Technology at the Festival

How much do we really know about technology and the way it dominates the world of media? Not much, I assume. I know I don't research the ins and outs of how it all works- usually a cursory Google search when I need to sort out a glitch is good enough for me.

The midweek Mobilise! festival on Wednesday 1st March is the perfect opportunity to learn more, with presentations and talks on the development of digital technology running from 10 a.m. to 5p.m. The day even ends with a two-hour concert at 7.

I definitely won't give this one a miss - with its unique blend of information and fun, it promises to be an event to remember.

You can find out more about the events and guests here


Hanaa Nisaa

"Get them to get it"

The moment Paris Lees entered the room, a respectful silence followed. People from all walks of life had gathered to have their ears and eyes opened to the struggles of the trans community - struggles some have faced and struggles that some wouldn't believe.

 

Paris's captivating talk took us on a journey from the summer in which she "ditched her boy clothes" to her discovery of her political voice through charities and media outlets. The Gender Trust Charity, Trans Media Watch and All About Trans are just three of the organisations with which she has campaigned.

 

When you watch Paris talking, you notice how comfortable she is in her skin, how she dominates the space, and really tries to connect with what she is saying.

 

Starting with The Pink Paper, Paris also gained a foothold in journalism. She then moved onto other publications, including The Guardian, and is currently an editor for Attitude magazine.

 

While these achievements are awe-inspiring, she also spoke about the wider picture. Increasing transgender representation in shows like Eastenders and The Voice will help to "get them to get it" - and by "them" she means the ones who would use the trans community as a "punchline or a punch bag."

 

Paris's message was simple, yet effective. "Get out there and do it - just live." A mantra that everyone should live by.

 

 

Jack Wilkin  

Art in prison - is it worth it?

From what we hear in the media, art in the criminal justice system is just a waste of time, space and the tax-payers' money. I'll put my hand up now - I'm guilty of thinking this (as are many other people in today's world) but we couldn't be more wrong. I'm a big fan of the arts - always have been - but for some reason I could never get my head round how doing something creative would help people in prisons.

The chairman of Arts Alliance (the company that brings art workshops to offenders) spoke passionately, pointing out that when any of us goes through a strong emotion, be it love, loss or hurt, we use creativity as an outlet for the feelings. It's therapeutic and helps us to vent the emotion without hurting anyone else.

When its put like that, arts in prisons seems like a very good idea. He went on to explain how re-offending rates are significantly reduced when the offender is involved in a creative project and how much people benefit from being involved in such work.

The talk definitely opened my eyes to a whole new world of career possibilities too. Although most of the speakers said how hard the job is to get into, they all seemed so enthused and excited about the work they were doing, it made the effort they had to put in seem completely worthwhile.

My views on the prison system were completely changed by this talk. It's so easy to get caught up in the world of the media and put down anything that uses tax-payers' money as a waste of time, but this really isn't. If you think how small the arts' side of education is in prisons (estimated at less that 5%) it's not worth all the aggravation the people that run the company get from the public. We're always led to think that an offender is a stereotype and can forget that they're real people. Everyone deserves the opportunity to express themselves, and I can't stress enough how glad I am that there are organisations out there that are fighting to give people that chance.

Sophie Moyse

Art in Prison? Certainly

Prisoners are often presented as either wastrels or monsters in the media. But giving them the opportunity to produce their own art enables them to demonstrate that they are just as human as the rest of us.

Three speakers from the Arts Alliance were adamant that serious involvement in art, theatre, dance and creative writing provides offenders with a form of education and allows them to build up self-esteem, despite any lack of literacy and numerical skills.

They explained in detail how limiting the creativity and expression of prisoners would simply exacerbate the problem. This makes it far more likely that offenders return to prison soon after their release.

The idea of art in prison was something I’ve never considered before. This lecture certainly gave me food for thought.


S. M. Knight