Surviving Capitalism (Not) : Building common cause for social movement events

We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Thursday, February 4, 2016

Building common cause for social movement events

Click here to access article by David Spratt and David McKnight from Climate Code Red (Australia).

Based on several decades of experience our Australian activist friends share with us what they have learned about organizing for a mass demonstration.

Here we reflect on some understandings from participating in the organising of such events over several decades, including peace and anti-war movements, for human rights and social and economic justice, in support of liberation struggles, and in the successful November 2015 People's Climate Marches. Some of these learnings may seem obvious, but that does not stop them from being overlooked. This list is far from comprehensive!