Comment on It's a wild life out there!
faythofdragons@piefed.social 1 day agoIt might be easier to think of mutual aid as an informal economy where the goal is to distribute resources and knowledge for the purpose of making sure people are taken care of vs profiting.
How is that not what I’m describing though? We want to break away from the formal system, that has failed us, and set up a parallel system of localized support.
I fail to see how bidding on a pot of money is more closely aligned with mutual aid than helping your neighbors distribute produce from the community garden.
Arcanepotato@crazypeople.online 1 day ago
Again, maybe I am not understanding the details.
Are the people who are providing the food/funding/organization realistically likely to depend on this system in the future? I think it’s more important that they understand that they are building a system they will also rely on vs any “there but for the grace of god I go” type thought.
If so, then it’s mutual aid. If instead the parallel system depends on people with no connection to the need, it’s charity.
I knew that wasn’t the best article but I didn’t want to depend on my own second hand experience to describe it because I am not Tamil.
The bid example didn’t include uses like the author describes in the beginning:
It’s pooling money to be dispersed for the good of the community in the manner the community decides. It’s not perfect of course.
I’m getting too wordy here I think but the key idea is that in order for it to be mutual aid, all involved must be building a system they themselves rely on. That removes the power of the state to cut it off by threatening the most privileged.
faythofdragons@piefed.social 1 day ago
Yes? Who else would care enough?
Arcanepotato@crazypeople.online 1 day ago
Maybe I’m wrong but I thought charity was commonly used for tax benefits? Also shame. People donate to avoid looking to closely at themselves. And some people just realise they have more than they need.
I participate in charity, I don’t think it’s the worst thing although I understand the criticisms. If the choices are stretch myself further beyond my current capacity or auto donations to a rent bank I’m going to pick the donations.
I haven’t seen the criticisms you received so I can’t guess at what their issue was. Perhaps they were just starting shit.
faythofdragons@piefed.social 1 day ago
None of this gets you a tax benefit, and the state doesn’t count food bank volunteer hours towards your food stamps hours or community service or anything. Another reason I say it’s mutual aid and not a charity.
We’ve also set up a tool library, and somebody is providing barn space for community repair projects. My partner is a carpenter by trade, and while he’s unemployed, he’s been showing people how to safely use the tools. I’m disabled, and unemployed, so I’m designing event fliers and providing web hosting for the group. Most of the group is low-income at best, but we absolutely chipped into a pot when a member had to undergo major surgery.
The criticism of charity that I’ve heard, is that by filling in the gaps left by capitalism, you’re postponing the revolution. People need to understand that capitalism is bad, and for that to happen, capitalism needs to fail utterly. Harm reduction and charity keeps capitalism from failing utterly, and is therefore a bad thing.
But honestly, I think 99% of the talk on the Fediverse about all this really is just people wanting to start shit. It’s easy to just say that Americans are incapable of doing anything, and then be derisive when somebody attempts to do something. I live in a rural town of less than 3k, thousands of miles from DC, so nothing I do will ever be big enough or good enough to change federal policy, and is therefore considered a waste of time by your average commenter here.