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Progressive causes don't just happen on their own. They take work. They take effort. They require people. You can't sit by, hope the poo poo people in the world will just go away somehow and have things improve by magic. Donald Trump and the GOP MUST be fought. UKIP and The Tories MUST be fought. Marine le Pen and the National Front MUST be fought. The Golden Dawn MUST be fought. etc etc These people are poo poo. The people want power. In many cases they already have it. They people want to gently caress you over and they are not going to go away. If we want the world to be a better place we have to fight for it and this is thread is to facilitate and share how best to do that. THIS THREAD IS FOR: Sharing stories about the fight for progressive politics and encouraging others to get involved in the fight for the same. Posting details on upcoming policy you think people should support. Posting information on how to join and aid your local political parties that are trying to enact worthy causes. Sharing links and donation information for human rights charities and other such organisations. Sharing information about protests and rallies against injustices being committed and how you can support them. THREAD RULES America is not the only country in the world. I recognise the majority of Goons are American and American issues are going to dominate but this is a thread for promoting Leftism wherever you live. Not just America. No dogpiling or shouting someone down because they want to talk about their own country. Progress is Progress:Anything we can get is a good thing. If someone is helping then they're helping. No bitching how they're not going far enough, how they're not true leftists or how anything short of "Full Communism Now" is failure. This thread is about what we can do moving forward: This thread is not for arguing about the past and what may have been. Not one loving word about how "It should have been Bernie" or whatever. Hindsight is 20/20. ACCELERATIONISM IS BULLSHIT. KINDLY gently caress THE HELL OFF IF YOU EVEN WANT TO HINT AT IT To get everyone started here's an excellent video about getting in touch with your local representatives: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KXXYkLa-HHI LINKS Amnesty International, a universal human rights campaign group: https://www.amnesty.org/en/ Anti Fascism Network, self explanatory https://antifascistnetwork.org/ America Based American Civil Liberties Union, a federal advocacy organisation focused primarily on challenging unjust laws in court: https://www.aclu.org/ Southern Poverty Law Center, a group dedicated to identifying and fighting hate crimes: https://www.splcenter.org Democratic Socialists of America, a group promoting grassroots organisation of the political left in America: https://dsausa.nationbuilder.com/join encuentro 5, a collaboration of several groups in Boston, Massachusetts that that are fighting for numerous causes at home and abroad: http://encuentro5.org/home/node/9 Socialist Alternative, a group that focuses heavily on protest organisation http://www.socialistalternative.org/ Information On staying safe while protesting: http://www.crimethinc.com/blog/2014/08/14/staying-safe-in-the-streets/ On dealing with tear gas: https://www.patreon.com/posts/quick-and-dirty-6057497 This list will be updated as the thread progresses. STANDING ROCK PROTESTS This is an ongoing protest by Native Americans and allied environmentalist groups against the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline. The US Government and various oil companies are attempting to force the construction of this pipeline across the ancestral land of the Lakota people, most importantly across a river which serves as the primary water source for those still living there. They fear contamination of such a vital resource and are rightfully pissed off at having what little they still have left being run roughshod over. http://sacredstonecamp.org/supply-list/ This link includes information on what supplies they need to continue their protest along with where and how to send them. EDIT: Since it was suggested that the following excellent advice is against the spirit of the OP I've decided to add it here to prevent any further such misgivings. https://twitter.com/HarryGiles/status/796254688622604289 https://twitter.com/HarryGiles/status/796254860513603587 https://twitter.com/HarryGiles/status/796255194015289344 https://twitter.com/HarryGiles/status/796255505933094912 https://twitter.com/HarryGiles/status/796255828525387776 https://twitter.com/HarryGiles/status/796256180108660736 https://twitter.com/HarryGiles/status/796256714882510848 https://twitter.com/HarryGiles/status/796256881626976256 https://twitter.com/HarryGiles/status/796257368229249024 https://twitter.com/HarryGiles/status/796257617324675072 Captain Fargle fucked around with this message at 18:33 on Nov 15, 2016 |
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Nov 14, 2016 21:17
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Kekekela posted:Hey cool, was hoping we'd have a thread like this. My wife and I are both pretty involved in the local Democratic groups, but I feel like we've got to get a whole lot better at turning some folks blue in our county. Do you have any stories about it that you want to share?
