Kit OConnell

Prisoners in Guantanamo Bay have been on hunger strike for 100 days now, drawing activists to protest for freedom and justice both online and off. @OccupyCarlisle is livestreaming from the White House, where acts of civil disobedience are expected soon.

Meanwhile, a “twitter storm” has begun under the hashtag #GTMO17, making it one of the top trending topics this morning.

Travis County is home to Austin, Texas and well over a million residents. The county’s district attorney, Rosemary Lehmberg was released from jail about 1am this morning after serving half of a 45-day sentence for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Five people were arrested at the Texas Capitol on May Day morning last week as GetEqual TX staged a sit-in at four Texas State Senators offices. Activists hope to pressure legislators to schedule SB237, the “Fair Employment Act,” for a vote. If passed, it would make it illegal for employers in the state to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

Members of GetEqual TX held a sit-in in the offices of Texas State Senators in the Texas Capitol to pressure members of the Senate Committee on Economic Development to let SB237 come to a vote. If passed, this bill would prevent employers from firing workers for their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Caitlin Perrone and Taylor Hampton, two University of Texas at Austin Journalism students spent a couple weeks in March following me around to activist events to create this video. The portrait they created answers why I spend time in the hot Texas sun (and sometimes travel to other places) to document and participate in street activism.

Taylor and Caitlin filmed me at three events, along with a brief interview in my home.

Has humanity stopped looking to the future with hope?

Today’s obvious high point was speaking to astronaut Dr. Mae Jemison for a brief phone interview about the Hundred Year Starship foundation. I spoke with her for an article about how this nonprofit wants to get the whole world thinking about space and the future again. That article will come later this week but in the meantime you can see my Storify of tweets from the #100YSS panel at SXSW or enjoy this great TED Talk by Dr. Jemison. For now, I’ll say our conversation was funny, inspiring, and comfortable — like talking to a very wise friend.

What does it accomplish to dance in the streets?

Can Anonymous be destroyed with enough arrests and punitive sentences?

On its surface, the SXSW Trade Show is full of the kinds of marketing I declared boring in the introduction to my event coverage. Hungry marketers roam the floor seeking attention and venture capital. Oh, I filled up a couple bags with swag, from t-shirts to buttons, but I won’t bore you by recounting my haul. Instead, I’ll focus on a handful of exhibitors at the trade show doing a little more.