Three Dead Anarchists of Philadelphia, and Why I stalk Them: a talk about the place of local history in today’s struggle

  • January 28, 2016 11:03 am

from facebook

For over 25 years, Robert Helms has researched anarchism’s “golden age” in Philadelphia. Working as an independent scholar, Helms has uncovered nearly all of what is known about two leading women anarchists who were active between 1889 and 1917, Natasha Notkin and Mary Hansen, and many important facts and texts by the well-known anarchist public intellectual Voltairine de Cleyre. Helms’ talk will describe the major events and activities of the anarchist milieu in Philadelphia during this period. Focusing on the lifetime commitments and sacrifices made for the cause by these three women, and how their personalities and the circumstances of their lives informed their radicalism, Helms will address the question of why local historical research is critical to our struggles to create a just and happy world.

He will discuss his methodology for conducting research, as well as the intense thrill a researcher has when they are the only person on earth who knows an amazing, true story of long-dead anarchists. We hope this event will spark discussion about how people can conduct this kind of research in their own communities, the best ways to share the histories and generate future workshops on research in the New York area.

[February 4th at Interference Archive 131 8th St, Brooklyn, NY]

we r fans of anarchy, but not prisons: a report back on the jan 22 noise demo for transes in prison

  • January 26, 2016 11:24 pm

Submission

we r fans of anarchy, but not prisons: a report back on the jan 22 noise demo for transes in prison

～(￣△￣～)

“Bandana on yea
I’m bout to thug it out
if a hater talking shit
go head and stomp em out
if you got a problem we can settle it tonight
meet me outside you ain’t bout that life”
-TT the Artist

♪(┌・。・)┌

In lieu of a solemn march we got turnt to club music outside the Federal Detention Center in downtown Philly. A bunch of freaky looking transes & queers danced around, some femmes without hats had their hair freeze to their head because there was no hat and it was snowing hard as shit. The confused COs got their feels hurt because we commented on their appearance; for example one mean bitch yelled “i shaved my dogs butt and taught him to walk backwards and he literally looks better than you”. Other COs milled in an out as we chanted shit like “QUIT YOUR JOB/SLIP AND FALL” and “U-G-L-Y YOU AINT GOT NO ALIBI YOU UGLY YEAH YEAH YOU UGLY”, their feelings visibly hurt and we assume most of them quit that night, and by milled in and out we mean they hurried off all quick cause we clearly made them nervous. The music was really good by the way, a couple cheap-ass speakers in plastic bags kept the morale up and totally stayed dry too! Someone said the prisoners were jamming cause they flicked lights and slammed windows to the beat, TURN UP! We were out there for mad long, like hours, and probably the prisoners hands were way tired from flicking so much lights & wailing on the windows the whole time

(╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻

here’s an itemized list of choice “rowdy” moments:
*a giant banner that features a unicorn stabbing a police thru the heart (they got hearts?) reminding us that “ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE”
*some people spray painted anti-prison slogans in bright purple on the snow face the prison
*parking lot signs and black flags turned into drums and drumsticks respectively
*the prison got a snowball makeover
*some cruisers had their detailing updated with new slogans including such favorites as “ACAB” “quit your job” & “you suck”
*when a cop finally pulled up and rolled down their window one person shouted “NO YOU CAN’T HAVE MY NUMBER’ while others behind drowned him out loudly yelling EWWWWWWWWWW until he finally gave up and drove away.
*later another cruiser pulled up to ask “what are you protesting?” which was answered: “Your bad breath” by one tall girl, then when the officer tried to intimidate her she turned away and laughed

ヽ(⌐■_■)ノ♪♬

This is the second year in a row that there’s been a noise demo at the Federal Detention Center in January, last year’s was for New Years Eve. The demo was almost entirely un-policed cause the cops were too cold to come out and be annoying, probably due to the fact that it was a TOTAL FUCKING BLIZZARD and we got that fire in our hearts (lol jk). Also a snowplow crashed into the front of the prison and everyone busted out, in solidarity. We hope we looked cute wilding out and having fun out front for the people inside because what is solidarity really?

♡*(•‧̫•⑅)♡⋆*ೃ:.✧

Any chant is the right chant if you’re sassy and mean enough,
until every CO gets “sick” and dies
until the last cop is deafened by an airhorn
weaponize your hormones, mood swing some oppressors to death?

(ﾒ｀ﾛ´)/ some absurdist tall girls with t-shirts on their heads and malice up their butts ψ(*｀ー´)ψ

PS: The other banners said “REVENGE” and “DESTROY CIS-IETY” because that’s how we feel too.

Philly residents are throwing snowballs at television reporters

  • January 23, 2016 2:11 pm

from mainstream media

While the tired, old adage of how Eagles fans threw snowballs at Santa Claus is annoying and overused by the national media when talking about the “personality” of Philadelphians, it is worth mentioning considering what’s happening to television reporters during their coverage of Saturday’s blizzard.

TV news reporters are getting hit with snowballs while reporting on the winter weather.