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Nov 14, 2016 21:47
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Angry_Ed posted:It turns out when you take for granted the belief that people would take one look at Trump and go "oh goodness no", you start to realize you might have to do more. There is always more to be done. Even if your state is the bluest of the blue. Especially right now with the sheer disaster that is Trump. Your state is going to need help pushing back against him and getting through this with as little damage as possible. Climate change is a real and present threat too. Trump being elected seems like it's only going to make that worse. Boston is a coastal city. See if you can get involved in building defenses against rising sea levels. See if there's any charities you can get involved in that help Americans with healthcare issues maybe? Push for lighter criminal sentencing for misdemeanour offences. Is weed legal in Massachusetts? You could try pushing for that. There's a lot of things to do even in blue country.
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Nov 14, 2016 22:19
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" and not offering real suggestions or solutions, while also denigrating the people who honestly tried to offer real solutions or ideas for a way forward.
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Torquemadras posted:This is a great thread idea. If anything, this disastrous election seemed to have served as a sort of wake-up call for the left... Given what I know about German politics I'd suggest googling for groups that fighting to protect refugee rights in the country. Gay people also don't have full marriage or adoption rights in Germany and I'd suggest joining up with people who will pressure Chancellor Merkel's coalition towards granting it.
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Nov 14, 2016 23:06
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For Americans: http://www.glyphgryph.com/index.html Here's a link made by another goon from CSPAM about how to get involved in the selecting of the new DNC chairperson and making sure they don't repeat the mistakes of Hillary Clinton.
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Nov 15, 2016 00:50
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Thank you for the effort post Toph. I've updated the OP with more links from everyone. EDIT: Taken from Twitter. Pointers for Americans, particularly Jews, who are trying to stop Steve Bannon:  It was accompanied with advice to call congress using their direct number and to avoid using an 800 number as it redirects to a switchboard. I'd encourage everyone reading this to please take some time and go through this. Bannon is one of the absolutely worst things going on with Trump and the more you speak up the harder it's going to be for him to do anything. Captain Fargle fucked around with this message at 06:28 on Nov 15, 2016 |
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Nov 15, 2016 06:19
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Roland Jones posted:What value is there in local third parties currently? Not "let's run a useless candidate every four years and do nothing else" third parties, but ones that, in theory, actually do things? I was talking about getting involved in local politics and someone recommended I start a local Peace and Freedom Party group (there isn't one in the Fresno area yet apparently), but given the current situation I'm thinking just joining the local Democrats and trying to pull things further left would be more successful and worthwhile. Is there any reason to do the former instead? It seems like it'd be a lot more effort, what with having to build from the ground up for the most part, for questionable benefit. Pulling the Democrats further left now, as they're rebuilding after Hillary, is going to be infinitely more effective and useful than any third party advocacy you do in the current American political situation.
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Nov 15, 2016 07:41
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Dr. Arbitrary posted:That's actually something I want to do in my state party for choosing delegates to the convention. We spend all goddamned day voting and revoting over and over again until all the slots are filled. Are you a member of your local party branch? If not, then join and push for it! Ask for a discussion of it to be put on the agenda to start with. Getting people talking about it is the first step.
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Nov 15, 2016 11:48
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MiddleOne posted:That's like the polar opposite of the spirit of the op. Like gently caress it is. I'm a diasbled, unemployed, gay man. If wasn't for how demonised Muslims are right now in the West I'd be the first against the wall. Everything in that post is excellent advice and I endorse it wholeheartedly.
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Nov 15, 2016 15:27
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HorseLord posted:Can we get "Liberals aren't leftists" in the op please No. This is not the thread for that and other such arguing about political philosophy. If they want to help and vote for a particular cause we agree with then we shouldn't deny it because their motives aren't good enough or whatever. This is a thread about getting things done, not ideological purity. The same goes for anyone who wants to come in here and argue against those who are actually taking a stand because they're not being "respectful" enough.
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Nov 15, 2016 16:04
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menino posted:Counterpoint: wrong Drop this. This is not the thread for it.
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Nov 15, 2016 16:15
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MiddleOne posted:Look, I'm not going to get into the finer details about how much good versus bad organisations like Antifa bring into the political landscape. That debate has been had to death on D&D to no avail. However, what I will say is that you can't lambast the feminist in the video you yourself linked for not taking the proper steps in achieving political legitimacy for her agenda, and then turn around and endorse joining Antifa. That specific brand of political activism is mutually exclusive to what you describe in the op, they can't be combined. You're confusing me with a different poster buddy.
