<= st1:place w:st=3D"on">Portland, Maine
So- Jus Diversa-Village
‘Build-It!’ Convergence

An International EcoVillag= e Providing Services of Equality to the Community

May 21-30, 2007 - Portland, Maine<=
/st1:place>



Providing countless services to all neighboring communities including a chi=
ldcare center with extended hours (see page 8), a very large community buil=
ding with free-of-charge use, (see page 3) and Braille transcriber services=
 so people worldwide can convert their material to Braille.

Don't f=
orget!

You can print out this booklet in=
 pdf format (or in document format so that you can modify it to create your=
 own community) or you can join the email list for updates on this project =
at:

www.aworldofpeace.org/s=
jdv.html

<= pre style=3D'text-align:center'>www.dsame.com/sjdv.html

It is a combination of characteristics from the following fee-b= ased communities:

• the progre= ssive characteristics of an intentional community

the privacy characteristics of a cohousing community

• the abilit= y to provide activists with resources which is characteristic of increasingly popular independent resource centers and…

• …the networking characteristic= of indigenous tribes that enables activists to travel and relocate tempora= rily or permanently yet still be a part of the same activist network having unlimited resources and support with them wherever they go.

<= br>

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp;

The So-Jus Diversa-Village Mo= del is based on an actual Village Model… but it is a permanent home that expands, rather than transitional small homes.

The need for volunteers will range from 10 = to 600 depending on the number of villagers participating in the construction. We would love anyone to join in because there are lots of places for people to= get their hands in the mud or on the wood regardless of skill level.

Ten or more people could be engaged on one dwelling alone. Skilled carpente= rs or construction workers of any back ground are always welcome at the So-Jus Diversa-Village site since our construction methods are based on integrating natural building materials with conventionally framed structures. The goal = is to help train the villagers and each other as we rebuild the village.
Volunteers are recommended to bring a pair of gloves and work clothes. Sunscreen and a hat are also recommended since the climate at the So-Jus Diversa-Village isn’t shaded. There is water on site as well as port-a-potties. Vegetarian lunch will be provided, but if you have any particular dietary restrictions you will want to talk with the site coordinator. Parking is limited, as the So-Jus Diversa-Village is a pedestr= ian village, so please bike or car pool.

Site's Schedule of Activities

May 22, 2007: Intro to light straw clay constructing walls and in-fill painting and possible plaster primary dwelli= ng

May 23-24, 2007: Constructing walls and light straw clay of remaining buildings, platform construction, walls and windows
May 25, 2007: Constructing walls and light straw clay roofing, gutte= rs and possibly rain barrel work
May 26, 2007: Construction continued, finish details begin roofing, painting, trellis work and plaster
May 27-28, 2007: Plasters, painting and finish details
May 29, 2007: Wrap up projects lots of detail oriented work finish plasters and site clean up
May 30, 2007: Celebration

Dear friends,

For every million peace activists, social service workers and rescue workers who confront the leaves, the twigs and the b= ranches of the problems in our economy, there is one who will confront the root= of the problem. At the root = you must know about love. The= n your heart and mind will open and you will clearly see… that the root = of the word ‘economics’ originated from the Greek root word ‘oikos,’ meaning ‘home,’ and ‘nomos,̵= 7; meaning management. When = we begin to restructure the management of how our homes are built and how = we live within our own communities, only then can we make a difference bey= ond our own front door. Wheth= er you choose to join our So-Jus Diversa-Village, or create your own, I hope t= hat you will read this booklet and become that one in a million.=

Love for the people, -T

Pooling Our Experienc= e: So-Jus Diversa-Villages

Now Forming: Networking for Peace So-= Jus Diversa-Village.

“After fifteen = years of the women’s movement, the gap between women’s earnings and men’s is greater than ever, women earning on the average only fifty-n= ine cents to every dollar men earn, the average male high school drop-out today earning $1,600 more a year than female college graduates.”=

“We must take a= fresh look at work and the demands made by corporations, schools and government, = and recognize the possibilities of flextime, part-time, job-sharing, and split-shift work and education. We must think in terms of restructuring the home itself, so that it can be made more suitable to the demands and diversity of our new families.̶= 1;

“I believe that= we have to… move into the second stage… …the second stage involves coming to terms with the family - new terms with love and with work. The second stage may no= t even be a woman’s movement. = Men may be at the cutting edge of the second stage. The second stage has to transcend = the battle for equal power in institutions.&nb= sp; The second stage will restructure institutions and transform the nat= ure of power itself.”

