Sustaining Healing Technologies ​Within and Beyond the Digital

The workshop consisted of an introduction to the concept of digital equity, during which participants discussed ​the kinds of barriers that individuals and communities may face when accessing digital technology, the ways in ​which digital technology is integrated into daily life within society, and the how the digital divide might ​exacerbate or be exacerbated by existing societal inequalities.

The workshop also examined some of the underlying exploitative contexts in which digital technology is ​produced, namely the mining of coltan the DRC. Participants were prompted to consider solutions/resistance to ​the digital divide on an individual level, community level, and wider societal level.

Finally, there was a planned practical session using free audio (Audacity) and video (Olive) software, as a ​creative exercise to explore the themes brought up during the workshop [this had to be adapted due to ​technical difficulties and timing issues].

‘Sustaining Healing Technologies Within and Beyond the ​Digital’ took place as part of Free YARD, a drop-in open ​session which takes place at a reimagined three-storey ​townhouse in Birmingham.

Free YARD is an exercise of mutual aid, opening YARD for free ​public access, so community, artists and visitors can use the ​facilities and resources or reimagine the space at no cost.

Free YARD is a space which regularly used by the local ​community and hosts pop-up events by local artists and ​organisers, as well as providing a free hot meal. This is a key ​part of MAIA’s mission to support Black liberation through ​radical hospitality.

“A holistic approach at INCLUDE+ refers to an inclusive and ​comprehensive overview of different factors of people’s lives and ​how these translate and manifest within digital [in]equity.

A holistic approach in community settings allows for a broader ​and more nuanced analysis of the various interconnected factors ​and dimensions impacting a community’s wellbeing [...]

[...] it is not just about getting people online, but also about ​addressing the broader barriers and challenges that people may ​face in adopting and benefiting from digital technologies. “

Participants explored a holistic approach to digital equity ​through discussing how diverse intersecting factors might ​affect one’s access, safety, and literacy within digital spaces, ​as well as the examining the implications of digital technology ​being so ubiquitous, and the kinds of industries involved in the ​production and distribution of digital devices.

Through conversation, imagining, and play, participants were ​encouraged to explore multi-faceted ways of thinking about ​digital equity.

•Is the technology affordable?

•Is the technology disability ​friendly?

•Where do I physically get the ​devices and/or software?

•Does the technology break ​easily?

•Is the technology compatible ​with my local infrastructure?

•Do I know how to use the ​technology?

•Does the technology feel ​intuitive?

•Does my education teach digital ​literacy skills?

•Can I distinguish scams/bots?

•Is my data protected?

•Can people track my location?

•Can my identity be falsified?

•Will I be harassed online?

•Will I be exposed to ​inappropriate/triggering content?

One participant didn’t have access to a computer with the internet so had to use the facilities at their local library, ​however this was unreliable as the library was often busy. This also led to additional financial and time costs due to ​travel.

Participants spoke about the effects of 2020-2021 lockdowns on lower income school children. When all of schooling ​went online, the children who had access to a home computer and were more familiar with navigating systems, had an ​advantage in completing their schoolwork. This could lead to increased stress and lower grades which could impact ​future wellbeing and earning potential.

Participants mentioned that features such as dark-mode, text-to-speech, and alt-text on images increased the ​accessibility of digital devices.

Some participants felt that so much of their work going online was overstimulating and caused them stress and ​discomfort, noting that being neurodivergent made them particularly susceptible to this.

Participants brought up that those less familiar with navigating online spaces, particularly older ​generations, may not as easily recognise things like email scams, and may be at a higher risk of losing ​money or giving away sensitive data.

One participant mentioned the fact that most coding and programming languages use English as their ​basis for defining terms. Therefore, so non-English speakers are at a disadvantage when trying to learn ​programming as it is less intuitive for them to pick up specific details. This may lead to inequality in who ​is allowed to design technology and online spaces.

One participant mentioned that it is difficult to teach digital literacy because the rate of change may ​lead knowledge to quickly become obsolete. However, those who start learning at a young age will ​lakely be more able to adapt to rapidly changing technologies.

Harassment being a barrier to digital equity was an experience shared among many members. ​Twitter was described as an especially volatile platform, potentially due to the short form text ​content lacking space for nuance.

Participants noted that Black women particularly were unsafe online. Some of the participants ​who shared this identity had experienced cyberbullying, doxxing, and unsolicited sexual ​advances. Furthermore, Black girls were often adultified and oversexualised in online spaces.

A few participants expressed concern for generative AI impacting the livelihoods of artists and ​creatives. They felt that wealth inequalities would be exacerbated as industries replaced human ​workers with AI.

