We try to post enough information in the Dispatch and on the Facebook page that people who want to help can do so in a fairly self-directed manner.We will have Zoom meeting set up for people who want to help with the project Watch the Facebook page for those or as we have mentioned a few times in past Dispatches, join the Samepage. There's even a New Members Start here page to help you get acclimated to how it works.
I think people are caught off guard by how quiet we are. I tried to keep things as low-key as possible over the holidays because we are not some non-profit who constantly has to fundraise or pester people. I worry about you all. We are not here to add to anyone's stress. And do you know what? Enough help came in to cover what we we needed to keep the projects going without us having to bug people. A small group of us still had our bartering session,and we had a good preliminary garden planning session.
December's newsletter is going to to be pretty to the point, because it's a busy month around our household - lots of birthdays and winter holidays. As some of you might recall, last December we hosted a fun holiday event that ended with bartering some things we make. We have a very talented community.
Our ICMA foods projects are worthwhile and important, but we also need to remember that we organized because we know that people whose needs are not being met, are not able to actively participate in activism.
Not everyone in the group is involved in every project. Any member can bring an idea for a project to the collective and ask other people to help them bring it to fruition, but members aren't obligated to help with things that don't appeal to them...
A grassroots "food for the people" initiative has to dig deeper and look at what we need to create food security in our community. ICMA believes we need three groups of people to make this happen...
Think about how disempowering it is to purchase things FOR people instead of allowing them choices. This type of non-profit nannying undermines individuals' self-determination and autonomy..
Right now we still sending out lunches to our unhoused neighbors and are offering hot meals people impacted by the storm, for pick-up after 5:30pm. If you have any other needs text us and we will see what we can do..
Over the course of the next couple of months the outreach goal is for the group to really dig into what the term “solidarity not charity” means. One of the best ways to do that is to first explain some differences between mutual aid groups and traditional non-profits and social service programs.
