Traction » Civil Rights

handcuffed for school equity

Guest Blogger — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 22:19:14 +0000

Tractivist sisters and brothers,

I got arrested on Tuesday, July 20th with 18 others all fighting for school equity.

I have never been handcuffed, thrown into a paddy wagon, fingerprinted or had my mug shot taken. It was a sobering experience.

I have been in a jail before, through Prison MATCH (Prison Mothers and Their Children) and Job Start, both programs that seek to decrease recidivism and the impact of the cycle of incarceration. I spent hours with incarcerated young women who look like me. The prison system is full of people of color. I thought about them as I decided that I would take a stand against the elimination of the socioeconomic diversity policy in Wake County schools, which I believe will result in more young people entering the school-to-prison pipeline.

Thousands Rally
My day started marching with my prince kings and several thousand people down Fayetteville Street. We marched because we believe in equity in our schools. It was a powerful march. The diversity of the marchers was beautiful. Speakers spoke eloquently about the history of the struggle against segregation. It was more than 40 years ago that the U.S. Supreme Court made segregated schools illegal in Brown vs. Board of Education.

At the rally, speakers talked about the moral imperative to stand against any effort to segregate our community. It reminded me that we no longer can just sit in our pews and pray. We are God’s weapons against injustice and it will take all of us together to fight for a united community. I was touched by one speaker, who said of the marchers, ”This is what my neighborhood looks like.” I understand that we cannot retreat back into our neighborhoods. We live in a global community. We will either learn to work together or we will all perish together.

We Prayed

We left the rally and went to a prayer meeting at Pullen Memorial Church. This is a predominately white church led by the Rev. Nancy Petty, who was arrested at a school board meeting a few weeks ago with Rev. William Barber, the state NAACP president, Tim Tyson, a Duke University professor and author of ‘Blood Done Signed My Name,’ and Mary Williams, a renowned gospel singer and freedom fighter. They drafted a statement about why they chose to get arrested:

“In the best American traditions, from Henry David Thoreau to Ella Baker to Martin Luther King, Jr., we recognize the necessary place of civil disobedience: breaking a small and unjust law in order to protect a larger and broadly significant law, honoring the very spirit of law by yielding to punishment in order to meet the necessity of an urgent moral crisis. We seek to make a moral and spiritual witness that we feel is urgent, necessary, and right.”

School Board Meeting becomes a Police State
After the prayer meeting I dropped my sons off and I went to the school board meeting which was set up like a police state. Over 50 police had secured the parking lot with metal barriers. I had to park down the street and walk because they were not letting anyone park in the lot.

Opponents of the diversity policy had asked their supporters to fill the meeting room’s 164 seats. They were unable to reach this goal. Outside, Rev. Barber arrived and read a statement. He and three others were immediately taken to jail. The police told people who were standing with Rev. Barber that if they remained on the sidewalk and didn’t move behind the gated parking lot, they would be arrested. Several people refused to move. The police officers asked “Who wants to get arrested?” This was ridiculous because no one was violating the law. The sidewalk is big enough for people to stand and wait. Tensions were rising.

I went inside. At first, I could only get into an overflow room with a blurry television screen to show the proceedings. The school board has been asked many times to move the meetings to a big enough space for the public to attend. Unfortunately, they have refused. A protest broke out in the hallway when people who wanted to see the board meeting were forbidden to enter the main room.

Eventually I was able to squeeze into the main board room (thanks Lauren). When Michele Laws, president of the Chapel Hill chapter of the NAACP, went up to make her statement, I walked to the stand and I was not alone. Many people joined me and we locked arms. We began to chant “Forward ever, backwards never.”

Handcuffed for School Equity

Quickly, the police surrounded us and told us to stop chanting. We refused, and our hold on each other tightened. Michele’s daughter, MD, was in the middle of our group. Police began to pull and push at us, violently twisting arms. At one point, a supporter of the board smacked a member of NC HEAT in the head.

When Keith Sutton, the only black school board member, tried to calm tensions, police grabbed him and forced his arms behind his back in an attempt to arrest him. The crowd began to yell: “He’s a school board member. What are you doing?” Eventually, another officer intervened and Sutton was released.

