO THAT QUESTION. IT'S AMAZING HOW SILENT THE GOVERNMENT GETS WHEN ONE OF ITS CITIZENS IS TAKEN. AND MORE RECENTLY A COUPLE OF DAYS AGO, A YOUNG MAN WHO SERVED SERVES A SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE GOVERNOR OF KANO STATE STATE WAS TAKEN BY GOVERNMENT FORCES. A HASHTAG SURFACED ON TV AND SOCIAL MEDIA, EVERYWHERE. AND THE HASHTAG WAS FREE DAWESU. THIS WAS FUNNY BECAUSE THIS MAN HAD BEEN VERY ALIGNED TO THE GOVERNMENT UNTIL MOST RECENTLY HE STARTED SPEAKING OUT AGAINST THE HARDSHIP THAT WAS FEELING EVERYWHERE. WE ARE EXPERIENCING FORCED [UNCLEAR]-- WE HAVE NO SECURITY. THERE IS SO MUCH GOING ON MOMENT THAT THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT IS SILENT ABOUT. AND HE SPOKE UP ABOUT IT. A FEW DAYS LATER HE DISAPPEARED. WHEN HE REAPPEARED HE WAS THANKING ALL THE YOUNG PEOPLE WHO MADE SURE THE GOVERNMENT RELEASED HIM. THERE'S BEEN YOUNG PEOPLE HAVE USING THESE TOOLS WE HAVE HARNESSED -- THIS IS WHY THE GOVERNMENT FEELS THERE IS A PARALLEL GOVERNMENT RUNNING ON SOCIAL MEDIA. AND THEY'RE VERY, VERY FOCUSED ON SHUTTING IT DOWN. THIS IS BECAUSE WE CREATED A SYSTEM WHERE WE LOOK OUT FOR EACH OTHER. WE HAVE CREATED A SYSTEM WHERE WE DOCUMENT THE THINGS THAT ARE HAPPENING TO US. WE HAVE CREATED A SYSTEM WHERE WE ARE ASKING QUESTIONS. QUESTIONS THAT THE F.O.I. CANNOT ANSWER. QUESTIONS THE GOVERNMENT HAS REFUSED TO ANSWER. QUESTIONS THAT MAINSTREAM MEDIA, TV AND RADIO STATIONS CAN NO LONGER ASK. NIGERIA SAYS THE SPACE IS SHRINKING, SHRINKING FASTER THAN YOU CAN SAY FREEDOM, RIGHT? ONE OF THE THINGS WE KNOW IT'S VERY COMMON TO BE WRITTEN OUT OF HISTORY IN NIGERIA. UNTIL DATE, POCKETS OF NIGERIA'S ETHNIC GROUPS STILL FIGHT FOR THE RECOGNITION OF THEIR STORIES HOW THE NIGERIAN STATE HAS OPPRESSED THEM. FROM THE MASSACRE THAT HAPPENED IN THE 1960s AND THE BIAFRAN WAR. ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE MASSACRE IN THE 1990s AND THE KILLING OF THE SHIITES WHICH HAPPENED IN THE 2000s, A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO. TO DEMOCRACIZE. THAT WAS ABOUT THREE OR FOUR YEARS AGO THESE HAPPENED. NO ONE HAS ACKNOWLEDGED THE STORY OF THESE PEOPLE. THE PEOPLE TRYING TO ASK QUESTIONS, THE NIGER DELTA PEOPLE WHO WERE MASSACRED, THEY TRIED TO ASK QUESTIONS. THE GOVERNMENT DESIGNATED THEM A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION. THE GOVERNMENT -- THE SHIITES HAVE TRIED TO ASK QUESTIONS. THE GOVERNMENT HAS DESIGNATED THEM A TERRORIST GROUP. THE INDEPENDENT PEOPLE OF BIAFRA TRIED TO ASK QUESTIONS. THE GOVERNMENT HAS DESIGNATED THEM A TERRORIST GROUP. SO SHOW YOU A PATTERN, IN THE ENDSARS MOVEMENTM THE GOVERNMENT FROZE THE ACCOUNTS OF PERSONS WHO WERE LINKED DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY TO THE ENDSARS MOVEMENT. TO BE ABLE TO GET THEIR ACCOUNTS UNFROZEN THEY WENT TO COURT. THEY SPENT MONTHS AND MONTHS AND ONLY A FEW WEEKS AGO WERE THEIR ACCOUNTS