Festivus for the Left of Us: A Chance for Thanks-giving & Rabble-rousing, Partying, Dancing & Quality Time
Mark your calendars now, for Festivus… Traction’s annual Holiday Party! Saturday, December 6th.
Archive for the ‘Arts’ Category
Festivus!
Monday, November 17th, 2008Traction – Video Your Vote
Tuesday, November 11th, 2008ELECTILE DYSFUNCTION II: a theatrical sideshow
Saturday, April 5th, 2008Tractivists, do you like to watch?
For the next five weeks, we are the epicenter of U.S. politics! The whole world is watching. So it’s time for us to ACT, not to watch. Look for an email soon with ways to be active in this election cycle with Traction.
But on April 11th and 12th, it’s time to join your fellow Tractivists and WATCH…
ELECTILE DYSFUNCTION II
a theatrical sideshow to benefit Traction!
Some of the area’s best actors and directors* + live music + good people + good cause + democracy + food/drinks + you!
ELECTILE DYSFUNCTION II (Wrath of the SuperDelegates)
7pm on April 11th and 12th
at the Trotter Building
410 W. Geer St., across from Manbites Dog Theater
$10 suggested min. donation — tickets conveniently sold online
*featuring Tractivists from Z to A, like Zephyr Teachout, Nicole Quenelle, Jim Haverkamp, Jay O’Berski, Dana Marks and Adam Sampieri.It’s an amazing show and you know it’ll be a great party, so get your tix NOW!
More soon, fellow patriots, Lanya
P.S. To volunteer for this show (or anything else Traction), contact Cara by emailing use.me@getTraction.org.
ReelPolitik ripple effect: Uprising of ‘34 featured on public radio
Thursday, August 31st, 2006Over 80 people came out to get an early start on Labor Day when Traction showed The Uprising of ‘34 at Culture Crawl in downtown Durham on 8/18/06.
Mary Coles, whose father was president of Durham’s textile union during this walk-out and mass movement, graced us with her presence and shared memories from the perspective of an 11-year old girl. We also heard from Durham historian Jim Wise and Tractivists working on modern-day labor issues — including the Justice as Smithfield campaign — through Student Action with Farmworkers, National FarmWorker Ministries, and IUE-CWA, a local union for the employees of non-profits.
Turns out Frank Stasio (host of The State of Things) was there in the audience, and their show today will be about this historical moment, plus the fight at Smithfield. So listen in! We’re thrilled that Traction had a role in inspiring the show and raising more awareness of labor issues, past and present.
Many thanks to Theo, JoAnne, Dave Z., Lori, Tony, Denise, Becky & Devin, Veronica, Kelly, Tom & Tema, and the Transom Gallery (and probably many others) for helping with this event! And to Wessel for taking pictures under tough conditions. We’ll see if we can resize this one and do it justice…
The Strike of ‘34: Durham’s Forgotten Labor History
Tuesday, August 15th, 2006Labor Day is just around the corner and this year we’ll travel back in time to a largely forgotten piece of Labor Day history — right here in Durham.
Seventy two years ago this September, over 7,000 textile mill workers in Durham went on strike, joining hundreds of thousands of others around the country to demand better pay and better working conditions.
This Friday, Traction returns to Culture Crawl and we’re bringing our ReelPolitik film series with us. We’ll be showing an outdoor movie: The Uprising of ‘34, about the textile worker strike in the South that was the largest mass strike in U.S. history.This is what Labor Day is really about — celebrating and honoring the legacy of the millions of largely unknown folks who fought for things we take for granted today — like a 40-hour work week, a minimum wage and safer workplaces.
We’ll be joined by special guests Mary Cole, who lived through the strike as the 11 year old daughter of an Erwin Mill union organizer, and Jim Wise, a local historian and newspaper columnist who has written about the strike in Durham. Plus, we’ll benefit from cameo appearances by current labor organizers in North Carolina, who can update us on how to support the labor struggles of the 21st century.
The vitals:
“The Uprising of ‘34″
Fri, Aug 18th, 8pm
Outside Jo and Joe’s Pub
427 W. Main St. in downtown Durham
FREE
–> BuyYOB at everyone’s favorite local pub, Joe & Jo’s
–> BYOBlanket to sit in the grass
July 8th is ZINNdependence Day
Friday, June 30th, 2006As we mark our nation’s 230th birthday, Tractivists have been cooking up our own way to honor our nation’s history and great potential…
On July 8th, a massive horde of the Triangle’s finest actors (including some Tractivists) will present a staged reading of selections from VOICES OF A PEOPLE’S HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES, directed by the fabulous Jay O’Berski of Manbites Dog Theater.
Best of all, it’s a benefit for Traction! $15 Donation at the door. We’ll have some food and drinks there too, so you’ll have several ways to show some love.
The deets:
Saturday, July 8, 8:00 pm
Manbites Dog Theater, 703 Foster St., Durham
The show will be a Best Bet in next week’s INDEPENDENT and we expect to sell out. And there are no advance sales or reservations for the general public. BUT for Tractivists who make a reservation and sign a loyalty oath, we’ll hold a limited number of seats until 7:45pm. (Just kidding about the oath.) Send your reservation to peoples@getTraction.org
If you’ve never read Howard Zinn’s ground-breaking book, today’s your lucky day. If you HAVE read it, you know how powerful this event will be. These are the voices of struggle, of “unimportant” people mostly absent from our history books. These voices help us remember that, in Zinn’s words, “people who seem to have no power, whether working people, people of color, or women — once they organize and protest and create movements — have a voice no government can suppress.”
Send your reservation NOW. Aren’t you feeling more patriotic already?
Special thanks to Seven Stories Press, Anthony Arnove and Howard Zinn himself for giving us their blessing!