# Conversations with Gamechangers: Cooperation Jackson Speaker : [[Kali Akuno]] of [[Cooperation Jackson]] Part of [[Conversations with Gamechangers]] series. It was an intro to coops, and CJ in particular, followed by questions. ```plantuml @startmindmap + CJ ++ community organising +++ unions +++ coops -- Jackson water crisis ---_ broken treatment facility ---_ no availability of drinking water ++ Jackson Kush-Plan +++ dual power ++++ people's assemblies +++ democratising the economy ++++_ coops +++ running for elected office @endmindmap ``` - currently a water crisis in Jackson - currently in the middle of distribution event - types of community organising - organising by trades (union style) - cooperatives - originally coops serviced social and reproductive needs - child care coops, etc - after: a compromise during 1930s compromise - capital struck a deal with some labour leaders - national labour board etc - set it up so that labour could only work for wages, hours, and healthcare - but removed ability for political strikes and political action - one union can not work in concert with other set of workers - same as UK - social security and social welfare as well - removed the need for social organising in a sense - divorced the coops from the trade unions - limiting what both could do in terms of power and struggle, became special interest groups within bourgeious order - coop jackson are intentional in trying to break that - history exists in a context of colonization, white power and patriarchy - black workers did not work in industries that were allowed to be unionzed - e.g. farming or maids - because of race - black workers were excluded from trade unions - lost the ability to own the means of production - CJ developing model that gets out of these relations of production - Jackson, rouhgly 220,000 in Jackson - it has shrunk to about 160-180 thousand in recent years - 80% of city is black - brain drain: black doctors from Mississipi move elsewhere in the US - 85% population is potential leverage of political power - black political power - Jackson-Kush Plan - automous independent power, dual power - self-governance through people's assemblies - democratising the economy - CJ was explicitly for this part of it - **political power without economic power is symbol without substance** - additionally running for elected office - two mayors have been elected - a young project with a lot of experimentation - mistake have been made, CJ aim to learn from them - CJ about 8 years old - accomplishments: - [[community land trust]] - 44 properties - collectively-owned - saved up money to own outright - (CJ don't trust banks, racist institutions) - network of federated [[cooperatives]] - Green Team (landscaping cooperative) - Freedom Farms (hit hard by water crisis) - [[Community Production Coop]] - manufacturing coop - digital fabrication coop, 3d printing, electrical design and craft, print shop - in the pipeline - Zero Waste Jackson (recycling and composting coop) - People's Groceries - Cannabis coop - medicinal cannabis coop - hemp and bamboo as sustainable materials for the CPC - withstand pressures of capitalist market - largest employer in Mississipi is Wal-Mart - a vicious corporation - they want no form of competition - some coops have failed, but there's space to do that - owning gives this time and space for learning - one coop failed (previous recycling and composting coop) - too tightly coupled to city system - city shut everything down, then the coop failed - walmart investor in recreational cannabis in mississipi - to democratise economy - create supply and value chains - most coops in US - constructed on friends and favours orientation - 10 people who like the same thing, turn it in to an income - in CJ, given poverty etc - what will given the most independence from market structure and political leverage? - e.g. food was weaponised during hurricane katrina, so ownership of food supply is strategic - a lot of trial and error in CJ - that's something to get used to in solidarity economy ## questions ### how are the people's assemblies organised and used? ### what does the solidarity economy mean to CJ? - what are CJ striving against? - entrepreneuriship has been promoted in black community as answer to all problems - i.e. individual ownership - but this is a continuation of unequal relationships - prefer individuality over individualism - **solidarity is the antidote to individualism** - being in alignment and in practice with people who are not your blood or kin or clan, but your community - productive relationships where we consciously and deliberately depend upon each other ### how to get started in Solidarity economy - start with what you have - avoid thinking in terms of deficits - e.g. if you don't have a job, maybe you have a lot of time - who can I work with and how can I work with them ### water crisis in Jackson - there's no affordable drinking water currently in Jackson - water pressure has been restored (since about a week ago) - sanitary system was not functioning - need to avoid airborne diseases - it's a hot and humid region - malaria and denge fever and sleeping sickness are coming back - to get bottled water you would have had to go 20 miles out of the city (last week) - now if you get to a grocery store early in the morning you can buy water - most people don't have enough money to go and buy water - CJ doing water distribution - all the faith and community organisations are doing water distribution - but still not enough people are getting water - if you don't have a car, you can't get enough water - CJ going to members in the community and doing water drop offs - working age people are off working elsewhere sending money back - reverse bell curve for the population (lots of young and elderly) - no indication as to when the water will be restored - problems - pipes are old, antiquated and lead, they break a lot - treatment facility is broken - it's not cleaning the water - billions of dollars to build a new treatment facility - state government is refusing to give money for this - racial component to how it is playing out - state government redirecting money from federal government to white neighbourhoods outside of jackson ### how did jackson get going? - it was a long time in gestation - going back generations - then in 2001… - group decided to get together and pool resources - $50 a month in to collective pool - to buy land in mississipi - a lot of patience, a lot of discipline - first purchase in 2011 - additionally some athletes and entertainers from the area - they've given back - property values are low in mississipi and in jackson - might not have been able to do the same thing in atlanta for example ### how to avoid cooptation? - foundations come and offer grants with a lot of conditions - have to be patient and disciplined and don't be tempted by these - a long-term intergenerational vision and being able to stick to it ### accountability processes? - open communication and transparent communication ### threats to CJ from the state etc - the most concerning of late - mississipi has a supermajority that controls state legislature now - passing preventative laws - e.g. climate justice - after helping with committment to reducing emissions by about 10% in a couple of years… - state legislature - said mississipi must not adhere to any EU standards around climate - so CJ have had to censor themselves to some degree - FBI sniffing around, trying to intimidate - they've been infiltrated, disruption ### how to get those on low income involved? - don't just assume that people can participate - that is classist and gendered - low dues - but if can't afford it, then give us some time - building up systems that allow people to participate - e.g. single mothers - provide childcare