During the workshop, I gave an overview of the unethical mining practices in the Democratic Republic of the ​Congo. Briefly explaining the use of minerals such as cobalt and tantalum in the lithium-ion batteries which ​power electric cars, computers and smartphones. I discussed the violence, slavery, and child labour ​practices of many of these mines, the ongoing wars and genocides waged in the name of controlling these ​resources, and how big tech companies’ complicity in these atrocities represents an extension of ​colonialism.

Many participants were familiar with aspects of these atrocities. One participant who works with refugees ​noted that there are a lot of displaced people from the DRC currently living in Birmingham, many of whom ​have lived experience of the conflicts connected to mining industries.

There was discussion about investing new technologies with alternative battery components in order to ​lower the demand for conflict minerals. However, one participant mentioned that this would only move the ​problem elsewhere, and that we need to address the exploitative mechanisms at the root of colonialism and ​overconsumption if we want to lessen violence everywhere.

Participants expressed a need to reduce over-reliance on digital technology. As more vital services move online people ​who face barriers to digital technology will be granted less civic access to participating in society.

Groups highlighted by participants as facing barriers to digital equity include:

-The elderly

-Lower-income families

-Black women

-Neurodivergent people

-People with disabilities

-Non-native English speakers

Participants talked about how capitalism exacerbates the effects of digital inequality. People with less access to digital ​technology end up having less opportunities to access capital, this leads to less access to resources and worse standard ​of living.

Capitalism inherently requires hierarchy to function, as the lack of resources is what forces people to sell their labour. ​Therefore, it is more difficult to address digital inequity without dismantling the structures that create classes of ​“vulnerable people” to begin with. Participants really resonated with the phrase “url space is an extension of irl space”, ​noting the importance of holistic approaches to addressing digital inequality.

Some discussed approaches included:

-Keeping the option to access essential services offline

-Wealth redistribution

-Engaging with community face to face where possible

-Education in digital literacy and safety

-Regulating data protection

Inclusion of people with marginalised identities in all levels of the tech industry

There were feelings of despair felt during the discussion of exploitation in the DRC, but participants noted that it was an important topic to bring up. Being caught up in the ​same industries that facilitate genocides can be heartbreaking, but it can also allow us to step into power as disrupters of those industries through targeted boycotts or ​building alternative systems. I found it important to highlight some DRC specific community actions including:

-Share knowledge/resources within our communities

-Use free software

-Boycott, protest, raise awareness

-Buy used or refurbished and recycle old tech

-Get tech repaired

We also discussed specific tactics for caring for existing technologies:

•Clear out storage space

•Adjust brightness to increase battery life

•Turn off Bluetooth when not in use

•Use wifi over data and turn off wifi when not in use otherwise it is roaming searching for a connection

•Use low power mode

•Avoid exposing your tech to extreme temperatures

•Don’t overcharge your devices as this degrades the battery faster

I had planned for the participants to work in groups consisting of different ​roles to write, direct, perform, record, and edit one short video-poem per ​group, and then compare the results at the end. However, circumstances ​did not allow for these to be created during the session. Instead, gave a ​brief demonstration on using the free software Audacity. Two participants ​improvised a few spoken lines, whilst the remainder made suggestions as I ​chopped and edited the audio live (with the distorted sound of a bottle ​clanking in the distance repeated as a percussive metronome).

I wanted to take the opportunity and the short time-window to be playful ​and collaborative. I with the only direction being for participants to ​experiment with their choices. The two spoken segments “me moving, ​streaming, gliding, feeling, being.” and “winds waving in the trees, trees ​waving in the wind…” were in conversation with each other, and seemed ​to lean towards themes of nature, freedom, and floating.

After the workshop, I built upon the original audio by ​introducing a drum beat and more repetition of the phrase ​“feeling, being”. I also added a short verse of poetry which ​expanded on the themes that the participants had explored. My ​verse also examined some of the feelings brought up in the ​workshop of hopefulness in the face of systemic challenges, ​and the importance of approaching them together as a ​community. I paired this with a vertical lyric video incorporating ​free stock footage of trees and the sky.

Samiir Saunders is a multimedia poet from ​Birmingham. Their work encompasses spoken word, ​alternative hip-hop, and performance art. Samiir’s ​work is sometimes witty, other times vulnerable, but ​always filled with honesty and hope. Samiir’s aim as ​an artist is to inspire curiosity, compassion, and ​radical imagination within audiences and local ​communities.

https://samiirsaunders.com/

@smaiduskhan

MAIA is a Black-led cultural organisation, engaging radical ​imagination for liberation.

MAIA envisions a world towards liberation, in which artists are ​resourced and mobilised to reimagine its possibilities.

We engage culture as an imagination and organising strategy, ​working to build infrastructures that grow the personal, structural ​and sustained capacities in support of thriving Black life and its ​interdependencies.

https://www.maiagroup.co/

@we.are.maia