Indigenous and local communicators are fighting, witnessing and documenting some of the greatest battles for our planet’s natural resources and environmental integrity. Their home territories may be places where law enforcement is slim to nonexistent, and where mainstream media rarely travel – while if they do their coverage often lacks context and depth of understanding.
Accounts from those who live and breathe the realities they are documenting are invaluable.
Non-Indigenous media, or colonial media, severely dis-serves Indigenous Peoples. A lot of the coverage is homogeneous and biased, trite, condescending, sensationalized and factually inaccurate and undermines the well-being of Indigenous nations.
John Schertow, Editor-in-chief Intercontinental Cry
For International Indigenous Peoples’ Day 2017, If Not Us Then Who? is launching a beta version of a new web platform for smartphone video reports from indigenous and local communities across the world. Indigenous communicators and local citizen journalists telling their stories of territorial and cultural resistance through powerful visuals and firsthand footage.
If Not Us Then Who? LIVE maps these stories, where possible in real time.
If Not Us Then Who?’s platform for smartphone footage will simplify and speed up the Indigenous Peoples’ issues to inform, to share and to campaign. Hence we will get simple access to the latest issues across the Archipelago.
Jakob Siringoringo, BPAN indigenous youth alliance, Indonesia
If Not Us Then Who? LIVE will contribute both to direct peer-to-peer news sharing between communities and indigenous networks across the world as well as the wider dissemination of indigenous stories into more conventional media.
Getting firsthand footage from indigenous communicators to journalists, campaigners and decision makers. Putting the mic firmly in the hands of communities on the ground.
The platform will be useful to circulate the news everywhere, because the media here does not publish it, they disseminate what they want and influence everything. Let’s denounce this state, it is the terrorist.
Kurvf Ñi Malen Curaqueo, Mapuche Nation, Argentina
Explore the platform and its footage, add your own videos and share your feedback with us.
If you’re an indigenous communicator or organisation working with indigenous communities you can find out more about adding your videos to the platform here:
ifnotusthenwho.me/almost-live
Write to us with your ideas: live@ifnotusthenwho.me
This new communications platform will contribute a great deal in indigenous peoples’ territorial management throughout the world, doing and communicating.
Larry Salomon, Mayanga Nation, Nicaragua