Pandemic Solidarity: Mutual Aid During the Covid-19 Crisis

305 Pages·2020·6.712 MB·English

by  Marina Sitrin (editor), Colectiva Sembrar (editor)

Pandemic Solidarity
‘Just what we need so desperately in this moment. How we come
out of this pandemic will shape the future of humanity. Now,
as never before, we have to break the deadly logic of capital. A
beautiful and important book.’
John Holloway, author of Change the World Without Taking Power
‘In the midst of a global crisis, we must listen, learn, and build
with people from around the world – the essays and insights
collected here help us do just that. A crisis is a turning point, and
this valuable book can serve as a guide to a better future.’
Astra Taylor, director of What Is Democracy?
‘Our better angels live just around the block, everywhere. These
stories teach us of the enormous potential for love and resistance
in a world threatened by apocalyptic capitalism.’
Mike Davis, author of City of Quartz
‘Mutual aid, solidarity and commoning become most visible
during periods of deep crisis. This is when the structures of the
state and of capitalist markets not only fail to address the emer-
gency situation, but they often show their complicity in making it
worse. When solidarity is revealed to the majority as the practice
that makes a difference, it is as if society en masse were to whisper
in our ear its desire to evolve: “I want to evolve, I want to evolve,
but my evolution depends on you,” says society. And again: “Make
this relational care embedded in solidarity the new gravitational
point around which a new world is built.” This book listens to this
whisper and inspires us all along the path to social change.’
Massimo De Angelis, author of Omnia Sunt Communia: On the
Commons and the Transformation to Postcapitalism
FireWorks
Series editors:
Gargi Bhattacharyya, Professor of Sociology,
University of East London
Anitra Nelson, Associate Professor, Honorary Principal Fellow,
Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, University of
Melbourne
Wilf Sullivan, Race Equality Office, Trade Union Congress
Also available
Reinventing the Welfare State:
Digital Platforms and Public Policies
Ursula Huws
Exploring Degrowth:
A Critical Guide
Vincent Liegey and Anitra Nelson
Fireworks
Pandemic Solidarity
Mutual Aid During the
Covid-19 Crisis
Edited by Marina Sitrin
and
Colectiva Sembrar
Foreword by Rebecca Solnit
First published 2020 by Pluto Press
345 Archway Road, London N6 5AA
www.plutobooks.com
Copyright © Marina Sitrin 2020
All publishing royalties will be distributed amongst Colectiva
Sembrar, who will then share them with groups and movements doing
mutual aid and solidarity work.
The right of the individual contributors to be identified as the authors
of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN 978 0 7453 4317 4 Hardback
ISBN 978 0 7453 4316 7 Paperback
ISBN 978 0 7453 4320 4 PDF eBook
ISBN 978 0 7453 4319 8 Kindle eBook
ISBN 978 0 7453 4318 1 EPUB eBook
Typeset by Stanford DTP Services, Northampton, England
Contents
List of Figures viii
Series Preface x
Foreword by Rebecca Solnit xi
Introduction by Marina Sitrin xvi
About Colectiva Sembrar xxv
PART I GREATER MIDDLE EAST
(ROJAVA, TURKEY AND IRAQ)
1. Communal Lifeboat: Direct Democracy in
Rojava (NE Syria) 3
Emre Sahin and Khabat Abbas
2. “Capitalism Kills, Solidarity Gives Life”:
A Glimpse of Solidarity Networks from Turkey 18
Seyma Özdemir
3. Solidarity Network in Iraq During Covid-19:
This Time the Enemy is Invisible 35
Midya Khudhur
PART II SOUTH AND EAST ASIA
(TAIWAN, SOUTH KOREA AND INDIA)
4. Sharing Spaces and Crossing Borders:
Voices from Taiwan 53
Chia-Hsu Jessica Chang
vi ◆ PANDEMIC SOLIDARITY
5. Standing in Solidarity with Those Who Must
Refuse to Keep Social Distance: Disability
Activism in South Korea 71
Ji Young Shin (translated by Han Gil Jang)
6. Rethinking Minority and Mainstream in India 90
Debarati Roy
PART III SOUTHERN AFRICA (MOZAMBIQUE,
SOUTH AFRICA AND ZIMBABWE)
7. Confronting State Authoritarianism: Civil
Society and Community-Based Solidarity in
Southern Africa 105
Boaventura Monjane
PART IV EUROPE (PORTUGAL, GREECE,
ITALY AND THE UK)
8. On Intersectional Solidarity in Portugal 123
Lais Gomes Duarte and Raquel Lima
9. Solidarity Flourishes Under Lockdown in Italy 138
Eleanor Finley
10. Solidarity Networks in Greece 154
EP and TP
11. Viral Solidarity: Experiences from the UK 167
Neil Howard
PART V TURTLE ISLAND (NORTH AMERICA)
12. Turtle Island 183
carla bergman and magalí rabasa with Ariella
Patchen and Seyma Özdemir
CONTENTS ◆ vii
PART VI SOUTH AMERICA
(ARGENTINA AND BRAZIL)
13. Argentina: Injustices Magnified; Memories of
Resistance Reactivated 233
Nancy Viviana Piñeiro and Liz Mason-Deese
14. On Grassroots Organizing: Excerpts from Brazil 249
Vanessa Zettler
Concluding to Begin 263
Colectiva Sembrar
Notes on Contributors 266
Index 272
List of Figures
1.1 Commune collective member distributing
food packets in Haseke 11
1.2 Geography teacher from Qamishlo recording
her class for TV broadcast 15
2.1 and 2.2 Neighborhood outreach material
from the Kadikoy Solidarity Network 20
3.1 Making masks, Samawah 39
3.2 Preparing food supplies, Samawah. Rasan
giving masks to police officers 40
3.3 Preparing food supplies, Duhok. The dry food
is a sample of what Rasan has donated 40
4.1 The Minnan marionette is performed to elders
in Hsin-Kang 57
4.2 Taiwanese wheel pies stamped with the
“thank you” note were donated to the hospitals
in Taipei 65
5.1 Kwon Suchin working on a placard that reads:
“Proper COVID-19 Relief for People with
Disabilities!” 75
5.2 People dancing on stage with singer
Im Chŏngtŭk 83
7.1 A South African policeman points his pump
rifle to disperse a crowd of shoppers in Yeoville,
Johannesburg, on March 28, 2020 while trying
to enforce a safety distance outside a
supermarket 106
LIST OF FIGURES ◆ ix
7.2 Food parcels by the People Against Suffering,
Oppression and Poverty (PASSOP) to LGBT
people, disabled refugees and asylum seekers
during the national lockdown in April, Cape
Town, South Africa 117
8.1. and 8.2 Taken in the context of the Popular
Network for Mutual Support in Oporto, by
one of the activists 127
9.1 Solidarity Shopping – Don’t Panic: Let’s
Organize! volunteers pick up food at the local
food bank for distribution. Their campaign
now feeds over 450 families 140
9.2 Don’t Panic: Let’s Organize! volunteers
organize food like bread, flour and tuna fish
for distribution at Ritmo Lento 140
12.1 Capitalism is a virus, colonialism is a plague 204
12.2 Free them all 205
12.3 Mutual Aid Rosie 213
13.1 Hogar artwork. Monocopy print with nylon
and xylography 234
13.2 School, base for food distribution 240
14.1 Indigenous community in Jaragua 251
14.2 Favela da Maré in Rio de Janeiro 255
14.3 and 14.4 From the MST food distribution 261
Author photo collage 264
Flower image/drawing 265