One by one, they broke our circle apart. Finally, one woman was left. She was on her hands and knees on the floor, surrounded by officers, crying, “Don’t touch me.” When I knelt to pray with her, they arrested both of us.

My day ended in the Wake County jail, waiting to be processed and watching people of color continue to come into the jail in handcuffs — real handcuffs, not the plastic bands they used on us.

The NAACP has released an official statement to represent the Solid 19 that were arrested on Tuesday. Please read the official statement quoted here.

I have been asked why I got arrested and if it was “worth it.” We took a stand and would not be moved. We know that the Wake County system was not perfect to begin with. Indeed, my son was suspended twice this year. We have a lot of work to do. We still stand against the elimination of the diversity policy because we know it will only make a challenging situation worse.

I did this because:

I am a mother and believe all children deserve a sound basic education and this requires equitable schools, preserving the socioeconomic diversity policy, quality teachers, and parental involvement and eliminating zero-tolerance discipline policies.

Low wealth schools will only serve to widen the school to prison pipeline. The elimination of the diversity policy and the transition to neighborhood schools will result in an increase in the number of low wealth schools. The increased number of low wealth schools will lead to an increased in the number of students that become residents of jails and prisons. Across the country our prison system is filled with young people of color. I recently learned from Critical Resistance that at least 50% of the young people entering our prison system are being sent there by school resource officers that work in our public schools.

We have a right to control/influence/participate in the schools in our communities. We have been shut out of this process. The new school board majority was elected by 6% of the registered voters, but a survey found that over 90% of parents were happy with the school their children were attending. Overwhelmingly the public has spoken out against eliminating the diversity policy. There have been letters to the board, public comment, rallies, town hall forums, data presentations by experts, letters to editor, meetings and much more that have little to nothing to move the board majority. They refuse to hear us, indeed they mock us, call us animals loose from our cages. If they say that about our efforts to challenge their position on this issue, how can they possibly hear our children’s needs?

The data and the research all lead to one conclusion: eliminating the socio-economic diversity plan will yield more high poverty schools. I have heard from many who believe integration has not always served black children. They believe we should control the destiny of our schools. I think they have a point, but I strongly believe that without a socioeconomic diversity policy, we will never have equitable funding across all of our schools in Wake County. They can promise more resources to the segregated all-black school in my part of town, but they will not keep their promises. My sons will be fighting the same battle I am fighting. The cycle has to stop somewhere.

Strong schools are good for the economy and high poverty schools are bad for business. We know that housing, transportation and education are all tied together and necessary for a strong economy. If we allow them to weaken our school system, they will weaken our economic base, we will lose jobs, will lose money. We literally can’t afford to allow this to happen.

Wake County voters fell asleep at the wheel last fall. Turnout was so low that we allowed these ideologues to gain control of the most valuable enterprise in our county-our schools. For that oversight we must all work harder to take back the helm of our schools. We need community investment and control of our schools. We need parents and students working with the experts (teachers and administrators) to create a more just and equitable school system. We need to vote in the upcoming election.

And we need your help. Please join us this Sunday, July 25 for the “After the March – Stay in the Struggle” get-together, 2-5 pm at the YWCA 554. E Hargett St. We will continue to fight. Forward Ever, Backward Never!!

Was it worth it? Yes. Will I do it again? Yes, if it’s necessary. Someone said to me today, “If the struggle ain’t worth going to jail, then it probably it ain’t worth it at all.”

Erin Byrd
Mother
Member of NAACP Political Action Committee, Black Workers for Justice and Southern Partners Fund
Employed by Blueprint NC
Tractivist

drink to progress, green your ride, and rethink “support our troops” (and vets)

Lanya — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 15:40:35 +0000

Hey Tractivists,

It’s been a hell of a week, and it’s barely half over!

Come out at Traction HQ tomorrow night and toast to progress! Then stick around for the film The Good Soldier, hosted by Tractivist and young veteran Jeremy B., and a conversation about U.S. military actions and policies that will change how you think about supporting the troops. RSVPs appreciated to soldier@getTraction.org and you can report for duty at 7pm @ 1018 Broad St.

peace mongers, good soldiers, and you

Guest Blogger — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 15:37:40 +0000

Tractivists,

When I got out of the Marines in 2004, I never thought that six years later I’d be struggling with PTSD, active in Iraq Veterans Against the War, or even need to be challenging the wars that are still going on – I just wanted to move on with my life.

