My summer of 2020 was characterized by a feeling of helplessness and abundant but unwelcome free time. I decided that the best way to cope with both would be to get involved in mutual aid. I was familiar with the concept of mutual aid as defined by Robecca Solnit (2022): “Mutual aid has generally meant aid offered in a spirit of solidarity and reciprocity, often coming from within struggling communities, empowering those aided, and with an eye towards liberation and social change.” While mutual aid is often depoliticized, it has its origins in anarchist thought and has been practiced in marginalized communities for centuries. “Solidarity, not charity” is the phrase used to sum up the central principle. I recognize that while I may be in a position to support others now, I may need assistance in the future.
Before the pandemic, I rarely worked with complete strangers to support complete strangers. I tested the waters by volunteering with groups supporting the George Floyd protests in May-June 2020. I also volunteered with Mutual Aid L.A. remotely, connecting people to resources on applying for unemployment and pandemic relief. This summer, after moving to downtown L.A, I began working with Solidarity and Snacks (SAS), a mutual aid group focused on Skid Row.
SAS has an active Instagram and a Signal chat of ~50 people. We hold Zoom meetings, update information in shared Google documents, and use social media to raise funds and share news. Our distribution site also functions as an offline information hotspot (Fisher & Fulton, 2022). Much of the information we exchange is gathered through lived experience rather than research. Some volunteers are themselves Skid Row residents, and their expertise is invaluable in meeting community needs. SAS is situated within a larger, overlapping network of activists and organizers who share information and resources. We draw on the research of tenants’ rights organizations, disability advocates, legal advisors, public health experts, and so on. Many of the members of SAS are IATSE (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees) members and draw on their professional experience with planning and delivery logistics.
My sense of membership in these intersecting communities is manifold. I share ties of political affinity with members of SAS, but we are foremost an instrumental community with a shared goal. Because our group focuses on a particular location, we are united on a proximate basis (Fisher & Fulton, 2022). I am also someone who receives aid, so I have multiple identities within this network. SAS is explicitly non-hierarchical. While there may be core members who are more involved than others at a given time, there are no leaders and participation levels fluctuate.
I plan to continue working with Solidarity and Snacks and other mutual aid organizations for years to come. Through mutual aid, I have gotten to know my geographical community, built a relationship with my unhoused neighbors, and made small material differences in people’s lives. I also know that I have a network to turn to for assistance if and when I need it.
References:
Fisher, K. & Fulton, C. (2022). Information Communities. In S. Hirsh (Ed.), Information Services Today: An Introduction (3rd ed., pp. 41-52). Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
Solnit, R. (2020, May 14). ‘The way we get through this is together’: the rise of mutual aid under coronavirus. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/14/mutual-aid-coronavirus-pandemic-rebecca-solnit
Further Reading: