Doing Something About It: An Opportunity for Readers in Southern New England
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As I have stated on occasion, talking about Trump on this site or anywhere on the internet is worthless in creating change. Frankly, the internet has been a disaster for humanity generally and some of that is siphoning off real activism for people doomscrolling and then talking to people who only believe the exact same things they do and damning anyone with different opinions, a plague upon this comment section as well as everywhere else on the internet. Meanwhile, last night I was at an event about the Butler Hospital strike in Rhode Island this summer, which was an epic struggle against a pure evil company and part of the discussion was uniting workers whose politics range from the far left to hardcore Trumpers around these issues. You know what doesn’t do that? Shit talking on the internet.
Well, in any case, none of this does anything for anyone. It doesn’t stop Trump and it doesn’t prepare you to do the first thing about it. What does is getting together with real life people and figuring it out. Building power in your own community is not going to stop Trump either, but it is the first step to rebuilding this nation and provides you the best protection you are possibly going to have if the fascists come for you.
As such, I’ve been organizing a labor teach-in at my employer, the University of Rhode Island, that will be on Saturday, October 4 from 9-3. It will feature plenary talks from Rhode Island Secretary of State Gregg Amore and Rhode Island AFL-CIO president Patrick Crowley. It will also feature two sessions of breakout panels. In the first, we will a training panel by two union organizers called “Building Our Power, Using Our Power: How We Make our Jobs and Our World. Better through Solidarity,” as well as sessions on “Self-Care in Times of Crisis,” and “Historical Resistance to Oppression.” I will be moderating the last one; rather than listen to me yammer on, I’ve invited two of my amazing colleagues and a historian friend from a different school to talk. The second set of breakouts including another training called “Using One-on-One Conversations to Grow Membership, Identify Issues, and Build Power,” as well as sessions on “Academic Unionism in New England” and “Defending Immigrants on Campus and at the Workplace,” which includes some of our state’s great immigrant rights groups.
If you are in the area, you should attend. It will be a hell of a lot more useful than spending time online. We also will have lunch for those who register and childcare for those who need it. This is all been a lot of work for me, but at least I’m doing something to move forward the building of power in my own communities. Everyone who reads this blog needs to get away from the computer and do something in your own community to build up power and resistance. It’s the only way forward.
In other news, I have a book talk tomorrow on Organizing America at the National Education Association-Rhode Island building in Cranston at 6:30. Come on out if you are in the area. There will be pizza and me gesticulating a lot.