Ep. 14 - Chi DNA: Electoral & Radical Politics ​ft. Camille Williams

This is the fourth Chicago Drill and Activism (AKA "Chi DNA")
installment of Bourbon ’n BrownTown. Chi DNA is an ongoing
documentary and multimedia project, which also features
interviews, micro-documentaries, and editorial pieces on drill
rap and the activist resurgence in Chicago.


GUEST
Camille Williams is a Chicago activist who believes in grassroots
organizing to bridge the gap between cultures and communities,
and utilizing restorative justice practices. She has organized
with both local and national campaigns as well as advocated for
legislation and policy. When she’s not organizing, she practices
radical self care and love by utilizing the tools of mindfulness,
yoga, and urban gardening. Camille lives by the mantra “know the
truth, speak the truth, be the truth” as a way to acknowledge the
divine within all people. With her experiences organizing for
Black liberation with BYP100 (Black Youth Project) and working to
create a more inclusive electoral democracy by putting power in
the hands of new young leaders across the city with Chicago
Votes, she offers a nuanced and multifaceted perspective on
what's been deemed "radical" politics within electoral processes
and state voting infrastructure.


CHI DNA
The Chicago Drill and Activism project explores the creation,
meaning, perspectives, and connections between drill rap and the
resurgence of grassroots activism since the early 2010s through
the eyes of the people involved. It focuses on contemporary
Chicago as an intentional place for the resurgence of these two
formations of cultural and political resistance during relatively
the same time period. It examines how authenticity, community,
and other important values to the subjects are impacted and
promoted via technology, social media, and a rejection of
traditional means of movement politics and corporate structures.
As told by activists and drill rappers alike, the project
situates the the subjects’ experiences and actions into a broader
theoretical and empirical history of systemic inequality and
resistance in Chicago. Follow the ongoing project at Chi-DNA.com
for more.


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CREDITS: Intro song F.U.B.U. by Solange
ft. The-Dream and BJ the Chicago Kid. Outro song Django
Jane by Janelle Monáe. Audio engineered by Genta Tamashiro.


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