When I was enlisted I wanted to be the best Marine I could be, but my own concept of what a good Marine might really be like in the context of militarism and also peace has significantly changed the last few years. With wars still going on in Iraq (yeah we’re still there) and Afghanistan, and now spreading into Pakistan and Yemen, maybe we could all be thinking a little more about what it means to serve and also how veterans transition back into our communities.

For a unique view on war, transitioning out of the military, and the complexities of military service don’t miss the film The Good Soldier.

What: The Good Soldier

When: Thurs, March 25 @ 7PM

Where: Traction HQ: 1018 Broad St. in Durham

RSVPs appreciated: soldier@getTraction.org

The Good Soldier follows the journeys of five combat veterans from different generations of American wars from WWII to the current Iraq War as they sign up, go into battle, and eventually change their minds about what it means to be a good soldier. Last summer at a meeting of Iraq Veterans Against the War and Veterans for Peace, I had the opportunity to see a screening with the filmmakers and two of the soldiers in the film and it was so powerful I got a copy to share with you all.

With today being the anniversary of the invasion of Iraq, and direct actions (including re: Don’t Ask Don’t Tell) going on all over the country, I’m hoping y’all will consider coming out to view the film next Thursday, and afterwards discuss military service, how our society can better treat soldiers and veterans, and what’s (still) going on with the military actions here and abroad.

Peace,

Jeremy Berggren

peace monger, cool scarf lover, Tractivist

P.S. Upcoming Traction events:
Thurs 3/25: ReelPolitik presents: The Good Soldier soldier@getTraction.org
Sun 4/11: Learn to shrink your car’s carbon footprint: greenmyride@getTraction.org
Sat 4/17: Trip to new civil rights museum in Greensboro: gbo@getTraction.org
plus Spring means the Traction Outdoors group is back! Write outdoors@getTraction.org to be in the loop on hikes, swims, berry-pickings and more.

P.P.S. Check out Jon Stewart’s epic hilarious, spot-on parody of Glenn Beck last night. (Thanks to Tractivist Carole Bell for the heads-up!)

bus rides, “neighborhood schools” and what really matters

Guest Blogger — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 15:33:02 +0000

Tractivists:

I grew up in one of the poorest counties and school districts in the State. During my years in the Robeson County public schools, several poor school districts were embroiled in a decade-long court battle against the State – the Leandro case, which established the right to a sound, basic education for every child in NC.

I recently relocated from the Triangle back to Robeson County. Since being home, I have become increasingly frustrated by the blatant bigotry propelling the Wake County School Board debate. The actions of a well-financed group of parents are threatening Wake’s diversity policy, which has been heralded as a “beacon of hope” for failing school districts.

My frustration spurs primarily from the weak one-legged concern raised by the “neighborhood schools” proponents – long bus rides. The anti-diversity crowd has pointed to the most extreme cases of bussing. The truth is, the vast majority of Wake County students attend a school within ten miles of their home.

The selfish and short-sighted “neighborhood schools” supporters threaten access to equitable education for every child and the future of our communities. That’s why the Wake Superintendent submitted his resignation and the NAACP-NC filed a complaint with the schools’ accrediting body. “Neighborhood schools” will inevitably lead to “tri-segregated” schools: with high concentrations of poor students, students of color and students with disabilities.

Here’s what we can do about it:

1) Speak up! Tell the school board (and anyone else who will listen) that a diverse school system improves achievement and builds better citizens and communities. There’s a second (and final) vote next Tues, the 23rd, so contact them NOW. Learn more about educational policy at a forum this Saturday or online at Great Schools in Wake and enter the debate with facts and in the interests of equitable education for ALL. More education advocates are needed to counter the current anti-student agenda.

2) Vote in your local elections and tell others about the importance of these races. The low voter turnout in the Wake County school board elections gave conservatives a 5-4 majority now bent on dismantling decades of progress. Register now and vote in every single election to ensure the interests of all are protected.

