[Commlist] Log Out! The Technopolitics of Refusal symposium

Log Out! The Technopolitics of Refusal

International symposium at the University of Toronto Mississauga, March 
5-6, 2024


The Institute of Communication, Culture, Information and Technology is 
organizing a symposium on the technopolitics of refusal, with Nicole 
Charles (U of Toronto), Leopoldina Fortunati (U of Udine), Jilly Boyce 
Kay (Loughborough U), Gavin Mueller (U of Amsterdam), Sarah Sharma (U of 
Toronto), Rinaldo Walcott (U at Buffalo), plus a set of theory pills by 
U of Toronto PhD students, and a pre-conference film screening of 
/Machines in Flames /with director Andrew Culp (California Institute of 
the Arts). The symposium is organized by Julie Chen, Alessandro 
Delfanti, and Sarah Sharma.


Quit. Strike. Break. Nap. Disconnect. Withdraw. Drink. Detox. Trip. 
Abolish. Play. Luxuriate. Escape. We gather together for one day to 
acknowledge a desire to remove oneself from the grip of 24/7 
techno-capitalism as it intersects with patriarchy and white supremacy. 
But we are stymied by the recognition that tactics of refusal are both 
scarce and plenty, sometimes competing and often contradictory. And we 
insist that without understanding techno-politics there is no refusal. 
Logging out en masse during a strike against a gig economy app is the 
contemporary equivalent of dropping the tools on a shop floor.  The 
Luddites organized to smash the looms that were threatening their 
livelihood. Black fugitivity seeks liberation and autonomy both in and 
against the digital world. Abolitionists seek not a new technology or a 
strategy but a new structure. Incels operate underground but log on to 
organize against feminism and the gains of others fighting for civil 
liberties. Technology is not a tool for either disappearance or 
empowerment; it is not given, but rather a strategic environment in 
which to maneuver. Acknowledging that refusal has a technopolitics, we 
ask: what can be logged out from, when, and how?


In order to expand our understanding of refusal, PhD students will 
deliver 5-minute “theory pill” talks that target a number of concepts 
that revolve around the symposium theme: Idleness (Seungwoo Baek), Touch 
Grass (Sarah Gram), Obfuscation (Mathew Iantorno), Tang Ping (Yuxing 
Yolanda Zhang), Disconnection (Nelanthi Hewa), Buddha-style (Hiu-Fung 
Chung), Shelter (Kaushar Mahetaji), Sleep (André Campos Rocha), Desire 
(Madison Mackley), Going Stealth (Upasana Bhattacharjee), Gambiarra 
(Guilherme Guilherme), Anti-tech (Réka Patrícia Gál), Meong Ttaerigi 
(Grayson Lee), Infertility (Julia Park).


PROGRAM AND REGISTRATION:


Tuesday March 5, 5 pm - 6:30 pm

Centre for Culture and Technology, 39A Queen's Park Cres E, Toronto

Screening of /Machines in Flames/ (a film by Andrew Culp and Thomas 
Dekeyser)

PLEASE REGISTER AT: 
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/screening-of-machines-in-flames-tickets-820094212867?aff=oddtdtcreator 
<https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/screening-of-machines-in-flames-tickets-820094212867?aff=oddtdtcreator>


Wednesday March 6, 10 am - 5 pm

University of Toronto Mississauga, 3359 Mississauga Road

Log Out! symposium.

Lunch will be served. A shuttle bus from downtown Toronto will be 
available (details TBA).

PLEASE REGISTER AT: 
https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/log-out-the-technopolitics-of-refusal-symposium-tickets-820099789547?aff=oddtdtcreator 
<https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/log-out-the-technopolitics-of-refusal-symposium-tickets-820099789547?aff=oddtdtcreator>


Graduate students will have priority registration for the event.


Institute of Communication, Culture, Information and Technology

www.utm.utoronto.ca/iccit <http://www.utm.utoronto.ca/iccit>


---------------
The COMMLIST
---------------
This mailing list is a free service offered by Nico Carpentier. Please use it responsibly and wisely.
--
To subscribe or unsubscribe, please visit http://commlist.org/
--
Before sending a posting request, please always read the guidelines at http://commlist.org/
--
To contact the mailing list manager:
Email: (nico.carpentier /at/ commlist.org)
URL: http://nicocarpentier.net
---------------