UNFROZEN. THIS MEANT THAT SINCE LAST YEAR, SINCE OCTOBER, UNTIL A FEW WEEKS AGO, WHEN THEY WERE RELEASED, WHEN THE ACCOUNTS WERE RELEASED BACK TO THEM, THESE PEOPLE HAVE HAD TO SURVIVE ON THE GOOD WILL OF FRIENDS, FAMILY AND SOCIAL MEDIA PEOPLE. EVEN WITH THE VIDEOS AND IMAGES THAT HAPPENED DURING ENDSARS THE GOVERNMENT DENIED THAT THAT OCCURRED. THE BEATINGS, THE GUNSHOTS. THE GOVERNMENT HAS CONSTANTLY DENIED REPRESSION OR EXTINCTION OF RIGHTS. DIGITAL ACTIVISTS DOCUMENT STORIES BY ARCHIVING POSTS, DEBUNKING FALSE INFORMATION, HOWEVER, DURING THE ENDSARS WE FACED A VERY, VERY DIFFICULT SITUATION. I SAY THIS YOU KNOW WITH SOME SADNESS, BECAUSE IT AFFECTED ME DIRECTLY. WE SET UP A GROUP TO BE ABLE TO COLLECT STORIES AND ARCHIVE STORIES FROM THE ENDSARS WHILE DEBUNKING STORIES THAT WERE NOT, YOU KNOW -- THAT WERE NOT ACCURATE OR DIRECTLY LINKED TO THE ENDSARS OR DIRECTLY LINKED TO GUNSHOTS FROM GOVERNMENT- SANCTIONED AGENTS. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID NOT ACCOUNT OR DID NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT, ONE OF THE THINGS WE DIDN'T KNOW WAS THAT WE WOULD WOULD HAVE GOVERNMENT SANCTION BOTS FLOODING SOCIAL MEDIA WITH FALSE INFORMATION AND WE TRIED TO SANITIZE THE SPACE WE FOCUSED ON DEBUNKING THAT FALSE INFORMATION, AS THEY CAME, WE DEBUNKED IT. WE HAVE WORKED ABOUT TWO WEEKS INTO THE PROTEST AND WE SAT BACKED, EVALUATED AND REALIZED THAT WE HAD MOSTLY FALSE STORIES AND THAT THE GOVERNMENT WAS NOW RELYING ON THE INFORMATION THAT WE PROVIDED FROM DEBUNKING THOSE STORIES TO SAY THAT THESE THINGS DIDN'T HAPPEN. ONE OF THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES THAT DIGITAL ACTIVISTS IN NIGERIA FACE IS LACK OF TRAINING. WHILE WE HAVE THE PASSION, WHILE WE HAVE LIMITED SKILLS, WHILE WE HAVE THE EAGERNESS TO WANT TO TAKE ON SOME OF THESE TASKS, THE TRUTH IS THAT MOST OF US BECAME ACCIDENTAL DIGITAL DEFENDERS. AND WE SCRAMBLE. WE LOOK FOR THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE. AND IN ORDER TO ASSESS SOME OF THIS TRAINING, SOMETIMES IT'S EXPENSIVE. SOMETIMES IT REQUIRES GETTING INTO A PLACE LIKE THE BKC. SOMETIMES IT REQUIRES REACHING OUT, COLD CALLING TO ORGANIZATIONS THAT YOU FEEL HAVE WALKED IN ON THESE AREAS. SOMETIMES YOU NEVER GET ANY RESPONSE. I KNOW THAT THIS IS A SLOW PROCESS. BUT WE KEEP CURATING OUR LESSONS. WE LEARN TO DO BETTER. AND I KNOW THAT AS TECHNOLOGY EVOLVES NIGERIA'S YOUNG PEOPLE WILL CONTINUE TO EVOLVE WITH IT. WE'LL KEEP LEARNING, KEEP TELLING OUR STORIES. BECAUSE, AGAIN, ONE OF THE BIGGEST THINGS IN NIGERIA IS TO BE DELETED OUT OF HISTORY. THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