“For there is a= real backlash against the equality and the personhood of women - in American, as= in Islam and the Vatica= n. Dangerous reactionary forces are t= urning women back to the old dependence, silencing women’s new voice …= in ways we do not clearly understand. In the name of the family, they would destroy the new equality that gives the family strength to resist dehumanizing forces that are emerging in the seeming impotence of capitalist America, in the resurgence of fundamentalist religion, in neofascism and in autocratic communism, and in = the chaos of the Third World. We = must ask new questions or we could lose in the economic and emotional turbulence, the measure of equality that is essential to strengthen human life - and the future of the family. The fir= st stage, the woman’s movement, was fought within, and against, and defi= ned by that old structure of unequal, polarized male and female sex roles.̶= 1;

“The experts of psychology, sociology, economics, biology, even the new feminism experts, a= re still engaged in the old battles, of women versus men. The new questions that need to be = asked - and with them, the new structures for the new struggle - can only come fr= om pooling our experience…&= #8221;

-Betty Friedan, from ‘The Second Stage.’ Betty Friedan was also the author = of ‘The Feminine Mystique’ and the founder and first president of = the National Organization for Women (NOW).

=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D= =3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D=3D

Title of Presentation= : Pooling Our Experience: Creating

So-Jus Diversa-Villages.&= nbsp; The most effective means of using time, rent, utilities, gas, childc= are resources and volunteers in long-term organized resistance activities

IMPORTANT: Large print and many multilingual versions of this anti-copyrighted document are available at: www.dsame.com/sjdv.html<= /b>

Description of Presentation: In this course we will cover four elements. First we will very briefly discus= s a few reasons why minorities, marginalized groups, single parents and extreme= ly low-income people don’t participate in activist groups more often. Second, we will discuss how creati= ng multiracial, multicultural communities in which activists live and work together in a group of private homes, yurts or village-huts, is the most effective means of using time, rent, utilities, gas, travel time, childcare resources and volunteers in long-term organized resistance activities. Third, we will cover the need to internationally network those groups in order to prevent the traditional fragmentation amongst community activist groups and in order to enable those communities to most effectively confront the pillars of globalization. And fourth, we will discuss some of the most effective methods used to create a multicultural, multiracial true community kn= own as a So-Jus Diversa-Village.=

Each So-Jus Diversa-Village has 100% wheelchair access to all bedrooms and bathrooms. In addition each h= as: A. a group of private homes with a shared common house or B. a si= ngle home, ranch, farm, or tent city with individual rooms or tents with a shared common house (until a group of private homes with a shared common house can= be created). The podcast has 24 = hour internet access to resources which may include a photocopier, a computer, a scanner, a workshop room, a podcast (internet radio) creation room, an acti= vist library, a garden or greenhouse, a children’s playroom and maybe Brai= lle transcriber equipment. <= /o:p>

So-Jus Diversa-Vi= llage Community Meetings(From left to right) Phil, Jake, Emmy and Jake at a So-= Jus Diversa-Village Community Meeting at the People’s Free Space. We invite you to join us at ou= r next meeting!

For students and activists, the bottom line to these communities is… do you want your home/dormitory, st= udy room, your babysitter and your job in 4 remote areas of the city? Or do you want them all in one community? And if you want th= em in one community… are you willing to help create it? Don’t wait for someone else = to create it… start creating it today!

       =         Type of Housing       =                   =             &nb= sp;        Advantages       =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;             Disadvantages

Traditional Intentional Community<= /span>

=

Defin= ition: People living together many times with shared economy such as income, ass= ets, property and liability. Many Intentional Communities have a mission statement of egalitarian, progress= ive and/or non-authoritarian values. Most intentional communities in the USA are fee-required commun= ities.

Unity at home and at work

People living together and working together.&nb= sp; A Bulletin board for finding intentional communities is found at www.aworldofpeace.org by click= ing on 'post to photo-classifieds' or clicking= on the word ‘communities.’

