do not underestimate the power of community gardening.
It is a gateway to community organising.
It brings people together for a common purpose, that is also physically & mentally healing (cf ecotherapy), produces tangible results of effort, gets people used to sharing resources, creates a location where people feel welcome, calm, useful, able to get invested.
Gardens aren't the thing for everyone, which is why we ALSO need to have
community repair shops: where folks can come and fix stuff, share skills & resources, help each other out
community parties: where people can have cheap, accessible fun (whether that's a potluck, street party or ceilidh, invite your neighbours ffs)
community sport - football gets people used to showing up and working as a team, creates cameraderie
Not because growing food, fixing stuff, cooking or partying will save us, but because of what you talk about WHILE you're doing this stuff. Ever been in a room where people are cooking together, when someone brings up government policy?
All of these are meeting community needs, and creating social spaces around them.
If the only reason you're meeting up is to organise The Resistance|TM|, you end up with maybe one or two good actions, along with burnout, disengagement, echo chambers and collapse. That's not a movement.
Community Gardening et. al. set the preconditions for mutual aid, and when people show up in these spaces, make a point of talking about politics and the struggles people are facing locally, then solidarity is much easier.
Meeting each others needs makes it easier to organise a group to call their representatives, paint banners, agitate for change, unionised, riot etc.
TL;DR: your local community garden is a breeding ground for resistance. Get down there.
dailybridgerton
discoholicmusic
janainaart
gummygunk
yousharknotpass
