Welcome to The first OkayActivist Archive-Book Project (the open forum summit). Depending on the outcome of this post we could possibly be involved in a dope Activist Project.

Table:

1. INTRODUCTION & MAIN IDEA
2. THE FORM OF DISTRIBUTION:
2A. THE BOOK OPTION (EN DETAIL) (included: my personal idea)
2B. OTHER OPTIONS (LEFT FOR LATER ELABORATION)
3. EDITING AND THE EDITOR
4. PUBLISHING
5. POTENTIAL WORLD REACTION
6. MISC.
7. I KNOW THESE CAPS ARE ANNOYING YALL, MY FAULT.


1)
I want to start off by giving all the credit for this idea to FireBrand. Initially I didn't think it was a great idea but as I've thought about it more in the last 4-5 days (since reading his post 'the archives got some knowledge') I came to the conclusion that it was a great idea.

THE IDEA: What if we decided to turn all or majority of the archives (and any current discussions that will be soon archived) into a book (or some other form of information distribution)?

I'm not sure about all of you. But for myself as a cat who as of yet has not read every last post in the archives. But has still soaked in a tremendous amount of knowledge and ideas that were completly alien to me when I first came here a year ago ..that
we have a lot of information here.

I believe it would be a tremendous waste to have all those posts with all their vast experience and insight only benefit the mere fraction of the 30,000 people that visit this site daily that are regular Activist visitors. IMO, It would be a disservice to any Cause or attempt at making World progress through human empowerment on behalf of all of us as indivisuals in our personal lives if we didn't share it with the World.

With that said, I (as OkayActivist Moderator)* have organized this forum as the first of possibly several discussions in the steps that could transform the archives into said project.

* - With respect to my cohort and *moderator mentor* G-Love.


2)
The first topic of course if it is decided that we indeed DO want to transform the archives into said project, and that we have full authority to do so (I already talked to Dan about it) is exactly HOW to distribute it. The obvious and IMO best way we could do it is in the form of a book. A solid, groundbreaking book.

2A.)
If it is decided that the information should be converted into a book then we could move on to other discussions:

- How should the book be written (what fashion, style, angle or format)?
- What should the very theme and goal/agenda of the book be?
- Should the book be *based* on the archives, or made completly out of it and its words?
- How should it be edited and formatted into one item?
- WHO should do the editing?
- Who should publish it?
etc. etc. etc.

Where I'm at a crossroad now is the theme. I believe that we would have at least two options here:

-Making it a book based wholey on a topic related to Afrocentricity

-Making it a book based on a topic of something more humanly "universal".

The first option is where I tend to disagree where FB stated it should be required reading for 6th graders across the nation. I think this option would be best made as FUBU* because obviously the opinions, agendas and philosophies of most of the Afrocentric posts in the archives do NOT coincide with underlying western agendas, practicies, philsophies, standards etc. and are mostly the exact opposite. I believe it would work best as something targeted to us (Black people) and not mainstream american society (as in the way the school system operates in dominant eurocentricity).

As for the second option, I know there are posts that are just general topics and are non-racial (the ones on religion, current affairs and politics, etc.) but I'm wonderin how many of y'all would rather that than the first option.
Maybe it could encompass both, or we could go with the option of doing two projects: one overall, one essentially targeted and revised at an Afrocentric point of view for Afrikans (the same style as Anthony Robbins "Unlimited Power" and "Unlimited Power: A Black Choice").

* - For Us and By Us (Black people) not the damn clothing line.

2B).
For other options (besides making all the information into a book) it could also happen in other ways (collective digest, declaration, guide or pamphlet, or something else) but I believe it would be best as a book. However the forum is open for discussion of other ideas that anyone has. I'll leave this one for any naysayers on the book format to further elaborate on.

3.)
For editing, my personal idea was to take on the monumental task of extracting every good piece of information and formatting it properly to make it all fit under the chosen theme(s).

I'll get to the editor in a sec. First, I think it's a good idea to note that we'd all want this project to work as a collective voice for the majority of past, present and future OkayActivists
so we would have at least two options in dealing with subject matter that is more individualistsic or subgroupish rather than something that represents the majority of us all:

1. Leave it out
2. Turn it into an example of "option" (e.g. posts on specific religions/belifs, personal opinions and life experiences/choices, etc.) at the indivisual level beneath the fabric of the larger collective voice.

Or maybe another option that I'm not thinking of.

On a related note, I think it would be crucial that we make something that is informative, knowledgable and impressive. A work meant to be insightful, liberating and uplifting. Totally truthful but not hateful.

With that said I hope most of all of you would agree that it would be best if we left out ideas that don't match up with the collective image of OkayActivist (unless it was shown from the personal point of view of an indivisual or subgroup). By that I mean racist posts (anything dealing with white people being devils, "created" human experiments or similar views expressed in publications like the Isis papers) or posts which blindly promote a specific religion (e.g. Islam, Christianity) or govermental ideology (e.g. Communism) or anything else related to that kind of surreal contraversy.

And by this I'm mainly talking about the kind of loaded claims that attempts to take away the humanity in other groups of people, that aren't related to uplifting and informing human beings or embracing Afrikanism anyhow.

As for the editor. My idea was to basically have one or person or a small group take on the task of extracting the posts, formatting it, filling in the gaps, and doing all the typing and organizing. But maybe some of you have other ideas. I was thinking that maybe anyone interested in this could submit a writing and from there we'd decide who the best writer was and thus who should do the bulk of the written work.

4.)
Moving on to the publishing. I'm sure that between all of us and our connections in various fields and jobs that somebody could find a willing publishing co. Especially if a significant buying audience was there. But that's something to think about later.

5.)
As far as potential world reaction goes, I think it could make a stake in whatever area were trying to reach.
It could end up going farther than we imagined or it could just be a humble publication that makes some small noise in the literary world for OKP (if that's what is decided should happen). I really think that if this were to reach progressive and "liberal" audiences (and the Black audience especially) that it would introduce a new school of thought to people that had never thought in these ways prior.

Maybe some of the OKP artists could help promote it, and it could be involved in OkayBooks and promoted by OKP like with Angela Nissel's book "The Broke Diary". Just some ideas.

6.)
Of course all names (of everyone involved) and Okayplayer could be given credit at the end and the sources linked to in each post could be the bibliography.

But if it were up to me, it would just be a book based on a strong Afrocentric topic that could still apply to virtually any audience. I was thinking about it being formatted as a guidance writing, where the reader is taken on a journey from ignorance, confusion and oppression to knowledge, enlightnment and higher thinking (and if one chooses: the Continental reclaimation). Maybe called something like "The Path Back Home" with a young Black child walking through a wooded trail with a home in the distance for the cover.

7)
Ahahahaha.


Just my ideas so far. What do y'all think?




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