From #BlackLivesMatter to Black Liberation

  • January 21, 2016 3:24 pm

from facebook

For most of US history, the police have used violence against African Americans with impunity—but after the murder of unarmed teenager Mike Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, mass protests erupted to challenge that impunity. In the process, a new generation of Black activists has come to question the old methods of struggle, puncture the Obama-era illusion of a “postracial” United States, and declare without apology that #BlackLivesMatter.

In this stirring and insightful analysis, activist and scholar Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor surveys the history and current realities of US racism. Taylor examines how institutional racism has created and shaped the structural problems that affect Black people, such as mass incarceration and unemployment, even as more Black people hold political office than ever before. She paints a vivid picture of the context for this new struggle against police violence—and shows the potential of the Black Lives Matter movement to reignite and broaden the struggle for liberation.

[January 28 at 7pm at Friends Center 1501 Cherry St]

Make Noise Till Every Cage Is Empty

  • January 15, 2016 5:40 am

from Instagram

Make Noise Till Every Cage Is Empty

On Jan 22nd stand is solidarity with trans prisoners everywhere, with all prisoners here. Let them hear. They are not forgotten.

no racism, classism, sexism, homophobia, transphobie, peace police, or other bullshit.

come to support criminals and queers to destroy the society that criminalizes them
… and the prison system it maintains.

January 22nd, 9pm
Gather at Franklin Sq.
March to 7th and Arch
*bring noisemakers*

Philly letter writing night for Trans Prisoners Day of Action

  • January 15, 2016 5:36 am

from facebook

January 22, 2016 will be the first annual Trans Prisoner Day of Action: an international day of action in solidarity with trans prisoners.
More info @ International Day of Trans Prisoner Solidarity / www.transprisoners.net

In Philly we will be holding space for a letting writing night/event jawn, centered on trans prisoners in PA. Information about specific prisoners, and their struggles inside, will be provided. Art materials and postage will also be provided.
Please come though and:

– Send a letter/art to someone (it is lonely and any letter/art is appreciated)
– Learn about a specific trans person on the inside.
– Start a new pen pal relationship.
– Write another letter to an existing pen pal you have.
– Talk with others about your experience supporting trans people on the inside.
– Eat food (West Philly Food Not Bombs! will be on deck)
– Meet other people and talk about projects we’re involved in.

The Up Against the Law Legal Collective will be doing a know your rights training and providing tips on staying safe(r) in the streets as we move to abolish the institutions that cage our friends.

Email event organizers to get involved or suggest materials/zines to share:
cass: cass.struggle@gmail.com / Brynn Cassidy West
Letha: l.muthkimball@gmail.com / not on fb
(it’s best to email us both)

[January 22 from 4 to 8pm at A-Space 4722 Baltimore Ave]

The ZAD: an anti-capitalist occupation in France

  • January 8, 2016 1:04 pm

from Facebook

The ZAD is a large scale land occupation near Notre-Dame-des-Landes, France. It was squatted in 2009 at the invitation of local citizen and farming associations, who had been resisting the imposition of an airport, highway, high speed train, and tram line since 1972. Since then, the anti-airport movement has depassed traditional limitations of “issue-based struggles” with a strong critique of capitalist and hierarchical systems (including and especially the State), and links and shared projects with a wide diversity of people, to the point where the divisions between squatter, farmer, punk, local… have become blurred.

After a massive police operation in 2012, “Operation Cesar”, this zone of 8 miles square has been free of State intervention, and has become known as a “zone outside the law”. We have (re)created our own infrastructures and are autonomous in many ways. Some things work less well, like conflict resolution, but overall the occupation is settled into the territory and is planning for the long term, together with the “locals” and “farmers” involved in the struggle and those living close by.

In this talk hosted by someone who lives on the ZAD, there will be a bit of history and context on the land, information about various projects, a discussion of what’s going on now, on the occupiers’ side and also on the government’s side, and the state of emergency.

Read more about it in this zine, Against the Airport and Its World: https://ia800507.us.archive.org/27/items/anarchomex2011/Againsttheairport-print.pdf

This event is free and handicap-accessilbe, (though the bathroom is not very accessible.)

[January 15 at 7pm at Wooden Shoe Books 704 South St]

Reclaiming Our Future: The Black Radical Tradition In Our Time

  • January 1, 2016 9:03 pm

from facebook

On January 8th -10th, the Black Radical Organizing Collective (BROC) including grassroots activists, organizers, educators, scholars, and faith leaders will convene a conference on the Black radical tradition. The title of the conference is “Reclaiming our Future: the Black Radical Tradition In Our Time.” The conference will take place in North Central Philadelphia on the main campus of Temple University.

The mission of the conference is twofold. First, we wish to celebrate and illuminate the history of the Black radical tradition. Second, we wish to highlight the vital importance of today’s Black radical movements as we look to the future. The Black radical tradition represents a wealth of theoretical and practical wisdom. It is this rich heritage, combined with a forward-looking perspective that we wish to display at Temple University. Like critical perspectives throughout US academia, the Black radical tradition suffers at Temple. Radical approaches, traditions, and voices at America’s “imperial” universities face an onslaught of neoliberal policies which weaken students, faculty, and surrounding communities. In response to these circumstances, we seek to promote onsite critical analysis and collaborative solidarity among activists of today’s Black radical movements and those of previous generations.