WOW, THANK YOU, NANA, THAT WAS -- THESE ARE ALL SUCH MOVING PRESENTATIONS. AND I -- I WANT TO CLAP. UM -- I GUESS WE DON'T DO THAT ANYMORE BUT I'M JUST GOING TO -- WE HAVE SOME GREAT QUESTIONS COMING UP HERE IN THE QUESTION -- AND I KNOW THIS WAS NOTED AT THE BEGINNING. BUT PLEASE FEEL ENCOURAGED TO USE THE QUESTION AND ANSWER TOOL. SOME QUESTIONS HAVE ALREADY GOTTEN ANSWERS BECAUSE ALLISSA IS REALLY ON THE BALL. BUT WE HAVE A COUPLE HERE. AND I WILL JUST -- I'LL START WITH JESSICA FJELD, ONE OF OUR COLLEAGUES AT BKC. AND SHE WRITES ONE OF THE DISTINCTIVE QUALITIES OF DIGITAL MEDIA AND ITS SHARABILITY, MEANING THAT AUDIENCES CAN SHIFT DRAMATICALLY, AND SOMETIMES -- IS IT'S SHARABILITY MEANING THAT AUDIENCES CAN SHIFT DRAMATICALLY AND SOMETIMES IN UNANTICIPATED WAYS. WHAT ARE SOME WAYS BLACK JOURNALISTS AND ACTIVISTS ARE THINKING ABOUT THEIR AUDIENCE AND THEIR CONTROL OVER IT, PARTICULARLY I'M THINKING ABOUT SPEAKING IN SAFER LIKE-MINDED COMMUNITIES VERSUS THE POWER BUT ALSO PERSONAL DANGER OF A BROAD REACH. AND I THINK THAT SPEAKS REALLY WELL TO SOME OF WHAT NANA WAS JUST SHARING WITH US. WHO -- WHO WOULD LIKE TO -- YOU COULD ALL SPEAK TO. BUT WHO WOULD LIKE TO GO FIRST.

I'LL JUST SAY QUICKLY, THAT ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE HAVE NOTICED IS THAT, ESPECIALLY WITH THE GEORGE FLOYD VIDEO, THAT THE CIRCULATION OF IT IS NOT JUST FOR PEOPLE WHO WOULD CARE ABOUT IT MOST INTIMATELY, AFRICAN-AMERICANS, BUT THAT IT REALLY SPREAD TO PEOPLE OF -- FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE. BUT WITH THAT, THE RISK WAS THAT BLACK PEOPLE WOULD BE RETRAUMATIZED BY LOOKING AT THE VIDEO. WHILE OTHERS WOULD LOOK AT IT MORE CASUALLY YET STILL AFFECTED. WE SAW THIS IN TERMS OF THE NEWS MEDIA LOOPING IT OVER AND OVER AGAIN WITH THE CASUAL AIR OF A SPORTS HIGHLIGHT. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I DID LAST SUMMER WAS GO AROUND TO MEDIA COLLEAGUES, SPOKE AT THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF BLACK JOURNALISTS AND HISPANIC JOURNALISTS JOINT CONFERENCE AND REALLY SHARED WITH THEM THAT WHILE WE HAVE NO CONTROL OVER THE AUDIENCE AND HOW THIS THING SPREADS AT THE TOP -- AT THE LEGACY MEDIA LEVEL, WE CAN BE ARE VERY CONSCIOUS OF MAKING SURE WE ARE NOT SHOWING AFRICAN-AMERICANS DIE ON PRIMETIME TELEVISION, BECAUSE NO OTHER RACE HAS TO. WHEN I THINK OF THOSE KINDS OF IMPLICATIONS OF UNINTENDED PURPOSES OR EVEN HOW WHITE SUPREMACIST GROUPS WERE USING THE FLOYD VIDEO TO TRY TO GET A HASHTAG TRENDING THAT HAD PEOPLE POSED IN THE WAY THAT OFFICER CHAUVIN WOULD HAVE BEEN OVER THE TOP OF FLOYD. I'M REALLY GLAD THAT SOCIAL MEDIA TOOK THOSE DOWN. BUT FOR A WHILE WHEN TRAYVON MARTIN WAS KILLED, THE UNINTENDED KIND OF CONSEQUENCE OF THOSE VIDEOS AND IMAGES OUT THERE WERE THAT PEOPLE -- WHITE TEENAGERS STARTED THIS WHOLE TRAYVONING MEME WHERE THEY WERE LAYING LIKE HIM ON THE GROUND WITH THEIR MOUTHS OPEN IN THIS POST MORTEM KIND OF POSTURE. WHILE WE HAVE NO CONTROL OVER THE VIDEOS, JOURNALISTS CAN DO A MUCH BETTER JOB OF MAKING SURE THAT THESE VIDEOS DON'T LIVE ON THEIR SITE, AND THEY ARE NOT USING THEM IN EXPLOITIVE WAYS. THAT'S JUST MY ANGLE.

