In the Beginning: Anarchism, Christianity and the Roots of Resistance
August 6 & 7, 2010
Location
1312 SE 35th Ave
Portland, Oregon
Updated July 29, 2010
FRIDAY
Noon: Arrival
1 p.m. – Welcome and Worship
GETTING AT THE ROOT
2:30 – 4 p.m.
Anarchism and Christianity Primer
What is anarchism? Can a Christian be anarchist? How can these two concepts fit together? Explore the connections between anarchist ideology and practice, and Christian faith. This session is ideal for who the intersection between anarchism and Christianity is a relatively new idea.
Speaker: Mark Van Steenwyk
Behind the Blue Wall
Description forthcoming…
Speaker: Andy Alexis-Baker
4:15 – 5:45 p.m.
Race, Racism and the Nation-State: A Christian, Anarchist Perspective
Crucial to the work for racial justice is the understanding of the origin and history of race. With that in mind, this session will explore the beginning of race as a concept; early attempts to articulate the idea and its initial impact on emerging European and American nation-states, such as naturalizing the nation, masking economic inequality, and creating borders. In addition to sharing this research, Nekeisha Alexis-Baker will also offer initial reflections on the particularly resources within Christian faith that enable resistance to race, racism and nation-state from her distinctive perspective as a Jesus-follower, an anarchist and a woman of color.
Speaker: Nekeisha Alexis-Baker
On Violence and Non-violence: A Conversation
In anti-oppression movements around the globe, people of conscience and faith have disagreed about the efficacy of nonviolent strategies and the legitimacy of violent tactics in the struggle for justice. Yet the debate between pacifist and non-pacifist Christians, and between pacifist Christians and non-pacifist anarchists in particular are often characterized by polarized positions that lack nuance and subsequently prohibit real dialogue about our commonalities as well as our differences. Using various group activities, this session aims to facilitate respectful engagement that clarifies our definitions (what do we mean by nonviolence/violence?); attends to our social locations (how does race/class/gender shape the positions we hold?); addresses theological and practical concerns (how does faith/non-religious ethics shape our views); and otherwise complicates our various categories. In so doing, we hope participants will leave with an increased understanding of multiple positions on nonviolence and violence, instead of feeling strong-armed into one way of thinking.
6 p.m. – Dinner
7 – 8:30 p.m. – “Tell these Stories to your Children”
Like the Egyptian pyramids of exploitation or the empires of devastation, the stories we tell our children stand firmly on a few fundamental concepts. These concepts are defined by their basic perspectives that either solidify the status quo of civilization or drive the uprooting revolutions that demolish the castles of oppression. For, in the end, it is today’s children who are the adults of tomorrow who will impact the world they inherit and these stories are the most intrinsic forces that will guide them through their lives. The question of how to go about living sustainable lives in harmony with the world is the oldest question humans have asked ever since some have decided long ago that they could choose between destruction and viability. This question is philosophical, anthropological, theological, medical, physical, and in fact drives every single discipline: should we embrace technological advancement or renounce it? Should we consider illness as a malfunction of an organism in capitalist production or as an expression of dissonance with the world? In this session, Wes Howard Brook and Layla AbdelRahim discuss narratives of the Bible and children’s books and the underlying perspectives on our nature and the nature of the universe that have radical ramifications for children’s ontological questioning, an indispensable tool in forging meaningful relationships with the world and resisting the abusive forces of Empire.
Speakers: Wes Howard Brook and Layla AbdelRahim
9 pm – Joyful Noise
Join folk musician William (Bill) Jolliff and Seth Martin and the Menders in a concert to close out the first day of the conference. Solo artists Heidi Vest and Michael Nolan will open.
SATURDAY
8 a.m. – Breakfast
EXAMINING THE FRUIT
9:15 – 10:45 am
Beyond Creation Care: Environmental Activism & Christianity
Description forthcoming…
Speakers: Jason Morgan and Anthony Villagomez
Navigating the Security Culture: Activism in a Post 9/11 World
The aim of this session is two-fold. First, it is a way to inform people about laws that criminalize dissent and that make it exceedingly difficult to work for social change. Second, it provides an opportunity for one man to share his experience with this system as a “well-known peaceful activist” who ended up being convicted as an “alleged arsonist.” With these goals in mind, our hope is that people who have the urge to act and speak for the cause of justice will have their eyes opened to the legal consequences they face. The rules have changed and all of us need to know this as we seek to resist our oppressive and death-dealing culture.
Speakers: Tre Arrow and Laura Regan
11 am – 12:30 pm
The Struggle for Life on Big Mountain
Big Mountain is a visually beautiful part of the Navajo Reservation. Yet in spite of its beauty, it is also the heart of a resistance against forced relocation by the U.S. government. Because of the federal government’s desire to acquire Navajo natural resources, residents of Big Mountain face what many describe as “third world conditions.” Elders there have lived without electricity, running water, hard roads and other amenities their entire lives, as did the generations before them. In this session, Mary Katherine Smith, member of the Black Mesa community and long-time resister to attempts at re-occupation, will discuss her and her people’s Struggle for Life. She will be joined by Liza Minno Bloom, member of the collective Black Mesa Indigenous Support, who will describe her experiences of living and working in solidarity with this group.
Speakers: Mary Katherine Smith and Liza Minno Bloom
12:30 p.m. – Lunch
SOWING NEW SEEDS
1:45 – 3:15
Open forum
The open forum allows people to gather for conversation based on shared interests. At the start of the time, attendees are given the space to suggest ideas for topics they would like to facilitate discussion around. Then people indicate their desire to participate in the discussion with a show of hands, and the small groups disperse for conversation. The open forum will also include time for attendees to engage speakers who are interested in taking additional questions and comments.
3:30 – 5:00 p.m.
Workshops
Workshops will be a time for people to engage in hands-on skill-learning and sharing. Conference organizers are planning several workshops. However, if you are definitely coming to the conference (as in, you have registered, your travel plans are made and your bags are packed) and you have an idea for and the supplies to lead a workshop, send an e-mail to conference [at] jesusradicals [dot] com for consideration.
5:30 p.m. – Dinner
7 – 8:30 p.m.
The Greening of Anarchy: the shift towards an anti-civilization approach
As one of the foremost writers and speakers critiquing civilization and articulating a “primitivist” or green anarchist approach, John Zerzan has traveled extensively across the country and overseas. Together, he and partner Alice Parman will reflect on the shift in anarchist thought and practice over the past decade, and what we might learn from people resisting cultures of death around the world.
Speakers: Alice Parman and John Zerzan
9 p.m. – Jubilation Celebration
Say so long and farewell with theillalogicalspoon, Lesser Beggars and Portland hip-hop duo Inkre-Mentals. Solo artists Heidi Vest and Michael Nolan will open.
