Second Annual
Social Fiction Conference

Social Fiction Conference Overview

The purpose of the Social Fiction Conference is to create a unique way of analyzing issues of Social Justice. We hope to foster an understanding of how issues of social justice are embedded in society by examining the fictitious societies found in the Science Fiction, Gaming, and Fantasy genre and exploring their real life corollaries.

We are looking for workshops to be presented at the conference, and we want you! If you have a workshop idea, please submit a workshop here. The deadline is February 16th, so hurry!

We are still looking subcommittee members to plan the conference! If you are interested, please contact Imani Rupert at crownsocialfiction@ucsc.edu to be part of this awesome conference!

Friday - April 9, 2010
Registration Keynote Speaker Opening Celebration/Activity	5:00 - 7:00 PM 6:45 - 7:30 PM 7:30 - 8:30 PM
Saturday - April 10, 2010
Breakfast/Late Registration Opening/Recap Speaker Workshop 1 Lunch Workshop 2 Workshop 3 Closing Speaker	10:00 - 10:45 AM 10:45 - 11:15 AM 11:30 - 12:30 PM 12:30 - 1:30 PM 1:45 - 2:45 PM 3:00 - 4:00 PM 4:15 - 5:30 PM

Goals of the SFC

1. Target students' interests and talk about issues of social justice.
2. Create an opportunity for collaboration between students and staff.
3. Create a unique opportunity to engage Crown students in the community.
4. Link academic and co-curricular programs.
5. Contribute to the core mission of the institution by providing co-curricular opportunities to engage with academic themes.
6. To provide workshops in a wide range of topical areas such as race, class, gender, sexual orientation, class, ability and religion.
7. Talk about Social Justice within the context of the Crown College theme
8. Produce an innovative program to highlight the Crown theme and commitment to Social Justice.

Learning Objectives of the SFC

1. Raise consciousness around issues of social justice.
2. Give students practical strategies to incorporate raising awareness of social justice in their own lives.
3. Give students the opportunity to build relationships and become familiar with other resources on campus.
4. Present an opportunity for students to learn tangible skills pertaining to research and presentation skills to put together a University level workshop.
5. Give students the skills to plan and execute a University wide conference.
6. Build awareness of a range of perspectives on individual, institutional, and cultural oppression and privilege.
7. Through the workshops, increase students' ability to critically analyze media literacy.
8. Through the overall theme, develop students' sense of individual and collective responsibility.

Target Audience

Our hope is to have the UCSC undergraduate students work closely with faculty, staff, and community members to make this conference a collective and collaborative effort. The target audience for the SFC is UCSC undergraduate students, but the conference is open to whoever wants to attend. Last year we had people from all over California.

Workshops

We are seeking workshops for the Social Fiction Conference. The Workshop should be 60 minutes in length, and this should include any question/answer portion. The proposal is due February 13th 2010 at 5:00 P.M.

The Social Fiction Conference program will consist of 10 interactive workshops that meet the following criteria:

• The workshop examines an issue of Social Justice, by using an element of Science Fiction, Gaming or Fantasy.
• The workshop is no longer than one hour in duration, including introduction and time for questions and answers.
• The workshop is interactive, involving attendees as much as possible through activities and discussion.

The proposal should be no more than 600 words in length, and combine at least one element of Social Justice with one element of Science Fiction, Gaming, or Fantasy. You will be notified by February 24th, 2010 if you have been selected to present your workshop.

There is no limit to the number of workshops that you can submit.

Some Examples

• Joss Whedon's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (television series): The careful and deliberate examination of Spike that allows us to challenge our own prejudices and preconceived notions about a particular race.
• J.K Rowling's "Harry Potter" (book series): The systematic struggle of house elves demanding equality. Who appears to be apathetic to this struggle, and who works hard to create justice? How does this reflect on their own identities?
• Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto (video game): The intentional use of female characters, and their role in the progression of the game.

Some workshops from last year's Conference:

LOST: Is the island a utopia of cultural awareness, or a reinforcer of mainland stereotypes?

Cultural diversity through the focus of the LOST television show. Participants will engage in an open discussion based on reflective questions and seek to determine the strengths and weaknesses of LOST as a model for presenting cultural diversity. Participants will walk away with specific tips and tools to initiate discussion about diversity issues with their usual LOST-watching crowd.

Freedom Fighting or Terrorism? Examining Just Political Struggle through V for Vendetta

In this workshop, we will examine the movie, V for Vendetta, which depicts a futuristic dystopian, United Kingdom and one man's fight for sociopolitical change. Through interactive activities using film clips, we will address questions such as: What is the ideal response to oppressive laws, governmental structures, and/or regimes? Can violence be justified or should struggles for justice be non-violent? Do the ends always justify the means?

Is Nintendo Perpetuating or Combating Gender Stereotypes

Has Nintendo perpetuated, or combated gender roles through the time of popularity? Participants will have an open discussion about gender roles in Mario, Legend of Zelda, and Metroid, focusing on gender stereotypes and their progression through Nintendo's development.