SanDiegoComicCon@Home - Wednesday Edition: Learning in Diversity’s Footsteps
COVID-19 prevented millions of people from gathering at the world-famous event, San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) 2020, but the creators of the event implemented something better. Using their creativity, business acumen, high speed internet, technological innovation and their business connections, they created a new lane in virtual presentations called San Diego Comic Con @ Home.
Becoming, ‘Virtual Gods’, they’re providing to the populace, via 5G, fiber optic and coaxial cable, the ups and downs of the pop culture industry. Teaming up with the Entertainment Industry, SDCC is ensuring that we, the viewers, have the best pop culture experience at home ever:
And the vendors who are providing their products for sale at discounted prices.
Excited, I decided to try to do everything in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, but as with every comic con; it’s just too much to do. Respect to them as they created an event that placed me in front of the computer over the next five days and my only hope and prayer is that SDCC will allow these panel events to continue online after they close. If not, then I need to do everything I can to ensure my readers understand why SDCC is considered the Mt. Olympus of Comic Cons. Welcome to Wednesday Edition.
As always, SDCC provides a sneak peek for the pop culture fans, but it was also here that I needed to sign up for a ‘Discord account’, for discussions, a ‘Sched account’, to schedule my panels, ‘a Battlefy account’, if I want to participate in any gaming battles, and a ‘Scener account’, so I can watch SDCC movies and chat with colleagues in the world, all from my home. I became so involved that I periodically was checking every account, including my Sched account to make sure I would make it to the panels and movie events on time. I know (2x), it’s on YouTube, Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hulu but given the state of affairs and the fact that these events could be eliminated after the event happens, I decided to take this seriously and participate as much as I could. One aspect that I would say was really surprising was the use of all the technology. It appears that there’s an app for everything and with the technological aspect of this event nailed; these events had me ¾’s of the way there. All that was missing was the physical presence.
Maybe I was too involved, but I loved it.
My experiences with SD Comic Con, for Wednesday, involved the panels of GeekEd: Re-storied: Re-imagining Creative Privilege and Books for All: It's Time to Redefine How We Share Books With Kids. Although Wednesday had me going in every different direction, the love, time and energy presented by the companies and these two panels had me 100% involved and it was worth it just so I can learn from the experts in their perspective genres.
Pop Culture and Privilege
Introduction by Brian MacDonald, UCLA, GeekED (ucla.edu), Moderated by Asha Eaton, KTN manager ImmerseUK (immerseuk.org). Panelists: Pip Brignall, co-director Reality Check Productions (realitycheckproductions.co.uk); Sarah Ellis, director of digital development at Royal Shakespeare Company (rsc.org.uk); Juliette Levy, University of California, Riverside, Dept of History (juliettelevy.org); Linda Sellheim, education program manager at Epic Games (epicgames.com); Tess Tanenbaum, University of California, Irvine, Transformative Play Lab (transformativeplay.ics.uci.edu)
Moderated by Brian MacDonald of UCLA, he spoke with a forum of panelists on how the storyline of individuals from different backgrounds are constantly changing and mentioned how educators need to incorporate diverse literature from pop culture into a K -12 educational setting as well as the college atmosphere. From comics to films; the current movements of pop culture is as important as ever as diversity is key in assisting the artistic community.
Some interesting takes involved how video game stories, which are fictitious in nature, have a profound effect on the people that play them. One of the panelists, Dr. Theresa Jean Tenenbaum (Tess Tenebaum) mentioned how changing the narrative in gameplay can alter the decisions of a player by the user. It allows the user to live in the ‘alternate’, allowing you make decisions, you might not otherwise make and using the realm of magic as an example, it allowed gamers to empathize better with the character in ways not seen in the Human environment.
Additionally, Epic Games, program manager, Linda Sellheim also chimed in by stating something that’s necessary for the K-12 education ecosystem; the historical narrative. K -12 educator and historian, Juliette Levy, followed up and discussed how history is taught through the lens of those who are in power and as such, historians tend to skim or skip over the material that takes their power away and enforces the parts that do. All too common in the K – 12 environment, especially in urban schools, history or any subject matter is taught in an authoritarian tone, with a voice that could go against the voices of the students. This is important as the term, ‘culturally relevancy’ needs to play a bigger role in educating students whose perspectives are different from the teachers. More importantly, by applying culturally relevancy in the classroom, this form of instruction allows teachers to work with students of different cultures and helps the teachers understand where their students are coming from in regard to their educational background.
Books For All
This panel, hosted by the LitX teacher cohort, Jill Gerber (teacher, Rowland Hall School); Tony Weaver (CEO, Weird Enough Productions); Adan Alvarado (teacher, Bloom Township High School); Yehudi Mercado (comic creator Sci-Fu, Fun Fun Fun High School); and Christina "Steenz" Stewart (comic creator, Archival Quality, Heart of the City), and moderated by Adam Ebert (teacher, Bloom Township High School), discussed how educators, creators, and parents can share impactful and diverse comics with kids of all ages.
One interesting topic of discussion from the panel was the issue of the ‘gatekeeping’ in the publishing business. As these holders of the "Keys” pump out their own literature lists for students via ALA (American Library Association), panelist Tony Weaver spoke on the matter:
Tony Weaver Jr.
‘In my opinion, the gatekeepers are more effective than ever and the gates are higher than ever….We’ve reached a place where we rely on traditional publishers to level, set and create parameters for what we’re supposed to give our kids….If we look at existing data around print publishing and know that the big 5 publishers are not offering the diversity that they should in terms of what our kids should be reading and yet, everything from library lists to reviews to what gets a librarian guide made for it, its all rooted in what those publishers put out….and if no Black people wrote any more books again, starting tomorrow, there is enough books for Black kids that exists for them, you just don’t know about them because they’re not on an ALA list or they didn’t get published by a traditional publisher…’ -Tony Weaver Jr.
Tony’s words were insightful as he explained how the ‘Big 5’ rarely exposes the hard work and literature collective of phenomenal Black authors. His opinion on the situation isn’t the only voice that is speaking on this topic. From June 14 to June 20th, the recently dubbed ‘Juneteenth Week’; Black publishers and authors urged readers to buy books by Black authors and use the hashtag: #BlackoutBestsellerList. To date and based on today’s political shifts, sales on ‘anti-racism’ and the Black collective by Black authors are surging.
Thoughts
Wednesday’s event provided me with a sneak peek into what San Diego Comic Con @Home is all about. Although, some may think it’s all about Comics, Video Games, Cosplay and Pop Culture; this year’s @home event brought a wider audience and focused on the growing diversity taking place within the industry. And as I’m watching with awe the amazing events this virtual plane has in store for me, SDCC always brings that fire. As I log my journey in their ‘virtual space’, the mecca of the West Coast, so far, is on a new path, catering to a global audience and without skipping a beat, bringing that awesomeness its known for.
I’m so excited and glad to be on this incredible journey.
SDCC - Going Where No Person Has Gone Before…..Virtual Domination !!!
