We started with looking at racialization - but we are also finding so many located, contextual offline practices that are being recoded online…nothing new really (others have written about how this happens in various cultural venues) - but its in the way they are being (re)done in online worlds such as secondlife that is interesting. These are practices based in marketing, trading and global exchange of material (whether fabric or hair) needed to “build” identities (even offline - for centuries) in relation to currently existing hierarchies of appearance…. (”fashion” if you like - but more on that some other time).

C, C and I are now looking at some of this in relation to Race and Technology in Sims and in SL - I need to go back and try WoW I suppose…

of course the key is - when the examination shifts from re-presentation and text to practices what happens (and I have written about this before in relation to other sites … …)

On another note…

sometimes an alt that no one recognizes is the only way to get work done - I wish I could have a few of those in RL… sigh