Non-Violent Direct Action Training Online, May 30 - June 20
Start: 2020-05-30 13:00:00 UTC Central Daylight Time (US & Canada) (GMT-05:00)
End: 2020-06-20 15:00:00 UTC Central Daylight Time (US & Canada) (GMT-05:00)
This is a virtual event
How do rebels respond to a pandemic and lockdown? Resiliently, of course!
In light of COVID, Extinction Rebellion Chicago has put its Non-Violent Direct Action training online. The training will take place on Zoom on four consecutive Saturdays--May 30 and June 6 , 13, and 20, 1-3 p.m., as well as in asynchronous small-group discussions in Keybase. The goal of the training is to prepare participants to plan and carry out a COVID-appropriate non-violent direct action during the week of June 15. Along the way, you will
- Learn about Extinction Rebellion and other local activist groups, as well as about the use of affinity groups to mass mobilize climate-related activism.
- Explore NVDA possibilities in the categories of social media messaging, real-world messaging (e.g., postering, pop-up art), digital pranks (think the Yes Men), vehicle actions (e.g. kayaktivism), and resistance/resilience actions such as planting trees and creating mini-gardens--as well as other categories that you come up with!
- Work with a provisional affinity group (see more about this below) to plan an action, propose it to the larger group, revise it in accord with feedback, and possibly figure out how to collaborate or coordinate with other affinity groups.
- Participate in an action planned by XR Chicago or other environmental or social justice group, as a form of hands-on learning, team-building, and solidarity.
- Consult with XR Working Groups, National Lawyers Guild lawyers, and other experts about the kinds of support your action might require.
And following the action, you will debrief with the larger group, provide feedback to other affinity groups, and make plans for how you will continue as a climate change/climate justice activist with your provisional affinity group, a different affinity group, or an XR Working Group.
If this sounds like something you would be interested in, please register here, but if you have any questions at all, please don't hesitate to contact us at contact@xrchicago.org.
