YOU’RE INVITED… 

WAPA CARES ETHNOGRAPHY MEETING 

Sunday, April 30^th, 2017

3-5 P.M. 

Home of Greyson Harris in Petworth

 

4309 Kansas Ave. NW, Apt. B

*Blue house, second door on left

Washington, DC 20011

 

Greyson’s Cell:

530-410-5569

 

*Feel free to bring snacks or drinks

 

 

Dear WAPA Ethnography Participants;

After many discussions between the Purpose Statement, Methodology, and Literature Review groups, we will meet this Sunday to update the entire group. Please forward this email to anyone you don't see on the list who should be. We will update the list at the meeting! 

There is still much to be discussed and planned if we hope to start interviews in mid-June, but I am confident that we can hash this out together and vote on some of the ideas.

You will find below a draft purpose statement for the Virginia Ethnography. It is not yet set in stone, nor is the title, so I have asked Greyson to set up an overhead projector where we can look at those and the interview questions in order to discuss and make changes on the spot. The methodology is not yet ironed out, but I think we will get there once the group shares some of their ideas.

At the meeting, we will figure out which online platform to use for information sharing, and we will place all relevant documents, including a spreadsheet for the literature review there. Please be patient as we have a mutli-generational group with diverse digital skills.

What is clear is that the faster we get a well-thought-out but simple pilot on the ground, the more likely we are to be able to insert some of our findings in an interactive website, and even start adding a few photos and short video clips with compelling interviews. This is crucial if we want to have an impact beyond academia.

While lots of us are progressive anthropologists, I think there is a general understanding that we are doing this as a listening project to reflect the complexity of thinking in a swing state like Virginia, so that the public can develop more understanding, empathy, and ultimately feel more empowered about whatever political and civic engagement decisions they make.

Julienne Gage

305-527-0504