SO I WANTED TO ADD SOMETHING TO WHAT ALLISSA JUST SAID. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT STOOD OUT FOR US WAS DURING CURATING THE VIDEOS DURING THE ENDSARS, TO BE ABLE TO DEBUNK THINGS THAT HAPPENED WAS ALSO BEING MINDFUL OF THE FAMILIES OF THE PEOPLE WHO ARE INVOLVED IN THOSE VIDEOS, RIGHT? PARTICULARLY WE HAD THE STORY THAT WAS PUBLISHED BY "WALL STREET JOURNAL" THAT WAS FALSE, RIGHT. WE REACHED OUT TO THOSE PEOPLE. WE HAD OBTAINED THE VIDEO OF THE PERSON'S DEATH -- FROM THE FAMILY, THE FAMILY MEMBER WHO SHARED IT WITH US UNDER THE PROMISE WE WOULDN'T SLAR IT. NOW WALL STREET ASKED TO US PROVIDE PROOF FOR THAT DEATH. WE COULDN'T TO DATE, WE CAN'T SHARE THAT VIDEO. IT'S VERY GORY AND WE WERE TORN, SORT OF DIVIDED BETWEEN SHARING THIS FOR INTEGRITY PURPOSES AND NOT SHARING. WHAT NOW HAPPENED WAS GOVERNMENT AGENTS GOVERNMENT IS GOVERNMENT MONEY TO LAY HANDS ON THE VIDEO. AND WALL STREET DID NOT LISTEN TO US WHEN WE REACHED OUT TO THEM. WHEN THE GOVERNMENT DEBUNKS THAT PARTICULAR INFORMATION, IT CAME IN WITH THE THEORY THAT INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY HAD THE HAND IN TRYING TO DESTABILIZE THE NATION USING FOREIGN MEDIA. AND THAT PEOPLE LIKE US WERE WORKING WITH THEM TO -- TO SUPPORT THE DESTABILIZATION OF THE NATION. SO SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO CONSIDER, HOW WOULD PEOPLE FEEL IF THIS GOES OUT? VERSUS HOW WOULD PEOPLE SEE ME IF THEY THINK I'M LYING? THERE'S ALWAYS THAT -- THERE'S ALWAYS THAT PROBLEM.

AND JUST MAYBE TO ADD TO WHAT BOTH NANA AND ALLISSA HAVE SAID, I THINK THAT JUST SPEAKING TO THE LAST POINT IN THAT QUESTION, THAT HAD TO DO WITH PERSONAL DANGER, WHAT WE HAVE OBSERVED JUST WHAT I'VE OBSERVED SPEAKING TO INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISTS IN PARTICULAR, IN ZIMBABWE OR UGANDA, IS THAT THE PERSONAL DANGER PART OF ALL OF THIS IS -- IS VERY IMPORTANT, RIGHT? THEY HAVE TO BE ABLE TO CONTINUE DOING THEIR JOB. AND STILL BE PRESENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA. SO THERE IS DEFINITELY THIS BALANCE TO STRIKE BETWEEN BEING ABLE TO VOICE CERTAIN ISSUES ON PLATFORMS WHICH ARE VERY PUBLIC AND OPEN TO ANYONE SUCH AS TWITTER, BUT ALSO USING MORE PRIVATE AND MORE SECURE PLATFORMS SUCH AS SIGNAL, WHICH IS BECOMING MORE OF A TOOL THAT'S BEING USED BY PROFESSIONALS. BUT I THINK THAT WHAT WE WERE SAYING EARLIER NANA ABOUT THE LACK OF TRAINING WHEN IF COMES TO MAYBE NOT ACTIVISTS PER SE BUT PEOPLE WHO ARE ACTING AS CITIZEN JOURNALISTS OR ACTIVISTS, IS THE LACK OF LITERACY OR KNOWLEDGE OR TOOLS THAT MIGHT BE AVAILABLE TO THEM THAT MIGHT BE MORE SECURE THAN YOUR WHAT'S APP THAT EVERYBODY USES OR FACEBOOK GROUPS OR STUFF LIKE THIS. THERE IS DEFINITELY, I THINK, A LITTLE ADJUSTMENT PERIOD THAT WE MIGHT HAVE TO UNDERGO AT LEAST ON THE AFRICAN CONTINENT AS PEOPLE REALLY UNDERSTAND WHAT THE RISKS ARE. AS USEFUL AS THOSE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS ARE, WHAT THE RISKS ARE FOR THE WAY THAT YOU USE THEM IN THAT VERY PUBLIC WAY.

