[Tsa] Fwd: COALITION BUILDING MEETING

[Joshua Kenneth Truitt]

----- Forwarded message from Michael Erick Boles-Friscia <mieb06 at hampshire.edu>
-----
    Date: Sun, 24 Feb 2008 19:05:12 -0500
    From: Michael Erick Boles-Friscia <mieb06 at hampshire.edu>
Reply-To: Michael Erick Boles-Friscia <mieb06 at hampshire.edu>
 Subject: COALITION BUILDING MEETING
      To: hampsigners at lists.hampshire.edu

Hello Hampshire students,

Its time for all of us to step up. there are many organizations active on campus
working on various social justice issues, and while each is valuable in changing
our community and this institution, we have the opportunity to create tangible,
lasting change by acting in solidarity. it is time to for student groups to
come together -  with our pooled ideas, actions, and resources we CAN (and
must) affect change here.

IF YOU ARE A SIGNER, MEMBER OF A LISTSERVE, OR JUST A STUDENT CONCERNED ABOUT
THE HEALTH AND SAFETY OF THIS CAMPUS, PLEASE FORWARD THIS EMAIL WIDELY.

We need to continue meeting to discuss these issues and plan action. THE NEXT
COALITION MEETING WILL BE HELD TUESDAY, MARCH 4TH @ 7PM IN THE FPH FACULTY
LOUNGE (just after the CLPP meeting).

Tuesday (feb 19th) night a group of students met in FPH to discuss and plan
strategic actions to respond to both "isolated" incidents and systemic
oppression in the Hampshire community. Below is a list outlining the ideas we
came up with. If you would like to get involved in any of these plans or others
related to these goal please e-mail me and I'll take down your contact
information for future meetings.

Our goals broke down into four main categories:

1. Consequences/responses/protocol for individual incidents that violate
community norms
2. Specific responses to the recent Facebook group, the Hampshire
Reservation System
3. Multiple and general consciousness-raising efforts
4. Strengthening student groups

Our list of ideas is loose and follows the chronology of the meeting:

1. Take over the Magic Board -- must be event related / $5 per day
2. Doing more with Disorientation Guide -- displays, promotion, discussion
3. Institutionalized protocol for students violating community norms  --
disciplinary actions? fishbowls? meeting with HRS students? **must not
conflate education with punishment**, possible loss of student signer/housing
lottery privileges, three strikes you're out/zero tolerance (pros, cons)

**it is important to check ourselves in how we approach both individuals and the
larger community around these "incidents" - or symptoms of systematic oppression
at hampshire. we need to make sure we don't attack and alienate the very people
we are trying to open up dialogue with. when these incidents do arise there is
a tendency to lecture, attack, and preach in the academic anti-oppression
jargon, which can be inaccessible and ineffective. we need to discuss ways to
avoid this tendency and come up with more effective ways of addressing these
issues and educating the community safely.**

4. Budget/timeline/official proposal for this group
5. take from ARC action on Valentine's/Holmquist report day and plan more
similar actions, general education of the community on history, issues,
definitions, etc.
6. coalition building / allies network: - zine for signers, allied groups,
support networks for immediate responses to violent incidents, *what is an
ally?* (community needs better definition)
7. outreach idea from the white allies group last spring (on posters) "has
someone called you a racist, but you weren't sure why? come to our group" --
general education (from allies) -- business cards to direct people to more
productive conversations
8. Work with Community Partnerships for Social Change
9. How to reach signers? Use Hampedia, signers zine, word of mouth to
build a network
10. "(how to be an?) Ally Day" (in the style of cut-out appropriation day
discussion that happened last year) some kind of large event for networking
among groups for education for larger community - celebration of social justice
student groups - each holding workshops on their own speciality? coordinated,
sustainable annual event?
11. sustainability for student groups -- training within the group for next
year's signers, keeping groups in check for
drama/welcoming/exclusion/relationships to other groups/use of spaces, how
to avoid burn-out/exhaustion
12. is hampshire truly a safe space?
13. CLPP support?

want to discuss these issues? have other ideas? everyone is welcome - come to
listen and be heard!

----- End forwarded message -----