Write a TED Talk presentation for your manifesto.

Your TED Talk Manifesto. 350-400 words.

Write a TED Talk presentation for your manifesto. The manifesto can be about politics, art, education, or whatever else you’d like, but it must address the intersectional aspects of your identity. Write it as a 2-3 minute talk or speech (practice and time it, but 350-400 words is a good estimate). Note: You are only writing a script, not creating a video. Tip: rewatch Crenshaw’s talk (or watch a few other short TED talks) to get into the voice/tone, and to get inspiration for how to start and how to finish. TED talks tend to tell a story, so think of one that you can tell in just a few minutes, and from which you can make some kind of point (i.e. what’s the message).

Catalog your stuff. Where do things come from? Where does the supply chain travel? How and by whom is it made (and its component parts)? Choose 2 items that are important to you and/or your identity, or things you use regularly (be specific and sociological – link the items to gender, culture, race, religion, age, ability or disability, class, etc). Create a 2-part table to list each item and add rows where you will describe: why each is important to you and how it is a part of who you are; who is the target market and largest purchaser or user; where each is made; the GDP and median income for the place it is made; who comprises the workforce in that industry; information about working conditions; how to calculate the difference between value and cost (however you define those). You need to have watched The True Cost before completing this. Include your sources for the information you find. At the bottom of the page is a table template you can copy if you’d like.

A history of place. 350-400 words. After reading ‘Rootshock’ by Mindy Fullilove and watching The Pruitt Igoe Myth, write a brief history of your neighborhood. Choose a specific building (where you live, one you pass by), business, block, park or other landmark around you and research its history. When and how was it built? What policies and funds made it possible? Who has used, owned, or lived in it during its history/existence? Use Fullilove’s article and the film as guides for how to tell the story of a place. Includes a list of your sources. You can include people you know or who live in the area as sources (ask people about the history!).

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