Active Voice Lab (AV Lab)

Background and Funding

AV Lab is a project of Community Initiatives and is funded by several left-of-center nonprofits including the MacArthur Foundation and Ford Foundation. ³

Advocacy

Immigration

Active Voice Lab argues that certain immigration policies within the United States stem from “underlying issues, like racism, [xenophobia], or class privilege.” ⁴ AV Lab claims to be working with the Ford Foundation to advocate for left-of-center immigration policy reform to “protect the rights of future immigrants.” ^{5 6}

LGBT Issues

Active Voice Lab has been involved in the development of several films to promote LGBT outreach and LGBT-related topics. Out in the Silence advocates for expanding LGBT outreach to rural communities in the United States, ⁷ Shelby Knox Redux criticizes religious communities that oppose same-sex marriage, ⁸ and The New Black documents different perspectives of Marylanders regarding the same-sex marriage referendum held during the 2012 election. ⁹ For The New Black, AV Lab partnered with the Ford Foundation, National Black Justice Coalition, Human Rights Watch, and the NAACP. ^{9 10}

Criminal Justice

Active Voice Lab has worked with several organizations including the Ford Foundation, the Constitution Project, and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) to advocate for left-of-center criminal justice policy. ¹¹ In 2012, AV Lab worked with the U.S Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Community Relations Service (CRS) to address “community conflicts and tensions that arise from differences of race, color, religion, and national origin.” ¹²

American Muslim Community

Active Voice Lab (AV Lab) helped develop Welcome to Shelbyville, which documented citizens from Shelbyville, Tennessee on Somali refugees moving to their town following the 2008 economic recession. ¹³ AV Lab partnered with immigration advocacy groups in developing the documentary including the Migration Policy Institute, Unbound Philanthropy, and the Fledgling Fund. ¹⁴ AV Lab also helped develop the documentary New Muslim Cool which covered a New York drug dealer and his conversion to Islam and later teaching Islam to at-risk youth in the region. ^{15 16}