Equitable education in Wake County (one of the fastest growing areas in the country) affects our state’s economy and therefore affects us all. North Carolina cannot afford to create high-poverty schools in disadvantaged neighborhoods to benefit a few spoiled parents and their children.

So many children in this state face much harsher circumstances than simply a long ride home on the bus – including here in Robeson County where violent discipline (corporal punishment) still takes place in the schools. It is time for us to put things in perspective and to fight for all children’s right to a sound basic education.

With love,

Beth Jacobs, J.D.
Fulltime righteous radical, founder of Brown Babies, Tractivist

P.S. Upcoming Traction events:
Thurs 3/25: ReelPolitik presents: The Good Soldier soldier@getTraction.org
Sun 4/11: Green My Ride is back by popular demand: greenmyride@getTraction.org
Sat 4/17: Trip to new civil rights museum in Greensboro: gbo@getTraction.org
plus Spring means the Traction Outdoors group is back! Write outdoors@getTraction.org to be in the loop on hikes, swims, berry-pickings, canoe outings and more.

The Employee Free Choice Act : Why You Should Care and What You Can Do

Guest Blogger — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 20:13:11 +0000

While at the America’s Future Now conference, I attended a very moving panel on the Employee Free Choice Act and workers’ rights generally.
Larry Cohen of the Communications Workers of America union said that U.S. laws contain the worst repressions of workers’ rights in the democratic world. He and other speakers referred to the fight for workers’ rights as the major civil rights battle of our time.

As a progressive movement we have lots of reasons to care about the outcome of the EFCA and other labor battles. Wade Henderson of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights spoke about the many strong links between labor and the civil rights movement since the beginning. Union members not only earn higher wages, are more likely to have health care, and enjoy greater well-being at work, they also vote more progressively than non-union members and are active allies in many other progressive movements.

At Traction’s spring happy hour, MaryBe McMillan of the NC AFL-CIO asked us to take action on the Employee Free Choice Act by thanking Sen. Kay Hagan for her initial support of the bill. The message I got from the panel was that we need to KEEP talking to Sen. Hagan as well as our Representatives in the House to ask them to support (or continue to support) the EFCA. The AFL-CIO has one way to get in touch with your legislators here , or you can call or send a hand-written letter. Any way you do it, it’s important that we speak up now for labor rights.

Are you going to take action? Have you done it already? Let me know in a comment or email to cara@getTraction.org!

Join Traction at HK on J 3

Guest Blogger — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 19:22:31 +0000

Hey Tractivists

If you’re not already planning to come out to HK on J 3 this Saturday, this video will change your mind.

It’ll be great if we have a large number of Tractivists come out to send the message that Traction (and young people in general) are standing up for progressive change in NC. It’s also going to be a lot of fun and a chance to meet folks from progressive organizations from across the state.

So, get yourself to HK on J using one of these 3 easy options:

Carpool from Orange County

There’s an official group that is arranging bus seats and carpools leaving from University Mall: http://groups.google.com/group/HKonJ-OC/browse_thread/thread/c3b8a06a462c8b97/8d85edc04bfade69?show_docid=8d85edc04bfade69&pli=1

Or, email me ( cara@gettraction.org ) and we’ll meet up at Eastgate Shopping Center in Chapel Hill, near Trader Joe’s. Email me ahead of time to let me know know if you can drive or if you’ll be riding with someone else.

Carpool from Durham

Meet at Traction office (1018 Broad St.) at 8:40 AM; leave 8:45. Email me ( cara@gettraction.org ) ahead of time to let me know if you can drive or if you’ll be riding with someone else.

Meet up at Chavis Park in Raleigh

Look for the Traction crew (with Traction shirts and banner) on the playground side of the seating area. If you can’t find us, call Cara on the Traction phone at 919-Traction (919-872-2846).

Email me ( cara@gettraction.org ) ASAP to let me know you’ll be there.

See you Saturday,

Cara

Pride Traction Style (Guest Blog From Cara)

Guest Blogger — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 01:58:56 +0000

I’m proud that Traction is a leader in standing up for the LGBTIQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex, Queer) community in NC…

Pride, Traction-style, is just SO MUCH FUN! I mean, you get to check out the festival with fellow Tractivists and march together in the parade (carrying giant silver balloons that spell out TRACTION) and support an awesomely diverse community in NC.

