November 5 was more than election day: it marked 13 months since officially opening our new Indianapolis Liberation Center.
When a few grassroots organizations and a handful of dedicated volunteers decided to take the leap and launch the Center, we did so with little more than our collective experience and belief that Indianapolis needed a truly independent political organizing space: one where established and emerging organizations, loose collectives, veteran organizers, and those wanting to become organizers could meet and work together, learn from and collaborate with each other, and ultimately struggle shoulder-to-shoulder to support each other.
Since opening, our official member-organizations have nearly tripled and we continue collaborating with dozens of other groups–large and small–in various ways.
Building unity through action
Our member-organizations and core volunteer organizers come from a range of ideological backgrounds and have diverse political visions for the future. There are even various viewpoints within each member-organization. Our unity, however, is not mere rhetoric, nor is it based on superficial talking points.
The Liberation Center is a united front whose genuine unity is founded on an open and explicit mission and vision to not only resist all forms of oppression but to win liberation for all. We share a common organizing approach where cooperation–and not competition–is the essential ingredient for building a better city and world.
As George Jackson wrote in Blood in My Eye, “we must renounce the idea that all participants must be of one mind… or with a single method. The reverse is actually desirable” (p. 108). It is impossible for a small group of people with a complete identity of views to radically transform society. The kind of transformation we need can only come from a mass struggle. We are serious about building that mass struggle, about building a real resistance against racism, war, capitalism, and all forms of bigotry and oppression.
We are not committed to building unity. We can’t build a united front or work through the very real divisions that separate the majority of our people through online debates; that can only be done through action, and that action requires a physical space. That space is the Indianapolis Liberation Center.
It doesn’t matter what candidates you voted for and why–or why you didn’t vote on November 5–but what you do today, tomorrow, and every day after. Real change is made in the streets and workplaces, in our neighborhoods and schools.
Don’t despair, join us!
There is no reason to be despaired, discouraged, or pessimistic. History has proven time and time again that even the most powerful and wicked systems of oppression are overthrown when the people unite and make the sacrifices necessary to transform society. We—and that includes you—are the people. As our first year demonstrated, the Liberation Center is the space to build unity and resistance right here and right now, to continue the struggles of the present and prepare for those to come. Join us!
There are many ways to continue building a united front of resistance with us. You can:
- Sign up to volunteer
- Donate to keep our city’s space of resistance alive
- Become a Sustainer to help our space grow and thrive
- Host an event at our liberated territory
- Support the Liberation Store by purchasing key resources for organizers
- Start or continue building a relationship with us by contacting one of our lead organizers
- Attend to our one-year anniversary and inaugural fundraiser to celebrate the incredible work we accomplished together.
And, of course, you can promote the Center and our work to your friends, neighbors, coworkers, and everyone you know. You might be surprised to find just how many people are on our side!
Featured photo: Counter-demonstration at Trump’s inauguration in January 2017. Credit: ANSWER Coalition.
