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The Patriots and The Nationalists
Throughout American history, power has cycled between two groups: nationalists who believe that certain racial, religious, or other groups are superior to some others, and patriots who believe that America is only great when equal access to our founding ideals is ensured. Today, the differences between the two camps are on full display…
Massachusetts Walked Out, Walked In, and Stepped Up!
This past Tuesday, on the anniversary of Trump’s second inauguration, alarmed citizens visited offices of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation with the goal of ensuring Trump does not see another anniversary in the White House.
Remove: Not Just a Coalition—a Duty
Somewhere in Minneapolis a young girl is writing in her diary. Somewhere in that city by the harsh digital light of a computer screen rather than that of a candle, she is writing a tale of her sorrow. She has someone in her family who is undocumented or she is herself. She sees her friends laughing without her and she is forgotten.
From Solidarity to Survival: Why We Are Calling to Get ICE Out for Good
The death of Renee Nicole Good isn’t an isolated tragedy; it’s the predictable result of an agency operating with total impunity. Over the weekend of January 9 - 11, we all stood together to transform our grief into action. As we face the year ahead, we must remember that change comes from those who refuse to look away. We need to speak out, and to come together to protect the vulnerable and bear witness to the violence our government is committing every day in our name.
Craftivism is Activism!
In all, we would like to thank those of you who supported Mass 50501 either directly or indirectly this winter market season. To the artisans and craft circles, your time and talents helped to spread a message and made a monetary difference to the organization. To those of you who either stopped by our table at the markets or made a donation, in person or virtually, this wouldn’t have worked without you. We hope that this little bit of craftivism opened some conversations and encourages people to keep crafting!
Lady Liberties Use Flash Mobs to Inspire Resistance
How could I use my old lady white skin to counter this misery? You will recall what the late/great Mother Jones said: “You pray for the dead. You fight like hell for the living.” So I started The Lady Liberty Flash Mob.
Washington Would Cross This River
We now stand at the banks of an icy river. The agents of the government are beginning to suppress, slowly but surely, all forms of organized resistance. Corporations are paying bribes directly to the administration through blatantly corrupt crypto schemes or tariff exemptions. Media institutions are buckling under the weight of lawsuits and threats while agents of the new crown harass citizens in slowly increasing numbers. The economy teeters on the edge of collapse as capital and labor start to flee the country for safety. It does not look good for the resistance, you might argue.
Time To Cut The Pendulum
Every time a party makes gains on potentially making a difference their way, the other party is elected, un-does everything, and we all just end up worse off than we started. This system doesn't work for anyone. That's why everyone is protesting in their own way, unless the pendulum is swinging their way today. Our political system is a duopoly of intentional dysfunction.
The Coldest Winter
Within days, I found like minded people. Even knowing almost nothing about how this is supposed to work, we started organizing together. It’s been 10 months since this movement started in a cold and dark February in America. Over that short window, this movement of which I am but a tiny part has become a living organism of incredible strength and resilience.
Mass 50501 says, “Flock Off!”
Allowing the collection of this data in the context of an antagonistic federal administration endangers us all— it’s an invasion of privacy that we shouldn’t accept even under the friendliest administration. None of us should be put under this kind of microscope by our government.
Mass says, again, No Kings!
Thank you for standing with us, whether you were in Boston or in your hometown; we hope that you deepened connections to your community, came away with some other ways to take action, and had an awesome day that refilled your cup to redouble our fight against authoritarianism.
350, No Kings, and the Climate
The truth, of course, is that people are part of nature, and that people require a livable climate. Without it, there is no food. With frequent extreme weather, farmers cannot grow crops, and harvests fail. Our oceans, which have been absorbing most of the carbon, are losing oxygen, endangering countless marine species, including those that at least a billion people depend on for food. Droughts also lead to dangerously low levels of drinking water in our freshwater reservoirs. In short, climate change is deadly.
A Bastion of Democracy
One of the most beautiful and most terrifying things about a nation defined by ideals is that we must choose over and over again—in every generation, in every household, in every heart—whether or not to uphold our shared identity… As our values and our institutions begin to buckle under the blows, the burden to support and defend our Constitution becomes one that more and more Americans must take up in order to ensure its survival.
A Network of Networks
People need to be reminded that they are not alone in an era of institutional collapse, and that sense of solidarity makes them more likely to act. We cannot do this alone. A single individual has limited power, but en masse, people can move mountains.
Cafe ICEcadrille: The Power of Direct Action
District Ave—formerly known as Executive Park Drive—is a quiet, dead-end road nestled between an iconic mall and a world-class hospital. Its occupants are modern restaurants and cute cafes, a Residence Inn hotel, and several unassuming office buildings. Inside one of those office buildings is ICE.
The Flyering Toolkit: How to Get Your Message Seen, Remembered, and Acted On
Flyering is one of the simplest, cheapest, and most effective ways to put your message in front of people. It works because it’s physical, it’s visible, and it can’t be hidden behind an algorithm. A flyer in the right place can reach hundreds of people a day. Do that in dozens of places and you’ve built a steady, visible drumbeat that people can’t ignore.
The Time Has Come to Be Petty
We are the good guys but we should not refuse to use this tool on some high-minded principle. “When they go low, we go high” is no longer the rule. Instead we should meet them in the gutter and humiliate them at every opportunity.
Growing the Movement through Street Chalking
For the movement to grow, we need to reach people who aren’t looking; if we’re everywhere, we can’t be ignored. Mass 50501’s Street Art Team tested the best ways to create chalked messages in a scalable way. Find out how to make your own stencils and join this creative resistance tactic.
A Quick History of the Tesla Takedown Movement
The protests brought together all kinds of people to share in their fury at Elon Musk. Protest art flourished, with thousands of homemade signs created.… Despite the heaviness of the purpose, there’s often a sense of joy at the protests. Seeing dozens to hundreds of people coming together to fight fascism revives our collective hope for a better future.
Secession and Other Forms of Appeasement
The current administration seeks nothing more than for us to give up and abandon our fellow Americans. To fight back effectively, we must stand together with people of good will in every corner of this tattered but still intact republic.