Digital Language Activism

Brooke Danielle Lillehaugen

Janet Chavez Santiago

Digital Language Activism is the use of digital media and tools, including social media, to use and promote the use of small, marginalized, threatened, and sleeping languages. In such, it can be viewed as part of a more general use of social media in promoting civic engagement, social change, and action. In this workshop co-led by Zapotec speaker and digital language activist Janet Chávez Santiago and linguist ally Brook Danielle Lillehaugen participants explore the history, context, methods, and practice of Digital Language Activism through a combination of discussions, individual projects, small group work, and readings. This workshop is aimed at speakers, heritage language learners, and linguist allies involved in Digital Language Activism as well as those wanting to become involved. Those already experienced in the practice of Digital Language Activism will leave with a greater understanding of the context of this work and a larger network of fellow practitioners. Those new to Digital Language Activism will have the opportunity to think through a project and begin it.