Constructing change: the activist toolkit

Syrian refugees: A progress report

Victoria Fenner — Tue, 19 Apr 2016 17:18:51 +0000

epsidoe_2_maisie_lo_constructingchange_final.mp3

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The Constructing Change podcast returns!

Victoria Fenner — Tue, 16 Feb 2016 15:17:36 +0000

episode_1_intro_constuctingchange_final.mp3

The Constructing Change podcast has returned!

The Constructing Change Podcast is an extension of the Lynn Williams Activist Toolkit -- a collaborative effort devoted to providing how -- to guides, reports, workshops and a smattering of other resources geared to get you involved.

On today's program -- a brief conversation with Activist Toolkit producer Maya Bhullar, looking back at 2015 and what needs to be done to continue to undo the damage of the Harper regime.

FireChat

The Activist Toolkit — Mon, 06 Oct 2014 16:28:54 +0000

Publish Date:

October 6, 2014

Summary:

This free app has been adopted by many protesters in Hong Kong

Firechat

FireChat is a free app for iOs and Android that bills itself as an "off the grid" form of texting. It can work online or without an internet connection. In its "nearby" mode, the app uses bluetooth to connect to other mobiles close to it to send messages between phones. A FireChat discussion can include as many as 10,000 people. It has been downloaded by more than 100,000 protesters in Hong Kong, to let protesters strategize without internet connectivity. The app is more like a chat room than an instant messaging platform, used to send mass notices about police activity amongst protesters.

However the information on the app is not encrypted so users concerned about privacy should not use their real names.

Revolution 101: The People's Climate March, the unheard protest

The Activist Toolkit — Mon, 06 Oct 2014 14:18:00 +0000

I'll admit that when I first heard about the Peoples Climate March I was a little quick to judge it by the black and green eposter reading “Block Up!”, and failed to investigate its organizational connections. So when 350.org Toronto offered Food Not Bombs London some free spots on their buses to New York for the weekend of the Climate March, and a budget to cook a few meals for a couple hundred, I didn't think much of it.

Take Back the Night

The Activist Toolkit — Mon, 08 Sep 2014 14:53:52 +0000

Publish Date:

September 8, 2014

Summary:

After more than 30 years of protest, the march continues to evolve and become more diverse and inclusive

Take Back the Night!

Take Back the Night has been an annual protest for more than 30 years. Typically held in September, the first march was held in Philadelphia, in October 1975. Susan Alexander Speeth, a young microbiologist, was walking alone one night and stabbed only a block away from her home. Organizers led a candle lit march through the streets shortly after. In 1976, after the International Tribunal on Crimes Against Women in Brussels, thousands of women from more than 40 different countries marched in the streets.

Creative Interventions Toolkit: A Practical Guide to Stopping Interpersonal Violence

The Activist Toolkit — Mon, 08 Sep 2014 14:02:05 +0000

Publish Date:

September 8, 2014

Summary:

This extensive 600 page guide is for everyday people seeking to stop violence

Creative Interventions

Creative Interventions is a group dedicated to community based approaches to interpersonal violence. This Toolkit that they have created for dealing with interpersonal violence is massive, and has sections for victims of violence, folks committing violence and detailed community solutions through modules.

This community guide is an invaluable resource for folks trying to stop violence in their lives. From their website:

Help the brave women of Ukraine to be heard via a documentary film!

The Activist Toolkit — Mon, 08 Sep 2014 13:39:24 +0000

Publish Date:

September 8, 2014

Summary:

Support the courageous women of the Ukraine as they tell their story

Support this campaign

Support the film here!

Labour Day

The Activist Toolkit — Tue, 02 Sep 2014 11:49:21 +0000

Publish Date:

September 2, 2014

Summary:

The first Labour Day in Canada was when workers discovered the power of striking

The first labour day parade

Labour Day (or fête du travail) is celebrated on the first Monday of September. The day is often marked with parades, protests and reminders of the continued struggles of workers for fair wages, decent hours and safe working conditions.

Canada’s first Labour Day event was way back in 1872. As mechanized labour started to sweep the country with the Industrial Revolution, workers were increasingly easier to replace with machines. The fear of losing their jobs often kept workers in unsafe workplaces, working excessive hours for very little pay. At this time, Canada was still operating under archaic British laws which made unions illegal and had already been abolished in Britain.