For a directory of thousands of intentional communities worldwide go to www.ic.= org, and click on directory listings. <= /span>

You are NOT part of a network:

You c= ould live in a traditional intentional community your whole life, pay hundreds= of thousands of dollars to help make it a wonderful community but you could still get ‘voted out’ or ‘kicked out’ if one of t= he below occurs:

#1. S= omeone engages in illegal activities, or activities which prompt a lawsuit and causes the entire community to be seized by the government, or to be sold because of a lost lawsuit.
#2. A major, unresolved disagreement or personal crisis occurs
#3. New groups of blatantly ageist people take control of the leadership = in the group and force you, during your senior years, to move out. (This typ= e of ageism is increasing as the baby boomer generation becomes the largest se= nior population in history).

Traditional Cohousing Group=

=

Definition: People l= iving together, often with no shared economy.&= nbsp; Unlike traditional intentional communities, most residents have th= eir own separate kitchens, living rooms, restrooms and they own their own separate home within the community, thus maintaining their privacy even w= hile living in a community. Some= times the traditional cohousing group is managed by a housing association or condominium association group (usually on a strictly fee-required basis). All known cohousing groups in the USA<= /st1:place> are very high fee-required communities.&= nbsp; Cohousing is, in reality, a euphemism for gentrification.

&= nbsp;

Reduced Liability, Increased Privacy

If one member decides to independently do something illegal (such as illegally u= se grow, distribute, or sell drugs from their private home within the commun= ity) if they are arrested, then the government only takes their home within the community, rather than to unjustly take all the homes within the communit= y. .

&= nbsp;

In a Traditional Cohousing Community… You are NOT part of a network (see details #2 and #3 above).

&= nbsp;

Also, = you could still get ‘voted out’ or ‘kicked out’ by consensus if one of the below occurs:

#4. Traditional Coho= using is a fee-required group and even if you worked your entire life and paid = rent or mortgage on your cohousing unit on time your entire life, if you disco= ver that you can’t continue paying the rent or mortgage (due to emergen= cy, loss of a high paying job, a divorce causing high alimony payments, etc.,) you will lose your cohousing home to the bank or to the traditional cohou= sing group like in any other non-community living situation. Also, due to the sky-rocketing h= igh cost of a traditional cohousing home ($200,000 - $500,000, minimum, each) your semi-wealthy neighbors may support oppressive political ideologies a= nd tax laws which do not help the poor, marginalized people of our society.<= br> #5. If you become outspoken about progressive views such as ending ableis= m, ageism, classism, homophobia, racism and sexism within your cohousing gro= up you may be ‘kicked out by ‘group consensus...’ minus one… you.

So-Jus Diversa-Village

Definition: A So-Jus Diversa-Village is an ecovillage with an emphasis on Social Justice and Diversity. The word So-= Jus is short for Social Justice and Diversa is short for diversity.   It is a true community tha= t is strictly not-for-profit, with no fee and no rent required from community members.

&nb= sp;

It is a combination of characteri= stics from the following fee-based communities:

• the progressive characteristics of an intentional community

• the privacy characteristics of a cohousing community

• the ability to provide activists with resources which is characteristic of increasingly popular independent resource centers and…

• …the networking characteristic = of indigenous tribes that enables activists to travel and relocate temporari= ly or permanently yet still be a part of the same activist network having unlimited resources and support with them wherever they go.

Unity = at home and at work

(See d= etails above).

&= nbsp;

Reduced Liability (see details above): This is important as this community will serve peo= ple of all backgrounds.<= /span>

You ar= e part of a network:

Members are part of a network of So-Jus Diversa-Villages worldwide.

