8. April 2020

Corona Action Time (English)

Corona-time may be soon over – let’s not lose the momentum – let’s start working – let’s change together what we never dared to do – let’s build a global movement for life in peace, justice and solidarity – let’s just try – there is nothing to lose – be part of it – it’s easy and it’s for YOU – act now – commit yourself – HAVE FUN trying out things – dreams may come true:

IT IS TIME TO ACT:

Please read the analysis attached. You may know more profound analyses of this time.
See what is true for your own life, what you can relate with – and support our initiative, do not just return to “normality”.
Here are three levels of action (A, B, C) for you to try out with their respective strategies you may want to follow – answer the questions for yourself and look for like-minded people to work out alternatives; further down you find some practical ideas* to inspire you to get to action.

A) What do you want to keep/change in your own personal life? Make a list

First, get a sense for the new rhythm you experience in your daily life, mostly for having been forced to unwind and slow down. Look around, be curious about your own environment, trust your imagination and keep your personal level of slowdown.Try
Pick what you personally can easily realize – just one thing is already good.Do it.
Speak to your partner, to your family: what do they take out of the crisis and want to keep/change? Do it.
Check back with yourself, if you live alone; check back with your partner/family. If it worked, enjoy the result or try again.
Pick another thingDo it.

Start with the easiest thing – don’t overtax yourself – don’t forget to enjoy results, as small as they may be – tackle the next thing – do it – be aware: changes of habits may take long – don’t worry – keep trying – never use violence

B) What changes in your community do you want to see? Make a list of priorities

Start with your neighborhood: speak with your new friends next door, in your house, in your street, etc.: what do you want to keep from Corona-time? What has to go back to normal after Corona-time? Hang up lists, create groups where there are none; strengthen existing ones.
Start small.
Talk to young people, get wisdom from the old folks, read, broaden your knowledge and discuss it with neighbors, friends, NGOs, in the spirit of creating a new sense of commons.
Connect with your local climate change-councils and Fridays-for-Future-groups – they may already work well. NO COMPETITION BUT COOPERATION!
In rural areas: Speak to your community organizer; reach out to youth and women’s groups, support NGOs and aid agencies active in your area.
Write together to your mayor, to your municipality, to your local government: ask them to prioritize principles of sustainability. Commit them to take care of all sectors of the community. Forget party-politics!
Show solidarity with those in need on a local/regional level; reach out to asylum- seekers, refugees and undocumented people; cooperate with their support NGOs.
Pay attention to stress and growing violence in your neighborhood and get involved if necessary.

C) What changes in your society/country do you want to see?
Involve your own association/organization/network and follow your agenda.

Use the structures and strategies of your association/organization/network to have a national voice, get connected and use social media posts.
Connect with your national climate change-councils and Fridays-for-Future-groups and share what your demands are; find lowest common denominator to build actions/campaigns. NO COMPETITION BUT COOPERATION!
Disclosegovernment“misbehavior”,mismanagement,corruptionandprofitability over humanity, and develop alternatives.
Disclose links between politics and business in case of harmful practices against the state and its peoples.
Emphasizeacultureofpeaceandresilienceagainstmainstreampolitics.
Call a spade a spade: We experience the impacts and results of disastercapitalism (Naomi Klein) in its ultimate credo of profitability over humanity and which is deeply rooted in patriarchy.

Let’s build an all-inclusive movement: Adapt everything to your own needs and situation. Countries vary in their set-up and government form – in parliamentary democracies, federal structures are different from centralized structures. In non- democratic states, you need to work on bridge-building; but it is always good to connect with your friends, your co-workers, your neighbors (whom you now know), your membership organizations, your local, regional, national, European cross-border and international network.

Start small, maybe just with a call…
You have power – you have rights and responsibilities – play it out

Stay safe and enjoy your little wins. Let’s talk about it in our next online meeting 23.4.20 at 8pm / Contact: heidi.meinzolt@wilpf.org / helena.nyberg@wilpfschweiz.ch

* Here are Ideas to Inspire Your Actions:

A) Personal life:
Play on your consumer power – change your habits

Change your buying behavior; if possible, chose local, regional, national products. Cultivate land, do gardening, grow your own food, herbs, if you can.
Support your local shops. Avoid plastic and imports from oversea countries. As much as possible buy and consume in a sustainable way.
Enjoy non-commercial art production, such as local theatres, music halls, etc.
Do not forget the needy, your old folks and (indigenous) elders, foreigners and refugees of your neighborhood; help them as best as you can.
Reflect about your holiday habits, your needs to relax
Re-appreciate unspoiled nature, access to clean water, simple but good,unprocessed food
Support your utilities, save energy, use public transport as much as possible.
Write letter to the editor of your local, regional and national media. Make yourvoice be heard in public discussions, on the radio, on TV, social media and in anymeetings.
If possible, withdraw your accounts when banks and financial institutions do notwant to change odious business behavior. Write to your pension-fund and demand sustainable investments (see C below). Work with deadlines.

