I totally agree with you about using humor to affect social change: it's what people share with each other. That's why I made with friends about our dysfunctional immigration system: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-30BZtpvaTY
I agree that time investment is part of the issue but it seems to me it's also abot creating engaging content. While I think Witness and the Hub are great (& I've uploaded content there), I sometimes wonder if a "half-empty" human rights lense is always the most effective way to reach people and move them to action. It seems like we need to a do a lot of work among progressives to create new metaphors that speak our positive values. For example, a friend of mine created a photo documentary project about Liberian SURVIVORS of their civil war and spotlighted examples of people who found strategies to get through "the bad bad thing". It seems like a potential audience would be more interested in engaging with this type of content than negative, no-end-in-sight perspectives. I'm not saying we should look at the world through rose colored glasses but figure out ways that compel people to watch. I've explored using humor to address the outrageousness of current immigration system in the US. While you can't do this for everything, it does help to reframe an issue so that people want to share it with others and respond. (sorry for being so long-winded).
Great post, Dave! BTW The Forced Migration Review's recent issue is also about climate change and migration: http://www.fmreview.org/climatechange.htm
Can we lay to rest the phrase "Comprehenisive Immigration Reform"? It seems like the last few years of failure have discredited the idea it imparts: legalization with heavy-handed enforcement and border security. I like "overhaul" or "update" better. Both reflect the fact that our immigration laws are woefully out of date.
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