#DefendOurMovements: What is Movement Security?
by Kyla Massey, Digital Justice Fellow at the Center for Media Justice
There is a shift happening. A shift spawned by violence and distrust, surveillance and the fight for justice, and it’s stirring up conversations that had previously been low whispers.
Stephon Clark has been murdered (#blacklivesmatter). Marielle Franco has been murdered (#sayhername). Packages have exploded in Austin, Texas — killing Anthony Stephan House and Draylen Mason (#blacklivesmatter). Long time immigrant rights activists are being rounded up by ICE, like Ravi Ragbir (#IStandWithRavi) and Alejandra Pablos (#ReleaseAle). We are being ignored by media yet surveilled by the government at the same time.
We are being attacked, and what’s painfully obvious is that our wellness (mental and physical) and our safety (physical and digital) have been in jeopardy for too long.
We know surveillance. We know what it feels like to be watched unjustly. From being followed in aisles of grocery stores, to being profiled by police in our own neighborhoods. The surveillance of black and brown and queer and trans bodies is not new. What is new is the technology that is currently being used to surveil and oppress us. And until we arm ourselves with a knowledge of tools that help us be more digitally secure, we will never know the freedom and power of privacy in this digital age.
Right now, the Center for Media Justice (CMJ) is working with other thought leaders, activists, and technologists to ensure communities understand the power of our data and the impacts data has on our lives.
What does Digital Security Mean?
My name is Kyla Massey and I’m the Digital Justice Fellow at the Center for Media Justice. I am a technologist working to improve digital security for communities of color. In conferences, at parties and networking events, whenever I introduce myself, I tell people that I train and facilitate workshops on Movement Security. And people immediately follow up by asking, “What does that mean?” To center this conversation, we’ll define Digital Security as:
The protection of online data and digital identities connected to both hardware and software.
And we’ll define Movement Security in the scope of Digital Security as:
The protection of online data and digital identities connected to the hardware and software of individuals and organizations working towards social justice.
Technology is built and maintained as a system that excludes — just think about who creates and owns the technology we rely upon today. Some people feel technology is complicated and scary. They shy away from tech by saying “Oh, it’s just not for me”, or “I don’t want to give up my privacy”. Yet technology is at the core of many decisions that have a significant impact on our daily lives. Algorithms are used to determine if we should be released from jail. Body-worn cameras are used by police to surveil the communities they’re policing. Young people are being filtered into gang databases based on pictures they’re posting to social media. Our online habits, like our browsing history or social media posts, are being used to inform decisions around housing, government services, and jobs.
One of our biggest tools in addressing these conditions and challenging the idea that technology is not for us, is to understand how we ourselves, and our communities, can keep ourselves safe when it comes to the data we want to protect.
So don’t get caught up on the terminology — we invite you into this conversation as an expert in your own ways. You are activists, technologists, artists, organizers, community members in this world. We hope that this blog series will be an opportunity for us to start having more in-depth and informative conversations around how we can take back our data, understand its power, and learn how to protect both ourselves and our communities.
Join us for upcoming conversations around resources, exploring our digital bodies, understanding risk assessments, and navigating safer social media experiences. Help us continue to #DefendOurMovements and complete the Movement Surveillance survey to share your experiences with online surveillance and harassment: http://bit.ly/mvmtsurvey