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Nov 15, 2016 16:37
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MiddleOne posted:I uh... What? You're mixing up my posting with Toph Bei Fong's. I don't share their position that you need to look "normal" in order to be effective in your chosen sphere of political activism but neither am I going to say that they are objectively wrong. If they feel dressing in a suit and having a plain haircut is the best way to advance the progressive agenda then who am I to stop them? What I care about is actually getting out there and trying to make a difference. For the same reasons I'm not going to denounce anyone who joins an organisation dedicated towards telling fascists to go gently caress themselves, especially if they feel their lives are being threatened.
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Nov 15, 2016 16:57
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Olpainless posted:Any advice at all for groups in the UK to get involved with? Given the current political quagmire the UK finds itself stuck in this question is a lot easier asked than answered. Normally I'd recommend the Labour party but if you're hardline against Brexit then you might find yourself having too much of a fundamental difference with their current leadership to be okay with that. (Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell are not opposed to the idea of leaving the EU, just the utterly shambolic way that it's been carried out by the Tories, on the basis that it opens up the possibility of a more socialist economic policy than the European Treaties as they stand currently allow.) It depends a lot on what issues you feel are most important to you but a good bet would always be looking up your local council and seeing what you can do there.
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Nov 15, 2016 17:11
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HorseLord posted:The thread title is literally "Effective leftism". Liberalism is an entirely different thing and always has been. If there can be critical support in order to advance one of the astonishingly few common goals then that's good, but there is no Effective Leftism in being uncritical supporters of the ideology that was literally created to give middle class new-money private property owners a leg up over the aristocracy. Our goals are ultimately opposed. This is not about being uncritical supporters of Liberalism. This is about not refusing their aid when our goals are aligned on the basis of ideological purity. Like I said in the OP. Progress is Progress. Do not deny it to the world just because it does not go far enough in your mind. Captain Fargle fucked around with this message at 17:17 on Nov 15, 2016 |
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Nov 15, 2016 17:15
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HorseLord posted:I maintain that liberals aren't to be trusted because their relation to the struggle is completely different than ours. They're happy to say they're on your side until you inconvenience them, and they absolutely hate it when you point this out. Their value system is different, so many of them are incapable of seeing antifascism as anything other than violating the right of another group to voice an opinion. And? If they're on our side for something that's still good. It makes it easier to achieve progress. Use it where you can, fight it where you have to. What matters is getting stuff done. That is the end of the matter as far as this thread is concerned. This means stop talking about it.
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Nov 15, 2016 17:31
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Oracle posted:Special election is coming up for a U.S. Senate seat in Louisiana December 10th: Quoting this because it deserves attention.
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Nov 15, 2016 17:33
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HorseLord posted:More of the same poo poo. Dude. I told you cut this the hell out. Take it to another thread. THIS IS NOT THE PLACE FOR IT.
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Nov 15, 2016 17:38
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HorseLord posted:I agree with that, I'm just coming at it from a pessimistic angle. I've seen too many people get burned. This thread is for going out and getting poo poo done. About encouraging each other and sharing resources and information to make it easier to do so. It is NOT for whining about liberals and how they aren't left enough. Cut it the gently caress out.
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Nov 15, 2016 17:45
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MizPiz posted:Would like to request that the Southern Poverty Law Center be added to the OP. It's another social/economic justice organization that specializes in litigations. Most of their work includes mapping hate crimes and seeking justice for the victims of it, though they have gone after hate groups and people of authority through the courts. Not specifically a leftist organization, but one that'll definitely need a lot more help during a Trump administration. Done. TomViolence posted:The same could be said of marxist-leninists. How about posting something useful like what to bring to a demo and how to stay safe or tips on dealing with tear gas. I'm going to text dump the post on tear gas for easy reading here because it's thoroughly excellent advice. I'm also going to add both links to the op. quote:Because tear gas is a commonly-used dispersal tactic all around the world, here is a primer containing all the basic information you need to deal with it before, during, and after exposure: Taken from the following source: https://www.patreon.com/posts/quick-and-dirty-6057497
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Nov 15, 2016 18:11
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TomViolence posted:The people at standing rock are looking for any supplies you can spare. Also adding this to the OP.
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Nov 15, 2016 18:14
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HorseLord posted:Political practice comes from political theory always. This is EXACTLY what the thread rules in OP say NOT to do. SHUT. THE. gently caress. UP. EDIT: This goes for anyone else who feels like dragging this kind of crap into the thread too.
