Blog: organising

We Need More Honest Reflections About How We Organise

2022-01-23 by nerd teacher

There has been a world full of problems that has created a number of people who, new to organising, have wanted to find ways to make a difference. This is fantastic, but it’s also so incredibly daunting. A lot of people want to know what it is that they can do, where they can start, how they can do something (especially when they already have little material resources to give). They’re seeking concrete answers that will demonstrably and provably work, which many of us are uncomfortable providing (particularly if we're aligned with many anarchic and anti-State values).

Unfortunately, it’s also created a world full of grifters, but I’m going to pay them little attention this time around. This isn’t about them; this isn’t for them. They can find attention elsewhere as they continue pretending they provide anything of value. I’m going to continue ignoring their outrage farming as much as I can. Read more…

We Need More Space for Pedagogy in Our Movements

2021-03-26 by nerd teacher

Union trainings, for whatever reason, are spectacularly dull. I can’t be the only person who no longer wants to attend workshops, seminars, or trainings where people just rattle off a lecture to participants and tell them what to do and how to do it. I’m tired of being part of anything where group discussions aren’t seen as important, participant experiences are overlooked, and the people “leading” the events completely dismiss or invalidate the needs of the participants.

I wish I could say that the pandemic has been the biggest problem, but every single union training I’ve participated in has looked the same. There’s a PowerPoint lecture broadcasting all the information of the union, resources aren’t provided ahead of time (despite requests), and it’s very rare to hear more than one voice for the entire duration. Group conversations are seen as an afterthought, and very few of the activities are even planned ahead of time. The only difference the pandemic has made is that all of that has been moved online, making an already ineffective method of teaching worse.

Accessibility requirements of the participants go neglected. Even if you make requests ahead of time or ask for accommodations when you register, they still go ignored because it’s “just not possible.” Disabled people are still far more responsible for our own inclusion in these programs, being forced to explain to the organisers why their methods aren’t working for us. When we try to point this out (in the politest of ways), the organisers are generally hostile to us. Read more…