Mindful Occupation: Rising up Without Burning out

The Activist Toolkit — Tue, 02 Sep 2014 11:26:39 +0000

Publish Date:

September 2, 2014

Summary:

A creative commons booklet about to radical mental health

Mindful Occupation: Rising up without Burning Out

This grassroots guide was developed by the Occupy Mental Health Project and is creative commons licenced. The authors encouraging updating, remixing and editing by folks who use this living document.

The guide covers the basics of radical mental health, how it interlocks with oppressive corporate and capitalist systems to relate to Occupy as well as tackling various topics within self care. The tips for sustainable protest range from practical advice on avoiding hypothermia in cold weather to less tangible ideas of solidarity and mutual respect. Many ideas like the tips in the coping with stress section go beyond the Occupy movement into the politics of everyday life.

How can we make our media more effective in contributing to social change?

The Activist Toolkit — Tue, 19 Aug 2014 17:36:03 +0000

This piece is aimed specifically for people who make media with the intent to help create positive social change.

But it is also for others engaged in efforts towards positive social change, who are interested in thinking more about the role of media in supporting those efforts. And thirdly, for those who are interested in using media to learn more and/or get involved in these kind of efforts.

This is simply a presentation of some ideas and questions; it is by no means a comprehensive thesis, but hopefully provides some good starting points to help you foster further ideas and contemplation that might eventually lead to some change in your perspective, and then your approach, towards media.

Share the Gaza Everywhere Map

The Activist Toolkit — Thu, 14 Aug 2014 14:08:49 +0000

Publish Date:

August 14, 2014

Summary:

A simple map app to help visualize Gaza's relative size in comparison to locations around the world

Gaza Everywhere

When Gaza is in the news and the mainstream media is reporting on "shots being fired on both sides" it's easy to lose sight of perspective. Not only the lack of resources the people of Gaza have in relation to Israel, the historical and institutionalized oppression of its people but also, its relative size. Gaza Everywhere is a Google maps based app that shows Gaza's outline in relation to searchable geography (for example, The Greater Toronto Area is bigger than Gaza).

Nearly 2,000 people have been killed in Gaza at the time of writing. This level of destruction is even harder to imagine on such a scale.

Dealing with Tear Gas

The Activist Toolkit — Thu, 14 Aug 2014 13:11:31 +0000

Publish Date:

August 14, 2014

Summary:

When tear gas is used against peaceful protesters, use this guide to stay safe

A Ferguson protester throws tear gas back at police

From Gaza to the protests in Ferguson demanding justice for Mike Brown, tear gas is often used by police to discourage peaceful protests and disperse crowds. This tactic disregards the rights of folks to gather for the purposes of peaceful assembly and voice dissent. Rather than running away, here are some resources on dealing with getting gassed.

This manual on tear gas from Freedom Fighter highlights the most important points: getting tear gassed is painful but not unmanageable, do not apply water to the eyes if you have been gassed and of course, come prepared.

This infographic from Occupy Wall Street also outlines the basics.

Enact New Federal Laws to Protect Citizens from Police Violence and Misconduct

The Activist Toolkit — Thu, 14 Aug 2014 12:50:03 +0000

Publish Date:

August 14, 2014

Summary:

After the murder of Mike Brown in Ferguson at the hands of police, there needs to be federal action

Police wearing forward facing cameras

Sign the petition here!

This petition is for Amadou Diallo - shot at 41 times. An innocent, hardworking man simply reaching for his wallet, Diallo should be alive today.

This petition is for Sean Bell - shot at over 50 times and killed on his wedding day.

This petition is for Oscar Grant - handcuffed with his hands behind his back for breaking a fight on the subway - Oscar was shot in the back and killed by a police officer while sitting down.

Boycott SodaStream

The Activist Toolkit — Wed, 06 Aug 2014 14:50:25 +0000

Publish Date:

August 6, 2014

Summary:

Stop supporting companies with facilities on illegal Israeli settlements!

Boycott SodaStream

Sign the petition! And learn more about SodaStream here.

Bearing witness during the Tar Sands Healing Walk

The Activist Toolkit — Mon, 21 Jul 2014 12:30:13 +0000

This past month, I had the honour of joining hundreds of individuals from all across Turtle Island to stand in solidarity with First Nations communities near Fort McMurray for the fifth and final Healing Walk. The event brings Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities together to focus on healing the land, water, and people from the severe impacts of tar sands projects.

It's hard to find the words to describe this experience. For the past several years I have been working in varying capacities to oppose fossil fuel extraction projects, including the tar sands. I have done countless hours of research, seen hundreds of photographs, read stories, articles and personal accounts, but nothing prepared me for being there, for bearing witness to the destruction.