Presented at
HOPE 2020 Virtual Rescheduled,
Aug. 2, 2020, 10:30 a.m.
(90 minutes).
The left has historically fought corporate and government censors to ensure radical and revolutionary ideas can be freely shared under the banner of free speech. Recently, fascists have begun using the same free speech argument to support the spread of racism, misogyny, violence, and hatred both online and in real life. This has become especially true during the heavy switch to online organizing during the COVID-19 crisis. This mixes with an increasing dependence on corporate marketed software, including web conferencing software like Zoom.
How do we fight back without compromising our own online organizing? What changes in our own meeting and conference culture need to be made? How do we avoid depending on corporate definitions of political extremism which have historically targeted trans folx, bogus political groupings such as "black separatist extremists," and other movement allies?
https://wiki.hope.net/index.php?title=Free\_Speech\_Zero\_Day\_panel
Presenters:
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Ken Montenegro
**Ken Montenegro** is executive vice president of the National Lawyers Guild and is the technology director at the Center for Constitutional Rights. He is responsible for ensuring technology is used to advance the programmatic objectives of the organization. Previously, Ken was the technology director at Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Los Angeles. He is a co-founder of the Stop LAPD Spying Coalition and of the Radical Connections Network. Ken is a graduate of the Peoples College of Law. He is a longtime activist with grassroots communities and movements, in particular around immigration and policing.
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Alice Aguilar
**Alice Aguilar** is executive director of the Progressive Technology Project. For over 30 years, Alice's life's work has focused on supporting indigenous people's rights, environmental justice, and reproductive justice issues. Alice's current work involves leading the fight against racism and sexism in technology; bringing women, queer and trans people of color into movement technology; and winning respect for the people of color already doing technology work within social justice movements.
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Alfredo López
**Alfredo López** is a founder and Board member of May First Movement Technology. During his half-century of movement activism, he has been a leader in the Puerto Rican independence, labor, and anti-war movements; organizer of several major national demonstrations and scores of smaller ones; editor of two publications (*Claridad* and *Sevendays Magazine*); radio and television producer (and host); college teacher; and author of six published books and hundreds of published articles. His most recent book is *Goodies From the Yum Yum Tree: The Internet and Revolution in the Final Days of Capitalism*.
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Myaisha Hayes
**Myaisha Hayes** is the campaign strategies director at MediaJustice. She previously spent two years as the organization's national organizer on criminal justice and technology, where she oversaw the launch of the #NoDigitalPrisons and #ProtectBlackDissent campaigns. Myaisha also brings several years of organizing experience with her from various national and local campaigns including President Obama's reelection campaign, Fight for $15, and the CLOSErikers campaign.
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