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Nov 15, 2016 18:17
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Stockholm Syndrome posted:Racist apologetics. This is not the thread for you or for this discussion. Take it to USPOL if you want to insist on it. You are not welcome here.
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Nov 15, 2016 19:10
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HorseLord posted:You are the liberal the OP is mad I pointed out exists, I guess you've been beneficial for once by proving my point. I do not need you to inform me that racist, homophobic fuckwads exist.
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Nov 15, 2016 19:13
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HorseLord posted:Racism and homophobia isn't even what he's performed ITT, only the liberalism I warned you about, the liberalism of pearl-clutching "I agree with you but I'm SHOCKED that you would do this" and calling 911. I'm well aware that he's doing it as an act and that he's a straight up reactionary, it's a common tactic. We are all aware. You are not some kind of unique genius and we don't need your smug warnings about how idiots like him exist. And yes, apologizing away the racist, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, anti-semitic nature of Trump, his campaign and his allies does count as racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia and anti-semitism.
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Nov 15, 2016 19:24
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Lightning Knight posted:When I say conservative Democrats, I mean not progressives. I don't think we should aggressively primary people outright, but most Democrats don't live under the threat of being primaried at all and I think we should change that. Explain what you mean by primary-ing please. If it's a process that means opening up Democrat seats to the possibility of a Republican taking it instead I don't think it's a good idea to cause that kind of upset at the present time. The Democrat position is precarious enough as it is right now.
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Nov 15, 2016 22:19
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Lightning Knight posted:As in challenging a sitting congressperson who did A Bad Thing for their seat in the primary before the election. It's what the Tea Party did to get the Republicans to respect them and it forces sitting Democrats to take their campaign promises seriously. It's still something I would fell uneasy about in the current political climate but I understand. Since I'm not American I can't really say anything more on the situation. MizPiz posted:My understanding with Corbyn and Brexit was that (from his perspective) he was defending a bad organization against a worse decision. This is coming from me only catching small blinks of news from the UK, so clarification about this would be great. Jeremy Corbyn is a man extremely critical of the European Union. He wanted Britain to remain, in the hopes of enacting change from within as one of the three largest and most powerful members (Those being Germany, France and The UK) but neither is there any real love lost in the fact that we're leaving. The same goes for his second in command John McDonnell. In their view leaving is an opportunity, should Labour get into power under the leadership of their faction, to enact more left wing economic policy than is possible while still meeting current European treaty obligations. This is causing a hell of a lot of grief to many people, since the rest of the party and the vast majority of Labour supporters are very ardent about wanting to stay.
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Nov 15, 2016 22:53
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Desmond posted:Thanks for all the great info here. I'm not overly involved in politics, but am going to start now, because to me it's not just "politics"--it's the fight against indifference and the fight for real people and the environment. That said, I've been involved in environmental organizations for years in Canada and have found that the most satisfactory ones aren't just marching (which is also good) but getting dirty, quite literally. I have been volunteering with the Streamkeepers who do hands-on work on the tiniest of little creeks just to ensure salmon are not blocked from making their way from the rivers to the ocean. That means laying gravel for salmon eggs, removing invasive plants, walking the creek in hipwaders and clearing blockages that prevent salmon from swimming through, etc. Maybe this could be an allegory for politics. If you're in Canada there's very little you actually can do for America specific-organisations like Southern Poverty Law Center and the ACLU besides sending them a donation. Beyond that you're going to have to look for groups that are actually active in Canada. If you're not planning on going back to the US any time soon then joining up with one of the Canadian political parties is also a solid plan. The NDP are probably the one who's agenda is most agreeable to posters here in this thread but they have very little power right now as I understand it and if you feel your time would be better served by trying to push the Liberals leftwards then that's also an option open to you.
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Nov 16, 2016 01:17
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Asehujiko posted:What can a Dutch goon do to help stop Wilders in 2017? Labour is currently in a coalition with the VVD and is giving no signs of ever planning to listening to their voters again and our other left leaning parties all had knee mounted gatling guns surgically installed to be able to shoot themselves in the foot faster(CONSERVATIVE DEATH PANELS!!! BAN EUTHANASIA!!!) Find out who the local members and representatives of your Labour Party are. Talk to them, go to their meetings and make sure you register your absolute disgust with the fact that they're willing to work with Wilders. Talk to them directly. Do not use email or social media Find other people who think like you and get them to do the same. If they don't listen, if they try to ignore you, threaten to withdraw your support and go to another party if they do the same again next time. If they still don't listen? Maybe you'll have an easier time getting one of the other parties to stop shooting themselves in the foot? I'm not sure I can give more advice than general stuff like this since I don't know Dutch politics in much detail. You can also try, if you find enough people around you who feel the same, to organise a protest against Wilders. The absolute worst thing you can do is be silent. Never be silent.
