¿Y Latino Twitter Que?: On Writing, Blogging, Tweeting and Maintaining Digital Intercambios on Latinx issues

The phenomena known as Black Twitter has become a force to be reckoned with in today’s media driven world. Whether it’s calling out White feminists, maintaining a #BlackLivesMatter presence, or exploring Shonda Rhimes’... [ view full abstract ]

The phenomena known as Black Twitter has become a force to be reckoned with in today’s media driven world. Whether it’s calling out White feminists, maintaining a #BlackLivesMatter presence, or exploring Shonda Rhimes’ latest plot twists, the voices of Black Twitter are ultra present in the digitalscape of the 21st century. This roundtable discussion asks whether and how Latino voices in the digital age can and have had an impact in today’s Latinx politics. Bringing together online bloggers, tweeters, and editors from the online forum Mujeres Talk, the contributors will speak on the current state of Latin@s in the digital stage and share their insight on developing a voice and impact in digital platforms. Deliberating the future of Latin@ Studies in these cyber-conversations, the roundtable will explore the spaces of discomfort when putting oneself out there in the public domain. Moreover, the roundtable seeks to elicit discussions with the audience about coalitions and collaborations with topics that merge multiplied interests amongst issues of social justice, academic freedom, migrant/refugee rights, racism, state-based violence, and policing with other marginalized communities online. The Roundtable will include scholars and active Latin@s in digital media.

David-James Gonzales’ podcast, New Books in Latino Studies (NBLS), centers on bridging the gap between academics and the broader public. He will speak on the methods he uses to expose the general public to serious scholarship through a digital medium. Sara A. Ramírez has contributed to online forums like Mujeres Talk and her current work includes TWPulse, Third Woman Press's forthcoming online journal/blog that will center the creative and scholarly work of transgressive feminists of color. Composed of five Chicanxs and a Vietnamese-American ally, the Third Woman Press Collective is committed to creating alliances between marginalized communities on the digital stage. Jillian Baez sees her digital presence on social media (especially Twitter) as a form of public engagement. As someone who researches the role of social media in the lives of Latina/o communities, Jillian views social media as an opportunity to understand how each platform operates by participating as a practitioner. Sujey Vega provides insight as member of the editorial group for Mujeres Talk, an digital moderated forum that provides an avenue for authors to submit original research, commentary, and creative work. Amelia Montes will add her expertise as a contributing blogger on La Bloga, a digital space for literary and cultural reviews, news, and views now in its 11th year. Lastly, Urayoán Noel recently organized the panel Hashtag Latinidad. He is also a poet and performer whose work incorporates a range of digital tools (apps, hashtags, memes, etc.) both compositionally and in the context of activism and live performance. Organized as a true Roundtable, the panelist will each provie a brief comments on how they see their work as contributing to the importance of a Latin@ digital presence. We hope for lively participation from the audience on the need to recognize and support a social media/digital voice.