Over Fall break, we met to work on understanding how to best engage with members of our major/school.
Liberalism, Ultra Leftism, and Mass Action Reading:
We discussed a speech given by a leading member of the Socialist Workers Party. It describes orientations that are presented to us concerning what to do next in reaction to power imbalances within the system.
Liberalism is described as those who look to the ruling class to try to make an impact.
Ultra Leftists believe leaving the system is enough to enact change. We looked at an example of a student from Kent State after the student riots, that because there was no change within the ruling class when violence broke out it would be more effective to stop. This belief comes from not understanding the existence of ‘class struggle, a class relationship of forces’.
The last orientation is independent mass action, actions that are proposed aren’t for the people but for those who are already radicalized. We connected this to the difference between occupying a building when a handful of people are involved vs hundreds and the community at large. Mass actions are more effective when we plan together, it makes the entire operation stronger.
1-on-1 Training:
We discussed the importance of gaining solidarity with the entire student body, emphasizing the importance of understanding one’s individual struggle. By being able to recognize their struggle we can have stronger power to recognize and fight for what our people need.
Having a 1-on-1 allows for you to gain an understanding of where one is in the fight for liberation. It is important to facilitate trust and confidence because we have the ability to make change together. It is your job to go out of your way to reach out to someone, this lets you share the issues we are already facing, and then listen to how they navigate/perceive these issues as well as their own. Having a personal connection facilitates the type of community we are trying to build!
State your purpose going into the conversation
Get to know the person and how their struggles/interests align with our student union work
Based on what you gather think of what is an appropriate ask for this person, they might have the capacity to be more or less involved
Have some facts ISSUES DOC in your mind to solidify the inequity that is happening in our school community
Have a clear ask. Depending on what you gather from your meeting, have something more you want this person to do. It could be sending a survey around their major, attending a rally, reading an article, coming to a meeting to learn more, etc. But make sure you understand their capacity to participate.
Classrooms aren’t the place to facilitate organizing, you can look to people who might be interested in our cause, but we need to reach further out to them to make a connection
We need students to have confidence in helping themselves and that permanent change is possible!