The hall is packed. People of all sorts representing housing co-ops, community shared agriculture, skill share networks, freeschoolers, anarchists, communists and organized labour are crammed together under one roof. Before the meeting begins there’s a huge meal so you help yourself to a big steaming bowl.
The general assembly kicks off with an announcement:
“Alright. Thank you all for coming, it’s good to see so many people here after such a long day. To start off I think we should recognize that where we stand right now used to be sovereign indigenous territory until it was colonized by the same state that we are struggling against today. Most of us are still participating in this process of colonization through the roles we play in the economy. So let’s keep that in mind as we have our discussions, and let’s try and liberate ourselves from this system”
“There’s a lot of us here so we usually break into committees to facilitate discussion. But first I’d like to welcome all the newcomers to the general assembly. We are the Peoples Solidarity Union or Solidarity for short. If you’d like to become a member we ask that you contribute to the community chest. The community chest is what pays for things like the meal we just ate, but more importantly it finances the projects that the committees bring to the General Assembly. We never buy something that we can source for ourselves and the committee proposals are judged mainly by this criteria. If they help us become more self-reliant, they receive funds. So far we have purchased buses that run on bio-diesel that we produce ourselves. The food we just ate mostly came from our own membership and we own this building as well. But there’s still much more to be done.”
“We are all each other’s best and only hope in this world. This is the meaning of solidarity; mutual aid and support. With that I think we can call this session of the General Assembly open. Does anyone wish to propose an agenda?”
Immediately, a loud unseen speaker shouts out from the crowd.
“There are a lot of our brothers and sisters in prison right now. I think the most important thing we could be doing right now is figuring out what we can do to help them!”
The facilitator takes to the mic again, responding “The floor is still open for other proposals but I can’t think of anything else that couldn’t wait. Shall we vote to set the agenda to prisoner solidarity?”
A general murmur of consent ripples through the hall.
“Does anyone oppose?”
Nothing but complete silence fills the room, broken a moment later by a soft-spoken voice. The speaker is quiet yet articulate, and as they speak they convey a warm sense of compassion.
“As many of you know already, the police have made a lot of arrests today. My partner is one of several hundred being held at a giant warehouse on the edge of town. My lawyer has already been in contact with the police, but they won’t give out any specific information even to an attorney. What they are saying is that some major crimes were committed and that they won’t release anybody until they’ve confirmed the identities of all the prisoners. It’s pretty clear though that this is just an excuse. Collective punishment is illegal and immoral. I propose that we block the streets and put the whole system under arrest until all of the prisoners are released.”
“Why should we stick out our necks to protect those anarchist punks? They’re the whole reason why this all happened,” someone interjects with a loud angry voice.
“The black bloc is fighting the same capitalist system we are, albeit with different tactics, and that system does more damage to us every day than the black bloc will ever do to anyone. Remember, it’s the police who have our friends and loved ones locked up right now, not the bloc. Anything that we do to protect our own members is going to also benefit them as well, but we can’t let petty differences keep us from taking action.”
Consensus is a long and difficult process but the solidarity collective insists on it, stating that it’s the best method of ensuring universal inclusion and non-coercive unity. Because the decisions are agreed upon by all, they can also count on everyone’s participation in the final outcome. The discussion lasts long into the evening with people watching the debate online through streaming webcams and participating in votes remotely. Eventually the group decides that despite ideological differences, all the detainees are united in the same struggle and that the unilateral action of the police cannot be tolerated. Thus a plan is formulated to clog the streets around the temporary detention center. If the prisoners can’t leave then neither can the guards. Non-violent non-participatory direct action is the name of the game. Or as Thoreau put it: civil disobedience.