Blogging While Brown treat: The JOBA Group

What’s up fam,

You will be getting slightly dated feedback/analysis from yours truly regarding the super excellent Blogging While Brown Conference that took place in Chicago about a week and a half back. As stated in my title, one of the real gems from BWB was one Curtis Baker, founder of the blog (and movement) known as The JOBA (Joint Organization of Black America) Group: a group of progressive Americans seeking to organize on a national scale for the benefit of our institutions, communities, and families. I met Curtis over lunch and we broke bread about the dilemma regarding how expanded broadband access is useless unless people (Black people) learn to use the internet as an educational and professional tool and not just to check social media/gossip sites. We talked about other things as well but I don’t want to scoop myself or him over future posts. Just know that he is a good brother and he is in a word…sharp. Here is an excerpt from the blog,

SuperSpade in Chi-town at Blogging While Brown

Yes, I am corny for trying to make the title rhyme but I wanted to share with you all that I will be at Blogging While Brown this weekend in Chicago. From the website

The purpose of Blogging While Brown is to give Bloggers of Color an opportunity to meet each other for the first time, discuss current issues affecting Bloggers of Color, and learn about the latest technology that will assist them with publishing their work. Blogging While Brown was created in response to widespread dissatisfaction with the amount of diversity in some of the largest blogging conferences. A critical mass of Bloggers of Color has yet to attend these established conferences, however the initial response from Bloggers of Color to the idea of holding their own conference has been overwhelmingly enthusiastic. Bloggers of Color are excited about a conference, for, by and about them and look forward to moving beyond the single panel or discussion focusing on diversity that are typically featured at some of the larger blogging conferences.

The first conference was held in Atlanta, GA in July 2008.  The second conference is being held in Chicago, IL on June 19-20, 2009.

I was upset that I wasn’t able to make it out last year but fortunately, I was able to kick it with Gina from What About Our Daughters (AN INCREDIBLE BLOG, BTW) who originally came up with the concept of Blogging While Brown. Gina was on my panel, Black Blogging Beyond Obama at Netroots Nation last year and I don’t say this often about people but Gina is the truth. I will be live blogging and providing new insights for my SuperSpade family. And if there are any SuperSpade family in Chicago, leave a comment and let me know what’s happening.

Stay up fam,

Brandon Q.