T R A C T I O N

                                                            

“If I can’t dance, I don’t want to be part of your revolution.”

~  Emma Goldman 

 

Traction = a social network of left-leaning 20- and 30-somethings who are spicing up progressive activism by throwing fun, issue-based events that inform, inspire and connect us with other savvy Gen X & Yers.    

Get in the loop: Join our tractivist email list .     

 

 

 

 

Coming up . . .

 

Mark your calendar: Saturday, Dec 10th starting at 4:30pm

 

 

You don’t like the commercialism of the holiday season.  Neither do we. 

 

Traction invites you to be a compassionate consumer and . . .   

 

Fight the System

 

                                         at

 

Festivus, for the Left of us!

 

 

Food and drink

spoken word, dance & music performances

fun-making with other local progressives  

+ Festivus traditions: airing of grievances & feats of strength

 

all with a Traction twist

 

 

And feel subversive as you buy holiday gifts at our silent auction . . .   

 

 

EVERYONE’s boycotting Wal-Mart this year.  Why not be ahead of the curve?

Invest in the future of the progressive movement by doing your holiday shopping at our silent auction fundraiser,

featuring works of local artists, plus goods and, um, services donated by Tractivists and local merchants. 

 

We’ve got everything a progressive heart could desire – massages, surf lessons, scrabble dates, handmade jewelry, a chocolate lesson, Spanish conversation, pet-sitting, even a vacation home in the mountains. . .  Plus fabulous artwork.

Stay tuned for more info and save up your holiday shopping!

 

 

Saturday, December 10th            

Starting at 4:30pm (auction ends at 6:30pm)                                        

Broad St. Café

1116 Broad St.  in Durham              

 

RSVP here.  And if you have something of value to donate (a piece of art, a thing, a skill – be creative) and/or you want to help with the Festivus party, let us know ASAP -- tractivists are teaming and scheming as we speak and we want YOU. 

 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Recent Traction events . . .

 

 

Sept 24 anti-war demonstration in DC

 

 

Hundreds of thousands of progressives converged in DC on September 24 for a massive anti-war demonstration, and Traction represented.  More than 50 Tractivists got there via planes, trains, automobiles and of course the Traction bus!  See more about it here. 

 

 

 

We’re actually doing so much that our website can’t keep up.  Click here for just a *taste* of our past events. . .

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Coming up in the future. . .

o   more ReelPolitik movie nights

o   Poker for Progressives

o   Dog trick-a-thon fundraiser w/ nat’l celebri-dogs Gumbo & Macho

o   Multi-media presentation on the DREAM Act (Traction youth core)

o   the formation of a progressive playgroup for parents of young lefties

 

Contact us to help plan these coming attractions!  

 

We’d also appreciate your financial support.  Click here to make a donation.  Thanks!

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Traction gets some ink…

 

The Herald-Sun, 25 Sept 2005: 

 

Excerpts:

Three Durham-based groups organized the trip. Lanya Shapiro, founder of a newly formed activism group called Traction, said she wanted to show that North Carolina had a large number of people opposed to the war despite being home to a number of military bases.

"I think it's phenomenal," Shapiro said. "I'm blown away by the sheer volume of people who think we need to end this war now."

 

Yesenia Polanco, a 22-year-old law student at the University of the District of Columbia [and founding member of Traction], met up with the group from her hometown of Durham to help show how important demonstrations were in getting messages to elected officials.

"We're here to join the rest of America against a war that should never have started," Polanco said.

 

The Herald-Sun, 20 June 2005:

Excerpts:

      . . . Shapiro organized a sustainable energy tour that was to lead bike riders to three Bull City homes using solar energy and energy-efficient appliances to reduce energy consumption.  The tour was sponsored by Traction, a 2-month old social network created by Shapiro, an activist, to get people in their 20s and 30s engaged in the political process.  Although Traction is a political group, some of the 18 people who took the six-mile tour signed up merely for the exercise or more tips on how to save energy.  [Traction says: That’s the not-so-secret plan…]

      The group also stopped at Eileen Thorsos’ apartment, one of two homes on the tour using passive solar energy.  Among the features were a wall of windows on the south side of the apartment, allowing optimal sun exposure in both the summer and winter.  The brick floor also acted as a thermal mass, absorbing and then radiating heat to help keep temperatures constant.

      “I think people should be demanding this kind of construction, because it’s not expensive, but it’s very effective,” Thorsos said.

                                                      

 

The Independent, 4 May 2005:

After dressing down some prominent players, Bob Geary writes:

here’s a few names on the upside of the ledger:

Lanya Shapiro: You may recognize her e-mail address, givebushtheboot(at)earthlink(dot)net. I think of her as Durham's answer to Blaise Strenn of Raleigh (an Indy "Citizen Award" winner in '04), the hardest-working progressive activist in the Bull City. Anyway, Shapiro's starting Traction – short for Triangle Action – "to jump-start civic engagement among 20-something and 30-something progressives." (Guess I'll have to start Re-Laxion, for the over-50 set, myself.) Her idea is to make politics hip with movies, open-mic nights, cool speakers, even a dodgeball team, while also letting folks share information about their local issues and candidates. "It's about watching Baked Alaska, a movie about global warming, and then working to get an HOV lane on I-40," Shapiro says. She could use some help, including $$$. Or, for that matter, $$. For starters, drop her a note and get some traction.”

 

 (Aw, thanks Bob!  We’re blushing!) 

 

If you’d like to contribute some $$$ (or $$), THANK YOU!!  Click here to make a deposit in the karma bank.

                                                                                          

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Traction gets some help???

 

Think this website could be spiffed up?  Tell us something we DON’T know! 

 

So what’s stopping you from putting your noggin to good use?  We’d like nothing more than to take advantage of you in ALL KINDS of ways…

 

To volunteer, email us and tell us what you’re good for.  (Don’t be modest now.)

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

For more info on Traction, don’t dilly-dally.  Email us.

 

 

 

 

This is a brand new website and organization!  Stay tuned for frequent updates as we get more Traction…                                                Last updated: 21 November 2005