Queer Landworkers Collective: Our First Meeting!

1560 Memorial Drive Southeast,Atlanta GA 30317

11 August, 2022

Description

Calling all gays who labor with the land! A PROPOSAL TO THE COMMUNITY Gather with us Thurs Aug 11 th to discuss the creation of a collective for queer landworkers. We hope to build community through skillshares, work trades, job boards, reading groups, support groups, curiosity, and engagement with each other. If you think about ways to de-center mankind from your no-till philosophy while picking okra, this group is probably for you. If you’re imagining dismantling hierarchical systems in your workplace while tending native meadows, this group is probably for you. If your queer identity projects onto and is reinforced by your ever-growing comprehension of this wild, expansive, stunning natural world, this group is probably for you. If you cry over the incredible beauty and generosity of our green siblings while making an herbal tea blend for your crush, this group is probably for you. This space is for: Anyone who identifies as queer in any way that’s meaningful to them. Anyone whose labor or engagement with the land is tied to their career, income, and/or philosophy. Who this space is not for: Queer allies—love y’all, but queer peers only here. Our intention for this first meeting: We’ll talk to each other. We’ll take all of the ideas in our heads and put them out on paper. There will be a lot of sharing and listening. What this group is and what we do will be collectively decided over the first few meetings. Our politics: Queer liberation goes hand-in-hand with the destruction of capitalist and colonialist systems. We believe that human joy and wellbeing are inseparable from the health of our land. This is an abolitionist space. This is an anti-racist space. We welcome and honor the full spectrum of human experience and emotion. We welcome leftist radicals of all stripes. Our approach: We will operate with transparency and consent, and we will validate each other’s experiences. We will make this space as accessible as we can. And this is new, and we are growing. Some notes on accessibility: The space is accessible for wheelchair users and folx that move around with other tools like walkers, canes, etc. There will be chairs and restrooms. There will be vegan and gluten free friendly snacks and drinks, but if you have specific dietary needs, we suggest you bring your own snacks/drinks just to make sure! If you don’t feel like saying anything, you don’t have to! We’ll have things to do with your hands. If you feel like getting up and moving around the space, do! If you show up and realize that you don’t want to be there anymore, you can leave. We respect that! There will be a lot of people talking, and sometimes there will be a lot of people talking at the same time. We will do our best to facilitate people talking just one at a time to be respectful of folx with auditory sensory issues, but we may not be able to manage the volume/number of people talking 100% of the time. And we will be asking all folx in attendance to mask inside while we meet. Rates are spiking, y'all, and this is the least we can do. The farm next door will be open for distanced, out of doors exploration if we want to see each other's faces before and after :) ***We welcome all feedback as we try to craft an inclusive and safe space. We are always learning!***