By James Trimarco

A group of volunteers gathered in ABCNo Rio’s community arts center gallery on a cold Saturday morning in early February. The topic under discussion was grave. The future of No Rio — an open space for New York’s radical arts and squatter communities for nearly thirty years — was at stake again.

My partner and I only have a few more days in Oaxaca, and if one thing is clear from our time here, it's that it's impossible to have any comprehensive understanding of a place without a committing oneself to it for an extended period of time. I'm talking years. Anything less can end up being exploitative and touristy, which is a particularly salient risk for travelers from the Global North like myself.

When tourists cruise through a foreign country, harvesting souvenirs and selectively dispensing a few travelers checks, they often want a taste of "the local flavor." Leftists and radicals can do the same thing, backpacking through the Global South to glean inspiration from others' struggles before heading home at their leisure. Either way, that's gross.

I want to share a few observations from my time in Oaxaca, but I want to do it with these cautions in mind, in hopes that they'll help northern radicals stand in solidarity more effectively with the struggles of the Global South--where, believe me, they've got a lot cooking.

Good morning revolution, you nasty cat you!

At this very moment, my partner and her friends, along with hundreds of radical women from around the world, are gathering in Chiapas, Mexico for an encuentro between the Zapatista peoples and the peoples of the world. This is the third encuentro hosted by the Zapatisas since their uprising against the Mexican government and global capitalism in 1994, and the first focusing exclusively on the struggles of women.

Make no bones about it: this gathering is a big deal. The first "Encounter For Humanity and Against Neoliberalism" was held in 1996, bringing together a generation of radicals to discuss what anti-capitalism could mean following the collapse of state socialism. The seminal People's Global Action network emerged from conversations that followed, providing a framework for much of the counter-globalization era.

A second encuentro took place in July of this year, in a political climate characterized by resurgent imperialism, incipient state socialism and an increasingly brutal border regime. It was followed immediately by a call for a women's encuentro on the 14th anniversary of the Zapatista uprising (click here to listen to the announcement and read a translation), named after none other than Comandanta Ramona.

This article will appear in the spring, 2008 issue of Perspectives on Anarchist Theory, which is likely to be published in March. For more information, visit the Institute for Anarchist Study’s website.

For two years workers in New York food industry have been organizing with the IWW for higher wages, better conditions and respect on the job. The IWW IU 460's organizing drive has involved the participation of hundreds of workers and has significantly improved, directly and indirectly, wages and working conditions across the industry. Yet there is still a great deal of organizing left to do: in many sectors, sub-minimum wages and slave-like conditions still exist and the bosses have not been dealt a decisive blow. Today we urge you to pledge $5 per week to support this important campaign that has the capacity to build the IWW into a powerful force in the food industry, not just in New York, but also across the country.

An MDSer’s Brief Report On The SDS National Convention 27-30th July 2007

Detroit

Let The People Decide ---- Friday, July 27, 2007

As a first timer to Detroit what I’m most immediately struck by is the palpable feeling of urban decay. Forty years ago almost to the day, this city was in the grip of a historic rebellion as a result of years of neglect, a lack of affordable housing, racism and rampant police brutality. As an MDSer of a later generation than the original SDS, my only experience with the uprising came from watching grainy black-and-white newsreel footage of neighborhoods set ablaze and tanks rolling through the streets. Today a lingering frustration and sense of hopelessness fills the air. This summer to witness the substandard housing and squalid conditions still too pervasive in this town is to wonder if anything has really changed. ---- We made our way to the campus of Wayne State University for the opening of the 2007 SDS Convention. A chalked arrow with the words “SDS Registration” written on the sidewalk directed us toward the DeRoy Auditorium. We said hello to Alan Haber and several students we know from the local NYC SDS Chapter and picked up a Convention Welcome Packet and an impressive 66 page Proposals Packet from the registration table.