Our Vision
Many are wondering where Occupy Oakland will go next. There is a palpable feeling of impatience in the air as one of the most notoriously radical cities in the country grapples with how to maintain the enormous momentum for change that emerged last fall. The message was clear - WE ARE HUNGRY FOR CHANGE - but which path we will travel to manifest that change remains to be seen.
As Oaklanders who have been deeply involved in OO, we have found solace in the words of the legendary 97-year-old activist and founder of Detroit Summer, Grace Lee Boggs:
"Rebellions are important because they represent the standing up of the oppressed. Rebellions break the threads that have been holding the system together. But rebels see themselves and call on others to see them mainly as victims. They do not see themselves as responsible for reorganizing society, which is what the revolutionary must do. Activists transform and empower themselves when they struggle to change their reality by exploring, in theory and practice, the potentially revolutionary social forces of Work, Education, Community, Citizenship, Patriotism, Health, Justice, and Democracy."
This is the work we yearn to do. We are a dynamic couple who are interested in pursuing Dr. King's "Beloved Community" by putting the methods that are turning Detroit from a city of blight into a City of Hope into action right here in Oakland. We are life-long activists and writers who became friends in college and co-founded a student diversity group and we've been making waves ever since. Here's a bit more about us:
- Tai Amri is the co-pastor of a socially progressive church and is a champion of children's rights as a teacher in East Oakland
- Michelle is a poet who runs a working class poetry series and works at a disability rights org in the Bay Area where she is an active union member
- Both are excellent communicators who have done a great deal of community organizing and who work collaboratively to live lives of engaged service
- Both have had their minds literally blown open by the work of Grace Lee Boggs, and her book The Next American Revolution: Susatinable Activism for the 21st Century, and they are eager to work with her this summer and to bring what they learn back to share with all Oaklanders
What We Need & What You Get
While the program, itself, is free of charge, let's be real: taking two weeks off of work is taxing when you live on an extremely modest salary to begin with. Add to that the cost of travelling to Detroit and you can see why we need the community behind us to make this happen. We are not asking for anything beyond travel expenses and lost wages. We simply need to break even if we are to make this happen.
In exchange for your support, we have several exciting perks to sweeten the pot. See the sidebar to check out the ways we intend to thank you for your contributions.
The Impact
By supporting our campaign you will be empowering two already effective activists to act as liasions who will study and then share the revolutionary practices that are being used in Detroit to create urban gardens, alternative work and educational paradigms, and violence reduction models with the rest of Oakland.
The violent destruction of the Occupy Oakland encampment last fall awakened much of the nation to the depths of state repression and police brutality that are our current American reality. It is up to us to make sure that the rebellion we began last fall can grow into a full-fledged r[evol]ution capable of re-imagining what it can mean to live human lives. Afterall, "We are the leaders we have been looking for."--Grace Lee Boggs
Other Ways You Can Help
If you absolutely can't find it in your pocketbook to donate, we would certainly appreciate you taking the time to blast all your people with word of our campaign via Facebook, Twitter, email, or any other variety of communication that you may have at your disposal. Thank you for giving a damn.
