C/P from a comrade who took the time to type this up. Relevant links at the end of post.
Did you know that you can be political more than one day a year? That there are things happening in your community every single day that YOU can contribute to?
Like helping donate to one of our amazing comrades, Laura, who is battling lymphoma and has devoted her life to political organizing and Food Not Bombs. Or donating to Philadelphia’s revolutionary elders Debbie and Michael Africa who are finally out of prison and reunited with each other and their child after 40 years? They had a bomb dropped on them BY former Philadelphia Mayor Wilson Goode and arrested. Debbie gave birth in a jail cell and was able to spend three days with her baby. You could also donate to Philadelphia Anti-Repression Fund that provides resources for people in Philadelphia fighting against racism, cisheterosexism, and all other forms of control and exploitation.
You could become a volunteer with Juntos, Philadelphia’s largest community-led, Latinx immigrant organization in South Philadelphia fighting for our human rights as workers, parents, youth, and immigrants. Become a clinic escort at Philadelphia Women’s Center or the Elizabeth Blackwell Center. Philadelphia has 4 Food Not Bombs Chapters- North (Saturdays at Aviator Park), South (Tuesdays at 6pm at Mifflin Park) West (Thursdays at 6pm at 46th and Market stop) and Solidarity (anti-capitalist events).
You can join the National Lawyers Guild to use the law FOR the people. Join a union such as Philadelphia Tenants Union dedicated to getting every renter safe, decent and affordable housing or the IWW that is dedicated to organizing the workplace for the interest of the workers- not bosses and executives.
Defend your community by joining the GDC which through organization, action and out-reach builds a self-organized working class that treats differences as strengths and opportunities to live in solidarity. The Socialist Rifle Association that promotes the right of the working class to possess firearms to the ability to be well versed in the fields of medicine, disaster relief, logistics, agriculture, and survival skills.
Or show-up to stand against people that intend to destroy immigrant communities, LBGT communities, Communities of Color. You can do that on November 17th when the Proud Boys are showing up at Washington Square Park.
TLDR; Stop fetishizing voting and stop vote- shaming because most of you ONLY show up to vote and are complicit in allowing lawmakers to destroy our communities after you elect them and fail to hold them accountable for their actions.
Edit: If none of these things are accessible to you you can join ADAPT (who are some of the most badass people I’ve ever met) who fight for the independence that people with disabilities face. Or you can join call in campaigns- such as the call in campaign to Governor Wolf for DOC censorship of incarcerated peoples.
Links:
https://www.gofundme.com/help-debbie-amp-mike-rebuild
https://www.gofundme.com/laura-vs-lymphoma
http://vamosjuntos.org/volunteer/ https://phillyantirepression.wordpress.com/
https://thewomenscenters.com/philadelphiawomenscenter/
http://phillyiww.org/
http://phillytenantsunion.org/get-involved/
https://www.nlg.org/join/
https://www.facebook.com/events/171281213803986/
Friendly Fire Collective 