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Nov 16, 2016 11:46
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Okay. So I've done some reading up on it all and I see where I've made my mistake. I was under the impression that Wilders' party was the VVD. This is incorrect, Wilders used to be a member of the VVD before going on to create his own party: The PVV. The VVD is the Dutch Liberal Party and currently the largest party in their Parliament. Current Prime Minister Mark Rutte is VVD. They are currently in a coalition government with the second largest party, the PvdA also known as Labour. All governments in The Netherlands are coalition governments since they use proportional representation and it's basically impossible for any one party to win an outright majority. The last time there WASN'T a coalition was in the 1800's when it still used first past the post and only male landowners were allowed to vote. Wilders and the PVV are currently the third largest party in Parliament after winning big in the last elections. I'm sad to say Asehujiko if your only goal is keeping Wilders out of government then unless there's a significant change in vote share or the VVD declares they are unwilling to work with them then a Labour/VVD coalition is your only option as far as I can see. Labour, Socialists and Greens just don't have enough to create an alliance larger than the PVV and the VVD working together. Joining groups willing to protest and denounce Wilders is always a good idea though. Campaign not just for yourself and your party of choice but also AGAINST him. Don't just do this in election season either. Do your best to make people believe in how poisonous his ideology is and how dangerous his policies are. Don't ever stand by and let his rhetoric go unopposed.
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Nov 16, 2016 15:48
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OhFunny posted:I posted this in the Democrat thread in CSPAM on Monday, but I went out and got involved. Thank you for doing this. Keep it up. I want to also say this to everyone else too. Keep it up. Consistency is important. Just showing up once to get a bit of frustration off your chest and then never going back isn't going to change anything. The status quo is an extremely potent and powerful thing and it will slide in and reassert itself without continuous pushback. Think of it like gardening. You've got to start working at it now and keep tending to it in order to get beautiful flowers in a year or two.
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Nov 16, 2016 15:57
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So it would be pretty remiss of me to sit here and start this thread and not do anything myself. Well I've been trying to get it touch with my councillor on various issues of local concern but I haven't been able to get an answer yet when I call. If this happens to you, don't just give up and assume they can't be reached! I'm going to be drafting up a letter to print out and send off instead. Remember that physical mail is always better than email in these situations! An actual printed letter can't get lost in the spam filters.
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Nov 17, 2016 00:28
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Hey folks. Just want to let you know I'm away for the weekend and as such there'll be no revisions to the OP till Sunday at the earliest. No way in hell am I going to do long-form text editing on my phone.
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Nov 17, 2016 11:31
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If you're finding it hard to get info about local things online then just try going in person. Go to your town hall or council offices or whatever and just ask. I know it can be scary at first but they're not going to scream and run you out of town with torches and pitchforks. Most will simply glad to have someone turning up and showing any sort of interest at all.
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Nov 17, 2016 17:35
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What advice do you folks have with regards to learning public speaking and so forth? Classes seem like they'd be something I can't really afford.
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Nov 18, 2016 18:10
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Doorknob Slobber posted:corporations are good? Some corporations are better than Donald Trump. This is not a credit to those corporations.
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Nov 20, 2016 18:17
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My copy of "Rules for Radicals" arrived today. Thanks for the recommendation Toph. 
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Nov 21, 2016 14:15
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Well I got in touch with my local councillor and had a very helpful conversation along with some very encouraging reassurances about commitments to minority rights and safety. Also made progress on a local park management issue and had an official complaint registered. It's boosted my spirits considerably.
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Nov 21, 2016 18:13
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Here's a handy tool for Americans: https://callyourrep.co/
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Nov 22, 2016 22:24
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For UK Folks, please consider signing this petition to have the new Investigatory Powers Act repealed. https://t.co/Iqm5WHhgV6 The idea that your most recent year's worth of internet connection records should be available to any government office that asks, without a warrant too, is obscene. Let alone the privacy and security issues that even having such a database exist at all creates. While these petitions aren't guaranteed to actually change anything, this is the official government petition system. If it reaches 100,000 signatures then parliament is required to give the issue a debate in the House of Commons. It's not much but it's something.
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Nov 25, 2016 15:48
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