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Electoral politics suck in general and today was undeniably frustrating.
I do think there's an opportunity here to take away a lesson that I strongly believe will make us better and more effective organizers and it would suck even more if we missed it.
(a thread, of course) https://twitter.com/ShutUpAndrosky/status/1362141894977880064
I do think there's an opportunity here to take away a lesson that I strongly believe will make us better and more effective organizers and it would suck even more if we missed it.
(a thread, of course) https://twitter.com/ShutUpAndrosky/status/1362141894977880064
I want to start off by saying that politicians aren't our friends, even politicians who share our values and are trying to do their best within an absolutely wretched system.
And of all the people in this cruel world in need of defending, all politicians are low on the list.
And of all the people in this cruel world in need of defending, all politicians are low on the list.
That said, I think this incredibly hardworking coalition of leftist LA grassroots organizers all built our tactics around having zero allies anywhere in power ever.
Now we kind of have like 1.5 allies. It doesn't free them from scrutiny but it means our tactics should shift.
Now we kind of have like 1.5 allies. It doesn't free them from scrutiny but it means our tactics should shift.
And those shifting tactics don't include being "nicer" to politicians. Fuck that.
But it means we're now in a position where we don't have to always be reacting. We can be involved from the ground-up to better set ourselves (and our "allies") up for political successes.
But it means we're now in a position where we don't have to always be reacting. We can be involved from the ground-up to better set ourselves (and our "allies") up for political successes.
AND TO BE CLEAR, it's a 2-way street. We can only handle our half of that deal, if our "allies" in office don't make good on THEIR half, that's on them and there'll be consequences.
But I know we can do better than hoping for symbolic NO votes (a NO vote I'd really wanted, btw)
But I know we can do better than hoping for symbolic NO votes (a NO vote I'd really wanted, btw)
So what does this shift look like from our end?
First of all, it looks like a serious reflection on how and why we use public comment time.
(Time that needs to be expanded + protected, to be clear)
First of all, it looks like a serious reflection on how and why we use public comment time.
(Time that needs to be expanded + protected, to be clear)
As someone who frequently calls in to leave comment, I know I want to rethink how I use that time/skill.
As @BillPrzylucki said in the @GroundGameLA chat today, those of us who know how to get on the line need to be organizing with the people directly impacted by these policies
As @BillPrzylucki said in the @GroundGameLA chat today, those of us who know how to get on the line need to be organizing with the people directly impacted by these policies
We need to recognize that it's one thing to have me (for example), a white girl from CD5 calling in to voice my opinion about the impacts of CSP on public housing in Nury's district. It's another for those residents themselves to be heard.
Not only is that ethically and organizationally better, because those are the voices that need to be amplified, but it's killing two birds with one stone, because it also gives CMs like Nithya & Bonin cover to vote against shit. And it makes anyone who votes for it look terrible.
We need to remember that the power lies with the people, including and often especially with those of us who aren't loudest.
(AND BTW tons of organizers here DO do an amazing job of this, and tons are members of these very impacted communities and are working their asses off)
(AND BTW tons of organizers here DO do an amazing job of this, and tons are members of these very impacted communities and are working their asses off)
The Hillside Villa organizing effort is a great reference.
Organizers from within AND outside Hillside Villa worked to coordinate mass calling efforts from people living in the building. It was incredibly effective, and their voices are what led to the city voting for it.
Organizers from within AND outside Hillside Villa worked to coordinate mass calling efforts from people living in the building. It was incredibly effective, and their voices are what led to the city voting for it.
Folks like @jacobwooch orchestrated 3-way calls with experienced organizers and residents who weren't familiar with how to call in to public comment or CM's offices, got residents on the line, stood back and gave them space to speak.
This is the model.
This is the model.
You think Cedillo fought that hard out of the goodness of his heart? Fuck no. That shit passed because the people IN HIS DISTRICT who were directly impacted by the situation made it political suicide to vote against it and were supported by us.
Hindsight is 20/20, but if organizers like us, who know about the city + agenda, had put our energy over the last few days (or weeks) into working to get Public Housing residents to call in and talk about why they hate CSP,
I think today's vote would've been different.
I think today's vote would've been different.
Instead we were stuck reacting and it sucked.
It also would've been great if one of the "allies" we have on council did a better job of letting us know what kind of support/organizing efforts they need in order to do their jobs effectively. It's not fair to expect us to guess.
It also would've been great if one of the "allies" we have on council did a better job of letting us know what kind of support/organizing efforts they need in order to do their jobs effectively. It's not fair to expect us to guess.
Also, we need to think outside the Public Comment box. Public comment can be great, but it's also one of the less impactful ways to reach a CM, they don't listen.
We need their constituents calling their offices, we need to be working with NCs on Community Impact Statements etc
We need their constituents calling their offices, we need to be working with NCs on Community Impact Statements etc
We need to be practical about who the villainous power players in council respond to, cause we know for sure it's not us. It's their constituents, its their colleagues whose support they need to get shit done, it's the precariousness of their seat.
We know this, let's use it.
We know this, let's use it.
It's not all on us though. We need people like @nithyavraman working with us from the jump. We need to be invited in for these conversations as early and often as possible.
And we need to be the recipients of political symbolism sometimes just as the ghouls on council need it.
And we need to be the recipients of political symbolism sometimes just as the ghouls on council need it.
But if we uphold our end, if we do our best to cast our organizing net much wider than we have been, if we try to strategize for the hostile council we know our allies sit on, and we use our skills to platform the people who deserve it...
If we do all that and our "allies" STILL don't uphold their half of the bargain...
Then we can really fucking complain.
(And again, I'm not saying the YES vote today isn't worth being mad about. I'm mad about it. I just wanna learn from it).
Then we can really fucking complain.
(And again, I'm not saying the YES vote today isn't worth being mad about. I'm mad about it. I just wanna learn from it).
So the gist of this is:
1) we need to stop centering ourselves as much in our organizing (which is ironic, I know, coming from me in this long-ass thread)
and
2) we have power now, we can start acting like it
1) we need to stop centering ourselves as much in our organizing (which is ironic, I know, coming from me in this long-ass thread)
and
2) we have power now, we can start acting like it
Here's a great point from the always-thoughtful @nicole_d14, which is that @UniondVecinos did this thread yesterday re: concerns from impacted residents.
Many RTed this, but we missed a chance to coordinate with them to get those residents on the line https://twitter.com/UniondVecinos/status/1361957698611286025?s=20
Many RTed this, but we missed a chance to coordinate with them to get those residents on the line https://twitter.com/UniondVecinos/status/1361957698611286025?s=20
Much of the work is already being done, it's just not being done by a lot of us (myself included!) who have the time and experience to call in to every council meeting.
It's our responsibility to do better
It's our responsibility to do better
And, by the way, if we had access to these threads so did all our council members.
But Twitter threads don't influence the votes that matter.
Residents from KDL's district calling him to pressure him publicly in front of the rest of the council does, though.
But Twitter threads don't influence the votes that matter.
Residents from KDL's district calling him to pressure him publicly in front of the rest of the council does, though.