Seriously, Pridefest is the place to be this weekend— for queer-identified and straight progressives alike! Marching in the parade alongside other groups that are working for LGBTIQ rights in our state, visiting info booths to learn more about the issues, and listening to the great speakers and musical acts are all part of this amazing festival.

Even if you’ve never been to a Pride before, or if LGBTIQ issues aren’t front and center for you, I encourage you to give Pride, Traction-style, a try. It’s my personal belief that we should support other progressives in their struggles and celebrate with them in their triumphs, and Pride is a wonderful place to celebrate some progressive triumphs.

Now that I’ve bared my Pride-lovin’ soul, I’ll get down and dirty with the details about marching with Traction in the Pride Parade…

Sat 9/27: March with Traction in the Pride Parade

NOON lineup at Duke’s East Campus

This year, we’ll have a rolling How Low Can You Vote? limbo crew, plus the giant silver TRACTION balloons and rainbows galore!

Oh, and just so we don’t show up unprepared, you’re also invited to our Pride Planning party on Friday night. Come have a drink, meet some new friends, decide what role you’ll play in our spectacular parade crew, and then stick around to watch round one of the Obama-McCain debates. Who knows, there could be dancing after…

Fri 9/26: pre-Pride happy hour (parade planning, then debate-watching) at Traction HQ

6PM Pride prep / drinking; 9PM Presidential debate-watching.

Email pride@getTraction.org to RSVP for Pride, Traction-style (Parade and/or Happy Hour).

Proudly brought to you by the letters T, R, A…

Lanya — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 01:11:12 +0000

Tractivists represent at NC Pride 2007!

As the old cheer goes… sort of… We’re here, some of us are queer, get used to it! (We’ll work on getting a bigger picture…)

Salsa party x2 — hips and dip

Lanya — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 17:20:11 +0000

Traction is throwing a salsa party!

Here’s the scoop…

What: Salsa Doble (hips and dip)
When: Sunday August 19

6pm salsa-making workshop
7pm dance lesson
8pm party

Where: the fabulous porch of Parker and Otis (formerly Fowler’s) in Durham
Who: Traction, El Pueblo, El Centro, SEEDS, Locopops and a porchload of your favorite Tractivists
Cost: $10 donation for the workshop or the dance party; get both for $17
Get your tickets here.

Since we’ll be both EATING and DANCING, we’re calling it Salsa Doble (hips and dip). And because it’s Traction, you know you’ll find spicy info about progressive issues — this time it’s immigration, farmworkers’ rights and local food — and ways to take action.
That’s right, local food. It would be WRONG to let peak tomato season pass without making some badass salsa. (Remember, friends don’t let friends buy El Paso.) So we’re throwing a salsa-making workshop. Spaces are limited…

Make a donation and get your tix here.

Hey, you know how you’ve been waiting for just the right occasion to volunteer for Traction? I think this is it. Write to salsa@getTraction.org to get in the mix…
Good food, good friends, good politics, and you’re supporting a great cause. Get your ticket now, and we’ll see you on the 19th!

H K on J: History in the making and Traction was there!

Lanya — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 03:33:26 +0000

Traction was honored to be part of H K on J, or Historic Thousands on Jones St., on Saturday.
Thousands of North Carolinians gathered in an NAACP-led People’s Assembly and adopted (by roaring acclamation) a bold 14-point progressive agenda:

1. High quality, well-funded, diverse schools for all children
2. Living wages
3. Health care for all
4. Government redress for the Wilmington Race Riots of 1898 and the forced sterilization of black women from 1947 to 1977
5. Same-day voter registration and public financing for elections
6. More funding for historically black colleges and universities
7. Redress for 200 years of discrimination in state hiring and contracting
8. Affordable housing and consumer protection
9. Criminal justice reform including abolition of the death penalty
10. Creation of an environmental job corps for youth
11. Collective bargaining for public employees
12. Immigrant rights
13. More funding for civil rights enforcement agencies
14. Bringing troops home from Iraq

Then we marched to the General Assembly and posted it there for our state legislators to see.