B) Community:
Play on your participatory power as member of a community – work with your peers

Write letters TOGETHER – start petitions TOGETHER to demand affordable/better public transport system, better health care, housing, education for all. If necessary, boycott payments together, make your voice hear at certain times together (balcony actions, etc.). Make call-chains, text message-chains.
Strengthen awareness and resilience of communities against all forms of discrimination, disrespect of diversity, hate, racism, war-torn rhetoric.
Have local or regional government commit themselves to budget for necessary infrastructure improvements; use empty spaces for self-help groups, support women refugees, food-chains, etc. Work out practical solutions, involve volunteers, draw up lists, etc.
Involve the members of your local and regional parliaments: move your local tax money from business and production which is not life-sustaining (such as arms, killer-seed/fertilizers, etc.) to a life-sustaining economy (such as health-care, social work, education, sustainable agriculture and construction). Only vote for those local MPs who are willing to change.
Involve trade-unions on the local and regional level: have your local governments increase wages and salaries for the workers in all life-sustaining sectors that have so far been underpaid and undervalued and support politics of protection for people working in “system-relevant” jobs (not arms production!).
Take care of your homeless, poor and marginalized people, including refugees, undocumented people and asylum-seekers. Go up together to the regional government buildings and present solutions to them, organize sit-ins.

C) Society/Country:
Play on your human rights, citizen’s rights, women’s rights, indigenous peoples’ rights, LGBT rights, minority rights, environmental rights – work in your organizations

Make sure that your government restores all democratic and human rights that have temporarily been lifted due to Corona-reasons.
Make sure that your government keeps and strengthens a European spirit of solidarity ( in practical and financial cooperation) within Europe and beyond.
Spread the argument that it is time to put an end to military spending and financing military bases as well as the production of lethal weapons; move the money towards healthcare, hospitals, drinking water, healthy food; hence, public goods essential to life.
Stop militarization as a means of security, stop military interventions, prioritize early warning, peaceful conflict settlement and transitional justice, involving the women concerned (UNSCR 1325).
Deconstruct the logic of eternal growth and the externalization of problems and support feminist economic approaches.
Make your government move your tax money from life-destroying to life-sustaining production. Support the politicians who advocate this.
Make your government commit itself to freeze and phase-out from life-threatening production, such as nuclear power plants; biological, chemical, nuclear and conventional arms production and export; toxic agribusiness, etc.
Denounce the right of global capital to acquire private property patents on life and artificial intelligence. Call it criminal: global speculative finance and trading (tax havens, in particular)
Free, prior and informed consent of the people/community concerned must be implemented in all cases of land use. Land grabbing must be stopped.
Convince your MPs and governments to stop austerity policies causing privatization of public services.
As culture is part of our live make sure that it remains an expression of our freedom and is not put under market laws.
Demand national banks to cancel odious debts (global South).
Make (multinational) corporations held responsible for adverse business andextractive practices in countries of activity other than the country of theirheadquarters. Make them keep extraterritorial obligations.
Demand equal pay for equal work on national level. Demand equal rights andparticipation for all the members of your society.
Involve national trade-unions: have your central government increase wages andsalaries for the workers in all life-sustaining sectors that have so far been underpaid and undervalued. Support them to demand safe and adequate working- conditions in the entire supply chain. Allow no child labor.
Make government build strategies to extend, support and pay all social and care- work. Support and improve the standing of teachers; develop and finance a strong education system; all girls must have access to education.
Check your bank and pension-fund institutions for their investments: Demand due diligence in corporate lending and underwriting, and demand protection of environmental and indigenous communities’ rights in project financing.
Demand ratification and implementation of international conventions and treaties where your country has not yet ratified them (UN-Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), UN- Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), ILO-Convention 169 on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, Council of Europe-Istanbul Convention, UN- Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW); Women, Peace and Security Agenda of UN-Security Council Resolution 1325, etc.).