CALL IN TO ICE OUT 🧵✊🏾
Following the general strike, join us for an "art in"—a virtual craft circle inspired by the women who organized, resisted, and built power through their art. There will be two, one hour-long options. 12 EST and 3pm EST on Saturday, February 7th.
Inspiration: From the Freedom Quilting Bee members who turned quilting into economic resistance during the Civil Rights Movement, to the Rochester Ladies' Anti-Slavery Sewing Society (1851) who made garments for enslaved people while discussing abolitionist strategies, to colonial women who held spinning bees to boycott British textiles during the American Revolution, to the Yarn Mission collective formed in 2014 to fight racial injustice through community organizing in Ferguson—we're honoring that legacy.
How it works: Inspired by a writing class I take, we’re doing cameras on (optional), mics off (body doubling magic!) craft circle. Bring whatever work feeds you: read, stitch, knit, draw, cook, journal, write postcards to reps, call your reps, etc.
Introverts welcome—we gather in visible solidarity while working individually. Collective presence = collective power
The chat will be open to those who would like to connect.
Why: These circles have always been more than craft. They're where people found safety, shared resources, organized resistance, and sustained each other through harm. Where anti-slavery books were read aloud during meetings. Where sharecroppers built cooperatives that challenged exploitation. Modern technology allows us to continue this calling in strategy wherever we may be.
The Craft Circle Model: These circles historically provided:
- A safe space for organizing and resistance (the Bee members were often civil rights activists who faced retaliation)
- Economic mutual aid and collective power
- Intergenerational knowledge sharing
- Community building that sustained people through hardship
- Creating space for people to work on their own projects while fostering community
- A space for combining skill-sharing with organizing/action planning
- Community building toward concrete collective actions or mutual aid
SO! We're calling people IN to ice out a system targeting our communities.
Cost: Free! However, I will direct those who are able to some organizations that support mutual aid and collective care. For those who are not able to donate funds, I’ll be providing some ideas that require time donations.
If you are unable to make it and would like me to redirect the funds for you, an option is available.
I will be providing organizations to support, actions to take, book recommendations, and more.
I will email out Google Meet links on Friday, February 6th, and create a dedicated email list for follow-up emails for future events and action.*
*It was nearly impossible to find video conferencing that is not funded by Vanguard and BlackRock, so we will be meeting on the 7th instead of during the strike.