Thanks to Tractivist Robert S., who posted lots of H K on J clips on You Tube! Here’s one featuring several Tractivists on stage, including yours truly…

Traction represented well, with Dave, Celeste, Bria, Anne, Tamara, Brandi, Jim, Adam and many more among the marchers.

Did you take pictures? Post them to flickr and tag them HKonJ and Traction!

First, do no harm… poll on stopping executions

aidiloc — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 17:35:38 +0000

This morning a Wake County judge issued an injunction to stop two impending executions until the state of NC can come up with a new protocol for carrying out the death penalty without physicians. This comes after a new policy from the NC Medical Board prohibiting doctors from assisting in executions, because of their pledge to do no harm.

The judge’s decision this morning has brought to center stage the conflict between the oath taken by doctors and their role in executions. Go to the WRAL site and check out this story on whether or not we should stop executions that don’t have a doctor present. Then be sure to see the poll (on the right side) and vote on the issue!

Eyes on Education as a Civil Right

Lanya — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 04:58:34 +0000

Join Traction again this Tuesday to hear from local civil rights heroes & sheroes and watch another episode of the amazing Eyes on the Prize. This week, the prize is EDUCATION.

When: Tues 1/23, 7pm.
Where: Durham Food Co-op, 1101 W. Chapel Hill St. (at Buchanan).
Cost: FREE, but donations are appreciated!
Contact: eyes@getTraction.org

This week, we’ll hear from
- Irv Joyner, legendary civil rights attorney and co-chair of the NAACP-NC Legal Redress Committee
- Floyd McKissick, Jr., whose family led the fight to integrate Durham’s public schools
- Tractivist Torrey Dixon, fellow at the UNC Center for Civil Rights who’s monitoring the Leandro decision and the state of NC education today

Then we’ll watch Episode 2:
Fighting Back (1957-62), on the legal and street showdowns to desegregate the public schools. (Afterwards, some of us will watch the State of the Union address either at the Co-op or somewhere else nearby where we can get a stiff drink…)

By popular demand, we’re making this a weekly series, as we learn from our elders, watch the most critically acclaimed documentary on civil rights in America, and ground ourselves in the ongoing progressive and civil rights movement. Until…

On Feb 10th, Tractivists will join the NAACP and many other progressive organizations for a movement-building event in Raleigh called Historic Thousands on Jones Street, or H K on J!

You won’t want to miss H K on J, so mark your calendar and sign up now!

Note: Episode Information: Fighting Back (1957-1962)
States’ rights loyalists and federal authorities collide in the 1957 battle to integrate Little Rock’s Central High School, and again in James Meredith’s 1962 challenge to segregation at the University of Mississippi. Both times, a Southern governor squares off with a U.S. president, violence erupts — and integration is carried out.

A time comes when silence is betrayal…

Lanya — Fri, 12 Jan 2007 06:51:36 +0000

“… and that time has come for us in relation to Vietnam.”
—Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

This year, Traction and the Durham Food Co-op add our collective voices to the chorus celebrating the life and legacy of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King.

Join us on Tuesday 1/16 to learn from our elders as we watch an episode of Eyes on the Prize, and talk with local civil rights leaders. We’ll watch Episode 10: The Promised Land (1967-68), wherein Dr. King speaks out against the war in Vietnam and embarks on a Poor People’s Campaign, calling for a radical redistribution of economic power.

Before the film, we’ll hear from some LOCAL civil rights heroes and sheroes, including R. Kelly Bryant, Jr. (pictured), who led a large-scale 1968 boycott calling for changes in welfare, housing, and employment practices in Durham.

And we’ll learn about ongoing civil rights work, including the VERY exciting NC NAACP-led People’s Assembly known as H K on J (Historic Thousands on Jones St.), coming up on Feb 10th in Raleigh.

“… We are dealing with issues that cannot be solved without the nation spending billions of dollars and undergoing a radical redistribution of economic power.”
—Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

When: Tues 1/16, 7pm
Where: Durham Food Co-op, 1101 W. Chapel Hill St. (at Buchanan)
Cost: FREE, but donations are appreciated
Questions & RSVPs: eyes-AT-getTraction-DOT-org

Pride, not Prejudice

Lanya — Sat, 07 Oct 2006 20:44:46 +0000

Tractivists!