I WANTED TO BUILD ON THIS AND INCORPORATE SORT OF A PART OF A QUESTION FROM RICK ROHRER IN THE Q AND A. THE MAJOR TECHNOLOGY PLATFORMS THAT FACILITATE OR ENABLE SO MUCH CAN DIGITAL ACTIVISM NOWM EVERYONE HAS TOUCHED UPON THEM BUT WE HAVEN'T GONE STRAIGHT AT THEM YET. AND I JUST -- I THINK IT WOULD BE WONDERFUL FOR THIS AUDIENCE TO HEAR ANY OF YOU TALK ABOUT THE -- THE KIND OF ALL OF THE CHALLENGES THAT EXIST IN -- FOR GROUPS THAT ARE USING THESE BIG U.S.-RUN, SILICON VALLEY, PROFIT-DRIVEN PLATFORMS FOR THIS KIND OF WORK. I MEAN, YOU KNOW, I DON'T NEED TO RATTLE OFF ALL OF THE PROBLEMS AND CHALLENGES AND QUESTIONS THAT ACTIVISTS ALL OVER THE WORLD HAVE TO FACE WHEN YOU KNOW THAT TWITTER IS THE BEST PLACE TO GET THE MESSAGE OUT. YOU KNOW THAT IT'S PRIVATELY OWNED SPACE. AND THAT YOUR TWEETS CAN BE TAKEN DOWN, OR FLAGGED AS DISINFORMATION. AND YOU DON'T HAVE A LOT OF CONTROL OVER -- OVER WHEN THAT MIGHT HAPPEN. AND FOR BLACK ACTIVISTS IN THE UNITED STATES JUST AS ACTIVISTS IN AFRICA, GETTING -- BEING ABLE TO PUSH BACK AGAINST THE PLATFORMS IS REALLY REALLY DIFFICULT. SO I JUST WONDERED -- I THINK IT WOULD BE GREAT TO HEAR A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT ARE THE TRADEOFFS THAT ACTIVISTS THINK ABOUT WHEN CHOOSING WHICH TOOLS TO USE FOR WHAT TYPES OF WORK. AND HOW DO YOU BUILD IN OR FACTOR IN RESILIENCE IN DOING THIS KIND OF WORK?

