GEO 10 - OCCUPY! CONNECT! CREATE! - Imagining Life Beyond "The Economy"

Large Cardboard protes sign reading "OCCUPY! CONNECT! CREATE!"

October 18, 2011

Issue

#OccupyWallStreet has cracked open a little hole in history, creating a moment where some of the very core institutions of our economy are called into question. Along with indignation and outrage, there is a certain excitement in the air. Things that have been terrifyingly stuck seem to be moving. Something seems possible today that wasn't just a month ago. In this space, our conversations and our imaginations are buzzing. What are we doing? What should we do? What's coming next? In particular: as we condemn this economy built for the benefit of the 1%, what do we want in its place, and how will we build it?

Ethan Miller explores these questions in a new 7-part series inspired by, and written for, the #Occupy Movement.

This text is part theory, part strategy and part call-to-action for the immediate and long-term work of identifying and seizing spaces of democratic practice (occupy!), linking them together in networks of mutual support and recognition (connect!), and drawing on our collective strength to actively create new ways of meeting our needs and making our livings (create!).

Part 1: This Is Our Moment

Part 2: The Name of the Trap is "The Economy"

Part 3: From "The Economy" to Livelihood (principle #1)

Part 4: From Economy/Nature to a Community of Life (principle #2)

Part 5: Beyond "the Market" and "the State" (principle #3)

Part 6: From Necessity to Possibility: Economics as Democratic Organizing (principles #4 and #5)

Part 7: Occupy, Connect, Create!

Further Resources

The full version of Occupy, Connect, Create can be downloaded here (as PDF):

8.5 x 11 size (this one prints out nicely on letter-sized paper)
Booklet-size (this one is easy to read on a computer screen)
Ready-to-fold 'zine version (you can print this version and distribute it in your community or at your #occupation!)