Is there any doubt that you stole the show at the NC Pride parade? None whatsoever.

Picture, if you will, a bike rickshaw pulling a giant beautiful patchwork kite, with anywhere from 6-20 Tractivists dancing and cheering in its wake. The rickshaw driver and the two mannequins riding in back were all decked out in Traction T-shirts and the crowd went wild! We warmed them up for the very sexy men on the Legends float right behind us.

We couldn’t have done it without Anne, Celeste, Keith from Greenway Pedicabs (so cool), Keith’s partner Kira, and Chris! Anyone with pictures, please send them to getTraction@gmail.com and we’ll post them on our flickr site: http://flickr.com/photos/traction/
P.S. Coming up later this month:
10/12 Jesus Camp advance screening (we’ve got free tix)
10/14 Bill Scher, author of “Wait! Don’t Move to Canada!” at the Regulator
10/21 Early Voting Tail-gate Party (Are you registered to vote???)

Celebrate our local harvest!

Kelly — Wed, 06 Sep 2006 20:30:58 +0000

Hey Tractivists,

Join Traction this Saturday, Sept 9th to celebrate our local harvest with a two-part event: a morning conversation about local food plus an evening potluck!

We’ll meet at the Durham Farmers’ Market at 10:30am, talk with Tractivists who know their local food and sustainability issues (your chance to find out about that CSA thing), and do a little shopping for the week. Then we’ll reconvene at 7pm for a community potluck dinner. It will be fun *and delicious* to share what we and our local farmers have grown this summer.

Some Food for Thought:
– The average American meal travels 1500 miles to your table!
–> After I flew to California this spring, I decided Cali was just too far away for my organic veggies. Then I discovered the Durham Farmers’ Market and was hooked. When you come, you’ll find out why!
– Farmers’ markets enable farmers to keep 80 to 90 cents of each dollar spent by the consumer as opposed to only 9 cents by traditional groceries!
– Throughout history, humans have eaten 80,000 plant species — 3,000 of them consistently. Industrial Agriculture has narrowed it to only 8 different crops for 75% of the world’s food!
– Local food means variety, biodiversity and sustainability.
– Wonder why high-fructose corn syrup shows up in almost everything? Uh, maybe it’s the subsidies in the obscure Farm Bill, which dictates the lay of the land (millions of acres of it), the food most Americans eat and therefore our very health! It’s up for debate in 2007.
– Getting a family to quit eating factory-farmed meat will cause a greater reduction in carbon emissions than switching to a hybrid car!

Here in this Fast Food Nation of ours, folks clearly want things to be fast, easy and cheap –- especially food -– and cooking is seen as work. The Slow Food movement is about recovering relationships with food, the land, and community. What’s so powerful is how Slow Food values (buying local, eating in community) can make such an impact on so many important issues: social justice, health care, workers’ rights (Labor Day is around the corner), sustainability, animal cruelty, global warming, family farms, land conservation, and the list goes on.

Put your politics where your mouth is, and join Traction in saving the world, one delicious bite at a time:

Saturday, Sept 9 at 10:30 am
Gather for local food discussion at the Durham Farmers’ Market.
(Optional FREE yoga at 9am)

Saturday, Sept 9 at 7pm
Harvest potluck at Kelly’s apartment
Please bring a home-cooked dish (preferably vegetarian), a plate, and anything else inspiring to share.

Please RSVP for either/both events and for directions to kelly@getTraction.org, and let me know what you’re bringing.

Kindest regards,

Kelly
Tractivist, local food addict and amateur cook

More resources for those who hunger (sorry, couldn’t help it!):
A fantastic article about local food from the Durham Food Co-op’s latest newsletter: http://www.sustainabletable.org/issues/buylocal/.

And the current issue of The Nation is all about food, with contributions from Alice Waters and Wendell Berry.

Upcoming Event: Community Sustainability Festival at the Durham Food Co-op, Sept 23, 10am-8pm.

Speaking of building community, two apartments are available in my quaint older house in beautiful Trinity Park (close to downtown and Duke East). I would love to live near other Tractivists! There’s a 1-bedroom (ground floor) and a 3-bedroom (upper level) available immediately. Blair (also a Tractivist) is the owner: 593-0360.