OK, SO LET ME TAKE THAT. SO FOR INSTANCE, ONE OF THE EASIEST TOOLS FOR US IS TWITTER. IT'S INSTANT, THERE ARE A LOT MORE GOVERNMENT PEOPLE ON THERE, THAT BRINGS YOU CLOSER TO THE GOVERNANCE STRUCTURE OF YOUR COUNTRY OR WHATEVER SYSTEM YOU ARE TRYING TO SPEAK TO. HOWEVER, FOR US, I'M GOING TO SPEAK SPECIFICALLY TO PEOPLE WHO ARE IN THIS PART OF SUBSAHARAN AFRICA. FOR US WE HAVE THIS JURISDICTIONAL ISSUE, WHERE POLICIES ARE NOT LATERAL. THEY DON'T APPLY ACROSS NATIONS AS TO EVERYONE. THE POLICY THAT APPLY ON TWITTER TO PEOPLE IN THE UK IN GERMANY, THE POLICY THAT APPLY ON TWITTER TO PEOPLE IN THE UK IN GERMANY, IN THE U.S. ARE DIFFERENT TO WHAT APPLIES TO US. AND ALSO, SECONDLY, THERE IS A CONTEXTUAL -- LACK OF CONTEXTUAL KNOWLEDGE EVIDENT IN BOTH PLATFORMS. FACEBOOK IS MAKING A AN EFFORT TO SECURE SOME OF THAT BY EMPLOYING MORE PEOPLE FROM THIS PART OF THE WORLD. ALSO TRYING TO GET SAY CITIZEN CONTRIBUTIONS OR USER CONTRIBUTIONS TO DEVELOPING THE PLATFORMS. I'M NOT SO SURE -- THERE IS SOME SORT OF LACK OF CLARITY ON HOW IT'S TRYING TO SOLVE THAT PROBLEM. WE SOMETIMES -- TWITTER TAKES DOWN THE POST THAT'S HARMLESS AND LACKS -- BECAUSE OF A LACK OF CONTEXT, WHILE LEAVING A POST THAT'S CLEARLY PROBLEMATIC BECAUSE OF A LACK OF CONTEXT, RIGHT? WE FACE SOME OF THOSE CHALLENGES. I THINK WE TRY TO MITIGATE BY ARCHIVING. PEOPLE ARK ARCHIVING THEIR TWEETS, ARCHIVING THEIR POSTS TRYING TO ENSURE IT STAYS LONGER ON THE INTERNET. IT'S ALSO NOT EXACTLY A VERY SAFE FOOL-PROOF SYSTEM. BUT IT'S WORKING FOR NOW. THAT'S SOME OF -- YOU EITHER TAKE BEING HEARD OR GETTING OFF THE BUS. THERE IS ALSO THE PRIVACY CHALLENGES. WE KNOW IT'S A TO-PROFIT PLATFORM. THEY ARE THERE FOR THE BUSINESS, RIGHT? YOU KNOW THAT YOU STAND AT RISK, EVEN NO MATTER HOW ANONYMOUS YOU APPEAR ON TWITTER, YOU ARE AT RISK OF HAVING YOUR INFORMATION HANDED OVER TO THE GOVERNMENT ONCE THEY PRESENT SOMETHING THAT SAYS THAT THIS -- YOU HAVE COMMITTED SOME SORT OF CRIME. AND THE TRUTH REMAINS THAT WHAT IS A CRIME IN YOUR COUNTRY IS DIFFERENT FROM WHAT IS A CRIME IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY. IN MY COUNTRY, FOR INSTANCE.YOUR SEXUALITY IS A CRIME. YOU CAN EXPRESS YOURSELF AND YOU CAN SAY CERTAIN THINGS AND WHEN YOU DO AND PEOPLE LOOK FOR YOU IT'S EASY FOR THEM TO HAND OVER YOUR INFORMATION. ALL YOU NEED IS TO PRESENT -- TO PRESENT AN EMAIL, GOVERNMENT-BACKED EMAIL WITH A LETTER ON A GOVERNMENT-BACKED LETTERHEAD. THERE IS THAT THING THAT WE HAVE TO HAVE AT THE BACK OF OUR MIND THAT WHILE YOU USE THESE PLATFORMS YOU ARE ALSO VERY VULNERABLE. AND LASTLY, I WOULD SAY STORAGE OF INFORMATION. FOR INSTANCE, PEOPLE WHO WORK AS DIGITAL DEFENDERS OR DIGITAL ACTIVISTS ARE MOSTLY -- THEY MOSTLY WORK AS FUNDED PROGRAMS, RIGHT. THAT MEANS IF YOUR FUNDING RUNS OUT, YOU'RE DONE. YOU KNOW, IT'S EITHER -- THERE IS THE HIGH ATTRITION RATE WHEN IT COMES TO MATERIALS, KNOWLEDGE, THINGS THAT YOU HAVE TREATED, THINGS THAT YOU HAVE STORED. YOU KNOW THAT SOCIAL MEDIA IS NOT EXACTLY THE BEST PLACE FOR YOU TO STORE THOSE THINGS. BECAUSE ONCE FUNDING RUNS OUT, YOU MOVE ON TO OTHER THINGS AND MAYBE THE STAFF OR THE PEOPLE WORKING WITH YOU MOVE ON TO OTHER THINGS. WHAT HAPPENS TO THE TWITTER ACCOUNT THAT THEY USED TO SHARE SOME OF THE KNOWLEDGE, SOME OF THE INFORMATION? THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS YOU HAVE TO THINK ABOUT. SO WHILE WE TRY TO FIND WAYS TO MITIGATE SOME OF THOSE CHALLENGES, WE REALIZE THAT THERE'S REALLY TRULY NO AUTHORITY PLATFORM FOR US TO USE. THE TRADEOFF IS FREEDOM OF SPEECH VERSUS FIGHTING A CAPITALIST VENTURE

THAT'S EXCELLENT. WOULD ALLISSA OR HANNANE, WOULD YOU LIKE TO WEIGH IN ON THIS BEFORE WE WRAP -- WRAP IT UP?

