Monthly Update from Tony Shawcross

Our Inclusiveness Committee has been working for nearly two years to get an accurate picture of who we are and aren't serving. Since 2011, we've tracked the demographics of the members and students we're serving and compared that data against our neighborhood, city, and state. We evaluated household income, gender and gender expression, sexual orientation, ethnicity, age, education, disabilities, language, geography, and more. Of all the geographic, ethnographic, or economic group we looked it, the two groups most consistently underserved and underrepresented at OMF and DOM were individuals with no post-secondary education and the Latino community.

The Latino community represents about 32% of Denver's population, approximately 38% of the population of our neighborhood of La Alma/Lincoln Park, but only 7% to 10% of our member/student base identify as Latino/a. Individuals without any college education (including HS graduates and dropouts) represent over 40% of the Denver population and over 55% of the population of La Alma/Lincoln park. However, only 5% to 10% of our members and students have no college education.  These two demographic groups are the primary focus for OMF's outreach in the coming years.

The next step for OMF's Inclusiveness Committee is to explore how to better serve these two demographics. We're reaching out to you, our community, for suggestions and ideas that will help us better serve individuals identifying as either Latino/a or having no post-secondary education. From scholarships and discounts to grants and partnerships, we're open to any suggestions that can make sure the services, training, and tools we offer are accessible to everyone in our community, especially those who need it most.

Please send  email us any thoughts, suggestions, feedback or ideas.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

For the last 16 years Jason McKain has been developing outreach tools, processes, communications and organizing actions for a variety of social justice, environmental, and independent media initiatives. He organized more than 600 activist-based, community-focused (urban and rural) projects involving tens of thousands of people. In doing so, it has been and will always be his ultimate goal to connect people with critical community work that needs to be done and to make this connection stronger. Jason has spent an equal amount of time creating and implementing fundraising strategies to fund countless projects. Along the way, Jason has developed a comprehensive and effective knowledge base around grassroots organizing, fundraising, logistics, and publicity.

What are the aspects of the work that you are most excited about?

Jason has worked with Open Media Foundation in one way or another for the last 6 years.  During that time it became undeniably clear that Open Media Foundation is one of the most important media centers in this nation.  OMF's accomplishments in the areas of community media production and distribution are cutting edge and put into sharp relief the vital role media plays in our communities and in the halls of power. 

 What drew you to working with Open Media Foundation/Denver Open Media?

Jason was drawn to Open Media Foundation after having worked with independent media centers across the nation and across the world since 1999.  Jason spent significant amounts of time working with independent media centers on the ground in South America, Mexico, Western Europe and British Columbia.  Additionally, he spent many years developing independent media centers in the Pacific Northwest between the years of 1999 and 2006.  Throughout that entire time, Jason has seen only one or two community media centers that rival the sophistication, professionalism and productivity of Open Media Foundation.  It is a real privilege to join an organization filled with brilliant staff, engaged community members and dedicated board members.

Tell us why you believe community media centers are important.

Community media centers are important for many reasons.  There greatest value is that they offer an alternative perspective to show another side of the story.  The alternative perspectives most often come from community members, educators, artists and activists with a wide range of ideas about many of the financial and environmental problems that riddle our society today. In doing so, community media centers show simple but powerful ways to start making meaningful and sustainable change in our day to day lives.