Cyberfeminist Manifesto

“Real Life Avatars” By Alleyah Charlton

After reading and discussing the assigned readings, “The Cyborg Manifesto” by Donna J Haraway and “Glitch Feminism” by Legacy Russell, I began to relate to Russell’s sentiment about escaping and exploring yourself as an avatar online. Growing up, I spent hours a day escaping to virtual words like Woozworld, IMVU and Stardoll. I was able to express and explore my identity in a way I didn’t feel like I could in real life.

This video is a Manifesto I made for my Interactive Art class end of semester project, during undergrad. I was also deeply influenced by the Internet Art class I was taking that semester. In both classes we explored using technology as a tool for creating art and the integration of AI. We also talked a lot about our own personal relationships with the technology in our lives. What I appreciated was the fact that we were never encouraged to be blindly optimistic about the role technology currently plays in our lives, especially the negative. My professors encouraged us engaging with these negative emotions to create art.

Due to the unethical way we consume AI in the US, I try to limit any deliberate use of AI in my life. These class were my opportunity to learn about AI tools and how to incorporate them rather than rely on them.