I THINK NANA SAID IT ALL.

I THINK SHE DID. TERRIFIC. WELL, SO, I'D LOVE TO HEAR JUST IF THERE ARE FINAL THOUGHTS, OR YOU KNOW THINGS THAT YOU COULD ENCOURAGE EVERYONE WATCHING HERE TODAY TO KEEP IN MIND WHEN YOU SEE THIS KIND OF REPORTING IN MAINSTREAM MEDIA, WHEN YOU SEE IT ON SOCIAL MEDIA. IF YOU'RE THINKING ABOUT SUPPORTING OR PARTICIPATING, WHAT ARE -- WHAT ARE THINGS THAT PEOPLE CAN TAKE AWAY FROM THIS AND LEARN?

I THINK HERE IN THE U.S., THE MAIN THING THAT WE LEARNED THIS SUMMER IS THAT THIS KIND OF WITNESSING NEEDS TO BE PROTECTED. THERE ARE ALL KIND OF HACKS THAT COPS ARE COMING UP WITH NOW, SPECIFICALLY IN TERMS OF PLAYING COPYWRITTEN MUSIC DURING SOMEONE FILMING THEM SO IT'LL BE PULLED AND FLAGGED ON SOCIAL MEDIA OUTLETS. YOU ALSO HAVE SOCIAL MEDIA THAT'S DESIGNED TO DISAPPEAR AFTER 24 HOURS. EPHEMERAL VIDEO THEN COMPOUNDS OF PROBLEM OF THE STATE INTERFERING TO DISAPPEAR THIS KIND OF ACTIVIST JOURNALISM. AS IN AS MANY WAYS AS WE CAN, I THINK WE HAVE TO WORK NOT ONLY AS ACADEMICS OR LAWYERS OR ORDINARY CITIZENS TO HELP PRESERVE AS MUCH OF THIS AS WE CAN. BECAUSE AS WE HAVE SEEN IN THE CAPITOL SIEGE ON JANUARY 6th IN THE U.S. WE WILL NEED THIS FOOTAGE IN SOME CASES TO SOLVE HATE CRIMES, TO SOLVE KILLINGS. AND SO THESE ARE SOME OF THE THINGS THAT PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO SHINE A LIGHT ON AS ACTIVISTS. THEY ARE CRYING OUT IN MANY CASES, THIS IS A LAST RESORT TO GET IN KIND OF VIDEO TO THE PUBLIC. AND SO IT BEHOVES US TO SAVE IT AND TO MAKE SURE THAT PEOPLE RECEIVE JUSTICE WHEN THEY ARE FEATURED OFTEN IN THEIR LAST FINAL MOMENTS.

