Peaches for Freedom

Inspired during a dinner party conversation where we were discussing the divisiveness of the election cycle, the idea of Peaches for Freedom was born. Because peaches are fuzzy. Because peaches are good. Because almost everyone likes peaches. My husband doesn’t because he has a thing about fruit with pits but that is by the by.

For fun I created a page. I never intending to do anything with it but after the election, that Disastrous Day, it suddenly had purpose. I began using it to post practical information on how to resist the current administration. Some other folks joined up and posted their own info.

Oh, it never blew up like Pantsuit Nation or #deleteUber. I have no Twitter clout and controversy has not ensued. The page has a total of 91 members. I mention it here purely to explain what this essay is all about.

In the wake of the Women’s March and the Airport protests there has been momentum to want to keep the pressure going and to find new ways, bigger ways, more creative ways to Resist*. I gathered together some great folks and had them write down their ideas. This is a list of those ideas.

I am publishing this to encourage more ideas and to also invite people to take some of these ideas and make them happen. I am particularly fond of the tour van idea. I’ll drive.

So, here you go;

• Sell badges/ armbands as fundraisers for organizations. (Let’s do more than pink hats).
• The Blake Bloc: Poets in Protest.
• Tour vans traveling across the country. Going to city hall meetings, arranging meetings with local residents, trying to get ourselves invited to dinner at houses of folks with differing views, or heck, cooking them dinner, etc..
• Distribution of Protests songs.
• Cute Animal videos for the resistance.
• “Humans of NY”, or elsewhere. Photo spreads of Americans of all kinds.
• Formation of a Democracy School.
• Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund. (celdf.org) — Just one organization to represent that we need gathering spaces and meetings and ways to bring different people together. To be inclusive. To give space to all voices and hopefully come to some kind of common cause. Or at least, recognition.
• Support and cultivate protests at prisons.
• BFF.fm radio. B-side Dreams. 9am Saturdays. Also Mutiny Radio is actively inviting expressions.
• #writersresist. “We’ll Never have Paris” zine accepting writers. Jaime Borshuck is the editor.
• Form artist colonies in swing states.
• Pay no federal tax.
• National Strike Day that is intensely organized so that at least a few million participate.
• Download this app: http://presidentialactions.com/
• Occupy the Mexican/ North American border.
• If The 45 makes good on his promise to revoke funding from Sanctuary cities, an organization is formed to collect money to find city services.
• Continuing the proliferation of businesses, schools and museums reflecting the importance of immigrants to economic and artistic culture of the United States through walk outs and such. http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/16/us/museum-removes-art-from-immigrants-trnd/
• Creation of local safe houses for those at risk as a result of this administration.
• Annul the presidency.

We are in a new millennium and we have new resources at our disposal. Let’s get creative. We are also in dire times. We all need to do a little bit. From small eddys even the mighty river — is countered.

Of course laws will not eliminate prejudice from the hearts of human beings. But that is no reason to allow prejudice to continue to be enshrined in our laws — to perpetuate injustice through inaction. Shirley Chisholm

Resist Note*

I attached a link to an article I wrote awhile back about my reservations about protest marching as a tactic of resistance. It tends to be our go to thing and though important, I feel it is too often, the only tactic. I was at the Women’s march because I support all of the reasons why people gathered but also because the sheer numbers of people committed to showing up had the intended impact. I was also at SFO to protest the immigration ban because there was a clear intent, the unusual and therefore more significant act of occupying a privately owned space, organization that gave purpose and meaning to those gathered and again — sustained numbers of people in common cause.

“It is the first responsibility of every citizen to question authority.” Benjamin Franklin

Below are just a few organizations and sites that might be helpful.

Thanks for reading.