2008 Great Lakes Anarchist Gathering: Creating an Example of Outing Those in Power...

Members of the RNC Welcoming Committee attended the Great Lakes Anarchist Gathering in Toledo, Ohio on June 6-8 to present up to date information on the organizing surrounding the RNC and to participate in skill sharing and network building. Along with this and an Unconventional Denver presentation, the weekend of workshops included topics on the history of anarchism, collective housing, womyn's health, future networking amongst anarchists in the Midwest, the Toledo Riots and more. Though this gathering was not specifically centered on RNC/DNC organizing, GLAG was a congregation of 25 or so anarchists from around the area getting together to strengthen ideas on anarchist theory, share resources and further solidify our solidarity in the good ol' Midwest.

We appreciate Toledo putting time and energy into organizing this conference and welcoming us into their communities. The experience was educational and offered space for both formal and informal networking. Though this was a positive experience overall, the members of the Welcoming Committee that attended this event would like to address some concerns that came up during the weekend.

Although we have seen similar issues arise throughout our travels across the country, we found GLAG especially egregious and so will speak to GLAG specifically while recognizing that these issues of perpetuating a male chauvinist culture have deep roots in every corner of the country including our own. When discussing these issues we feel two environments need to be addressed, both the environment outside the GLAG conference and the workshops within.

1) The social environment outside the organizing aspect of GLAG was heavily heterosexist in its behavior, focused on an atmosphere of drinking, partying and male-dominated dialog that often seemed to focus on who had the best knowledge of anarchist theory or the most experience shooting automatic weaponry in a sort of alpha-male pissing contest. Many of the female-bodied folks in these environments were not part of these discussions, but were expected to listen as the men displayed the plumage of their militancy. The womyn also constantly fed into a role of organizing logistics or serving the misogynistic environment of the party itself. The environment around GLAG, in essence, came off much like a frat house with a compost bin.

2) The GLAG workshops were dominated by men, both in facilitation and participation. The one womyn-based forum that was present at GLAG was focused on womyn’s health and was treated into a co-ed environment. When topics on menstruation were brought to the table, many male-bodied folks were ambivalent to engage in productive conversations about female health and one individual in particular stated something to the effect of, “I’m comfortable with my body; I don’t understand why you can’t be comfortable with yours.” This workshop turned into a conversation on gender dynamics, where some female-bodied individuals felt attacked and left to defend their views on gender as anarchist womyn.

It is important to remind each other of the power dynamics that still exist in and outside our political circles. We must constantly acknowledge to ourselves and others that the cultural adaptations of patriarchy, chauvinism and heterosexist behavior are still prevalent within one another, regardless of whether we consider ourselves "anarchist" or not. To try and step outside of this cultural discourse takes time and energy, and we must constantly help each other to unlearn these behaviors that have been so embedded into us from day one.

The representatives of the Welcoming Committee that attended GLAG acknowledge these power dynamics hold true within our groups as well, and will continue to try and maintain an accountability process to confront them. It is not okay to allow abusive and destructive behavior to occur at a meeting, convergence or event and then let the perpetrators or the male-privileged return home as if nothing has happened. For upcoming consultas and the conventions, we encourage national input in regards to this issue, but we would also like to request that other anarchist and radical groups consider making anti-oppression theory and the practice thereof a part of local dialogues surrounding the convention and other future projects. We must all work to identify how domination affects the internal dynamics of organizing groups. Consider:

-Who makes most of the decisions?
-Who speaks out in the group the most?
-Who creates the working process?
-Who bottom-lines facilitation, workshops and overall organizing activities?
-How does not having a sober space effect those in recovery or other issues surrounding substance use?
-A punk house party is not a child friendly environment. What is the effect on radical parents who are often experienced organizers that don't fit into the normative partying young male-centric framework?

When addressing these issues and bringing them to light, the privileged should be encouraged to keep each other in check. This will not fix all of the supremacy issues in our communities, but can serve as a means to increase participation of the commonly silenced as well as increase our overall solidarity with one another in a world where these dynamics overshadow our true intentions.