I THINK THAT WHAT I WOULD LIKE TO EMPHASIZE -- AND I DON'T THINK I HAD ENOUGH TIME TO TALK ABOUT THE DISTINCTION THERE IS ON THE AFRICAN CONTINENT BETWEEN THE CULTURE AND THE SOCIAL MEDIA CULTURE. SO WHEN WE TALK -- SPEAK OF NIGERIA OR THE COUNTRY OF THAT SCALE AND WITH THAT MANY PEOPLE THERE AND WHO HAVE ACCESS TO SOCIAL MEDIA, THE -- THE SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGNS SUCH AS ENDSARS YET DEFINITELY GET A RESONANCE. BUT THERE ARE MANY COUNTRIES WHICH HAVE GONE THROUGH SIMILAR TURMOILS IN RECENT THE MONTHS. I THINK OF CAMEROON, WHICH HAS BEEN IN CRISIS THE LAST FOUR YEARS. A RECENT WAVE OF PROTESTS IN GABON THAT IS HAPPENING RIGHT NOW BECAUSE OF AUSTERITY MEASURES AND BECAUSE OF THE SANITARY CRISIS AS WELL. AND GOVERNMENT AND REGIME REPRESSION. AND HOW THAT -- THEIR ATTEMPT TO MAKE WAVES ON SOCIAL MEDIA IS NOT BEING AS FRUITFUL, IS NOT REALLY SORT OF BECOMING AS -- AS HAVING AS MUCH ECHO IN THE REST OF THE WORLD. SO I THINK THAT WHAT I'D LIKE TO MAYBE HAVE PEOPLE THINK ABOUT IS HOW WE CAN HELP COUNTRIES WHERE MAYBE THE -- THE CAMPAIGNERS, THE ACTIVISTS AREN'T BEING AS SUCCESSFUL AS ENDSARS ACTIVISTS HAVE BEEN TO REALLY BE ABLE TO REACH TO THE OTHER SIDE SO AS TO MAKE THEIR VOICES HEARD IN A MORE EFFECTIVE WAY. AND I DON'T HAVE A SOLUTION FOR THAT. I THINK THAT -- THERE IS A LOT OF TRAINING THAT HAS TO COME INTO PLAY. THE FACT OF NOT KNOWING WHERE CERTAIN PLACES IN THE WORLD ARE LOCATED ALSO MAKES -- MAKES IT DIFFICULT FOR THAT INFORMATION TO COME TO YOU. BUT THERE IS DEFINITELY A SORT OF HUGE DIVIDE BETWEEN REGIONS IN THE SUBSAHARAN LEVEL. AND THAT'S SOMETHING I'VE BEEN LOOKING INTO MORE RECENTLY, BECAUSE YOU SEE LIKE LITTLE SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGNS EMERGING. BUT DYING DOWN VERY QUICKLY AND NOT GETTING AS MUCH EFFICIENT, YOU KNOW, IMPACT AS THEY WOULD WANT TO.

NOT REALLY MUCH TO ADD, BUT JUST TO SAY THAT FOR THE PAST FOUR WEEKS I'VE TAKEN MYSELF OFF SOCIAL MEDIA. THIS IS AN EXPERIMENT TO GAUGE HOW MUCH INFORMATION, RIGHT, GETS TO THE EVERYDAY PERSON WHO DOESN'T HAVE ACCESS TO SOCIAL MEDIA. AND I REALIZED I MISSED A COUPLE OF THINGS, A LOT OF THINGS. I DIDN'T KNOW THAT OIL PRICES WERE ABOUT TO GO UP. I DIDN'T KNOW SOME STUFF HAD HAPPENED. SO MANY THINGS I DIDN'T KNOW. IT HELPS ME UNDERSTAND HOW MUCH THERE IS STILL A GAP THAT EXISTS BETWEEN THE EVERYDAY PERSON AND THOSE WHO ARE ACCESS TO DIGITAL DEVICES THAT CAN ACCESS SOCIAL MEDIA WITH. AND ALSO THOSE WHO ARE ACCESS TO THOSE DEVICES BUT DO NOT UNDERSTAND HOW TO CONNECT THEMSELVES TO THE INTERNET. THERE IS STILL A LOT MORE THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE, RIGHT? I'M HOPING THAT ONE DAY WE'LL BE ABLE TO FIND SOME SORT OF LINK OR HOW TO DIRECTLY REACH OUT TO PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT IN THESE SPACES WHERE WE HAVE THESE CONVERSATIONS. A KIND OF WAY WE WILL BE ABLE TO REACH OUT TO THEM WITHOUT HAVING GOVERNMENT BE SO REPRESSIVE OR RESTRICTIVE IN THE WAY PEOPLE ARE ACCESSING INFORMATION. THAT'S IT, REALLY.

SO ARCHIVE DOCUMENTATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, AMPLIFY MESSAGES IN SOLIDARITY, AND REMEMBER THE SPECTRUM OF DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT. THIS HAS BEEN A TERRIFIC DISCUSSION. THANK YOU SO MUCH. AND THANK YOU TO BERKMAN KLEIN FOR BRINGING US TOGETHER.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU SO MUCH.