Comrades:
I am pleased to share with you what was learned from the distribution of my first zine, aptly titled “Mutual Aid.” As you may recall, free copies of the 8-page pamphlet were distributed at two recent events: the food drive and the information fair. My goal was to introduce the community to ways in which it might support its own basic needs while considering systemic factors to its suffering and possible solutions.
It’s about surviving and thriving, comrades. Surviving and thriving!
(It was also about making myself available as a source of reliable information, particularly to those who prefer print over electronic communications. As the pandemic has proven, some of our most neglected neighbors have little access to the web. To them, an online portal is a barricaded door.)
Thirty-seven of 50 copies were distributed—not bad, considering the text appeared in English only. Future reprints and publications will include Spanish, Bengali and Nepali translations, as well as a “coloring book” element for the children’s enjoyment. The cost of photocopying at the locally owned copy shop was $20.
Comrades, I must admit it was exciting to publish again for the public, and in so tactile a format! After nearly 18 months of typing and texting and TikTokking in quarantine, it felt good to flood my nostrils with the scent of toner, to knead creases into the paper, to slice open one page and wriggle it into eight. It felt good to hand that small pamphlet to another hand, and to hear our neighbors’ stories spoken with their own voices.
That kind of human interaction was the foundation of my journalism before the pandemic; I’m grateful the vaccine has allowed me to return to it, even if on a limited basis. Because of this community engagement, I have ideas for my next zine and a news article to be published in a local newspaper or news website. (I hope to be compensated for the news article because capitalism is a hard habit to kick.)
Now we must consider this, dearest comrades: Which systemic ill does the community wish to confront? Our collective mutual-aid efforts are addressing food and housing insecurity, and discrimination against our immigrant neighbors and those in the transgender, nonbinary and nonconforming community. We choose to address these issues, comrades, because they are within our capacity to recognize and address.
But what haven’t we recognized yet? Moreover, has our mutual aid galvanized our neighbors to take action on their own behalf? We’re helping them survive—what do they want in order to thrive?
Admittedly, I’m still learning about the community’s needs and trying to determine what risks they’re willing to take for themselves. I want them to decide what’s best for them, and I want them to tell me how I may support them. This is something we should reflect upon, always.
Until our next action, I wish you well.
In solidarity,
Jennifer
Click here to view the “Mutual Aid” zine as an 11” x 17” PDF.