After the AMC
Below are things that we suggested people do after AMC2009. The 12th AMC in 2010 will be immediately followed by the U.S. Social Forum, which we encourage you to attend.
Things to Do in Detroit*
Belle Isle is Detroit's island park in the middle of the Detroit River, with some of the best views of the city skyline (and Canada). Enjoy the swimming, the giant slide, the swan-shaped paddle boats or just driving around it in circles on a bike or in a car.
The Detroit Institute of Arts has one of the largest fine arts collections in the country. You could spend several hours just looking at the Diego Rivera fresco "Detroit Industry" in the main courtyard of the museum. Visit www.dia.org or call 313.833.7530 for hours and entry fees.
The Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History holds the world's largest permanent exhibit on African American culture. Make sure you stand in the middle of the Freedom Rotunda and appreciate the echo. Visit www.maah-detroit.org or call 313.494.5800 for hours and entry fees.
Hitsville, U.S.A. - The Motown Museum was both company headquarters and home to Berry Gordy in the earliest days of Motown. The guided tours will have you singing Supremes songs in the same spot where Diana Ross stood. Visit www.motownmuseum.com or call (313) 875-2264 for hours and entry fees.
Hart Plaza / The River Walk / The Labor Monument - how many cities' public monuments feature quotes from Emma Goldman and Frederick Douglass? For a really nice date, start at the Labor Monument, then walk through Hart Plaza to the Underground Railroad Monument, then walk left, along the river and watch kids playing in fountains.
The Dequindre Cut is a newly-completed greenbelt in Detroit, that extends from the Detroit River along former railroad tracks. Appreciate decades worth of Detroit graffiti while on bike or on foot.
*If you decide to move to Detroit after having such a good time (you won't be the first AMCer to do so), make sure to get in touch: info@alliedmediaconference.org
Parties, festivals and other events
July 19 - July 27: Hotter Than July, Detroit's Annual Black Gay Pride Festival. July 20: Slow Jams @ The Woodbridge Pub. Detroit's finest DJs spinning soul, funk, and hip hop classics. July 21: The Foundation @ 5E Gallery. Weekly women in hip hop night hosted by Miz Korona, Piper Carter and Invincible. July 24: The Phat Kat Big Band (with Will Sessions) @ The Magic Stick July 24 - July 26 - Detroit International Women of Color Film Festival. Films, workshops and panel discussions.
Volunteer opportunities
D-Town Farm, a project of the Detroit Black Food Security Network. Planting, weeding, watering, harvesting. Contact Ebony Roberts for more information: blackstareducation (AT) yahoo.com Brother Nature Farm in the North Corktown Neighborhood. Landscape architecture, large-scale composting. Contact Greg Willerer for more information: gweg (AT) provide.net Hush House / King Solomon Baptist Church. Historic church where Malcolm X gave his "Message to the Grassroots" and "The Ballot or the Bullet" speeches. Building renovation. Contact Mama Sandra for more information: 1mamasandra (AT) gmail.com
