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Big leap forward for ACORN and organizing, if I could be so bold as to say so, as organizers and allies came together in two great meetings in Heerlen.
The first was in a surprising venue, as the ACORN Organizing School took its show on the road in the Netherlands. We were meeting in the actual circle where the Heerlen city council – all 37 members with name plates that signified their party affiliation – meets to do its regular business. In classic ACORN style, we might accurately call this a sit-in, but it was by invitation, which never happens.
Ron Mayer, our longtime comrade and friend in Heerlen, who had arranged the venue for the training, briefed me earlier on the historic architecture that informed the space. When it was built originally, Holland was 90% Catholic. The ceiling above the desks was a giant circular glasswork. The message of the design was that when the city directors opened the doors to come in, even without turning on the lights, God was watching from above.
So be it, more than 40 organizers, leaders, and activists from around the Netherlands as well as from Sicily, Belgium, India, and Malta, as well as Canada and the United States, went through an introduction to community organizing. There was door knocking and of course role plays for everyone to test their skills. We detailed the outline for an ACORN organizing drive and then jumped into issue campaigns in small groups that were tackling how to win retrofits for substandard housing, which is a global issue. Good times with good people!
Wham, bang, within hours, back at the ranch, the rest of the organizers from around the ACORN world from France and the UK were also showing up at NIVON, where we were meeting in a giant house that serves as a dormitory of sorts for meetings, small and large. NIVON is a large volunteer operation and so was dinner, except in our case, it was assigned to first to Scotland with the USA on cleanup, breakfast by Canada, and so on. New Orleans will be featuring jambalaya as a treat.
When the meeting convened, we were more than 50 packed cheek-to-jowl in the meeting room, as every country gave a report on their progress. There were the usual stars who recorded another great year. It had been the 20th anniversary of ACORN Canada and the 10th anniversary of ACORN in England, for example. Jet lag and all other obstacles took a back seat as organizers listened with great interest to the reports from new affiliates in Malta and emerging ones in Belgium and the US. We were having our first detailed briefing, so it was fascinating.
It’s always hard to win a doubleheader, but we had managed. To top it off, the debut of the translation equipment got high marks and the meeting venue itself even seem to be passing with a good grade. We’ll be at this for days, so let’s hope, we’re on a roll in Heerlen!
ACORN International is growing stronger every day! With passionate organizers trained to lead new regional branches, we’re proud to announce exciting expansions across Europe, Asia, and Africa. From Germany to Kenya, and from Belgium to India, our teams are hitting the streets, knocking on doors, and empowering communities with the tools to build grassroots power.
Here’s a glimpse of the global movement in action:
Together, we’re building a world where everyone has the power to win! Let’s keep growing and fighting for justice worldwide!
The Affiliated Media Foundation Movement (AM/FM) continues to move forward with their wide-spread Voice of the People campaign, with an approved construction permit in North Carolina, and a series of successful meetings this month with station applicants in Fayetteville, NC, Helena, AR, Fresno and Antioch, CA, and Richmond, VA under our belt.
In response to the Dharavi Redevelopment Project, a government initiative aimed at transforming Asia’s largest slum. Building on momentum from last month, the Hawker’s Joint Action Committee organized a regional meeting of street vendors to demand trade licenses and social protections.
In June, Living Rent Glasgow successfully launched a new chapter in Toryglen. Members unanimously voted on their first campaign: to get Sanctuary Housing to clean the clogged gutters, which will protect the and they elected their first committee!
This June, ACORN Peru continued important programming that provides healthy food and music education for young people, supporting well-rounded education and increased nutrition for the future generations.
We are thrilled to announce that The Popular Struggle Coordinating Committee has joined ACORN International! The PSCC was born from informal cooperation and shared mobilization across grassroots groups in the early 2000s that came together to form the PSCC; a steering body for diverse local efforts united in their desire for non-violent resistance across Palestine. We are proud to join forces!
A Community Voice collaborated with frequent partner Anthropocene Alliance to promote hurricane response and resources, including a helpful hurricane prep checklist.
ACORN UK hosted their national UK conference in Leeds, with more than 200 ACORN delegates from more than 30 attendants across the UK in attendance! Members celebrated wins, including a recent action where four hundred members had successfully beaten back TSB bank requirements for mandatory rent increases, and ACORN UK’s ten year anniversary of collective organizing! Of course, the actions continued, with ACORN Bristol advocating for a member to be able to stay in their home after the city council rejected their right of succession. The good work continues!
ACORN Canada celebrated 20 years of community organizing at their 7th Biennial National Convention in Oshawa, with over 250 members attending from coast to coast! Members marched to the CMHC office in Toronto to deliver 300+ tenant testimonials and demand that the Renters Bill of Rights set National Tenant Rights Standards.