Unlimited Resources: Members= have 24 hour access to resources such as a photocopier, scanner, fax, computer= s, a workshop room which they can reserve to teach private classes, a podcast (internet radio station) creation room, an activist library, a garden or greenhouse, a children’s playroom and Braille transcriber services so people worldwide can convert material into Braille. A nationwide publication will also support member’s independent progressive business to encourage members to unplug from multinational corporate employers. See re= gional magazine example at www.openexch= ange.org

A So-Jus Diversa-Vil= lage is a true community. No true community can sit back and do nothing (or simply throw money with no accountability to the Red Cross and Salvation Army) while a crisis su= ch as Hurricane Katrina is occurring within their country. The greatest disadvantage to becoming a So-Jus Diversa-Village member, is that in one = way or another, members will all help to rescue and provide assistance to vic= tims of cold weather and disasters, worldwide, when the government leaves them= to die. Sixty-percent of t= he income needed to run the So-Jus Diversa-Village would come from donations= and grants. [There are many peo= ple who believe that the Salvation Army and the Red Cross support policies of sexism, homophobia and are over-burdened with responsibility. “The case continues to be made that this congressionally chartered organizatio= n is dysfunctional.” –Bernie Thompson, Democratic Representati= ve from Mississippi, as Congress began an inquiry in January 2006 into how the Red Cross mismanaged relief efforts and funds for Hurricane Katrina, 9/11 and other disasters. “Salvation Army Rates High on Finances but Low = on Governance… unlike most other ma= jor charities, it is not required to file public information because it is considered by the IRS and state authorities to be a church…over $2 billion in income.”- = The American Institute of Philanthropy, a nationally prominent charity watchdog service whose purpose is to help donors make informed giving decisions. Read more at www.char= itywatch.org, click ‘articles.’] Furthermore, all donations will have an anonymous tracking number,= in a manner which allows donors the private ability to see where their donat= ions went to on the internet. If= the postal service can charge less than 75 cents extra for such an online tra= cking number to track a $5 package mailed anywhere, why is it that non-profit a= nd not-for-profit groups can’t do the same for a $20 donation? They can… if they want to.= Its time for more public accountability and much more community compassion. (See Martin Luther King Jr.’s definition of ‘true compassion on page 10.)

Traditional Activist Group<= /b>

=

Defin= ition: Progressive activists.

Unity at work

People working together only in the activist group.

Never-ending, endless individual personal expenses. Volunteers at groups working to end poverty/homelessness, can’t even house, adequately f= eed or even provide public transit tokens or bus passes to their own volunteers. Winter causes m= any groups to temporarily/permanently end.

         = Discrimination Characteristics        =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;            =     Decision-Making Process        =            Type of Housing        =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;           =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;

Ageism in Traditional Intentional Communities (IC’s)- Increasingly, many IC’s blatantly and unapologetically discriminate based on age. They even state in their paid ad= s in magazines “We can only accept a limited number of seniors” or “we need people in their 20’s and 30’s only.”
Homophobia in Traditional Intentional Communities- Many IC’s are based on a religion and are strictly homophobic, sometimes even sponsoring protests = at LGBTQ events and marriages.

Mind Control and Slave Labor in Traditional Intentional Communities- Visit= www.factnet.org to read their list of well-documented Mind-Control intentional communities.    Di= rect URL: <= u>www.factnet.org/CultGroups.html

Greatly Varies.

Sometimes the formal cohousing consensus process is used (see details below).

Traditional Intentional Community

Classism in Traditional Cohousing – Cohousing is one of the worst forms= of institutionalized classism within communities on earth (in industrialized countries). It is extremely common that those who are individually ’selected’ by the grou= p, must then pay for membership fees (often monthly) and/or a home before be= ing admitted and/or being ‘allowed’ to participate in group commu= nity decisions. Most cohousing i= n the USA s= trictly has no multilingual access and no Braille access despite having multimillion-dollar budgets.

Racism in Traditional Cohousing – Cohousing was a very good idea when found in Denmark in the 196= 0s, but when brought to the USA, in the 1980s’ it was transformed into a new form of gentrification, a form of gated community, which uses expensi= ve houses as the gates. Cohous= ing (a term coined by cohousing consultants who currently offer community help to people who can afford their fees of thousands and thousands of dollars for consultations) may very well be the worst form of institutionalized commu= nity racism currently existing in the USA (excluding groups with mission statements which clearly promote racism such as the KKK, Skinheads, neo-Nazi’s, etc., ). = Most books written about cohousing even state that most cohousing developments= in the USA have very few or absolutely no people of color. The few people of color ’selected’ after an approval process (which sometimes include= s a credit check, extensive rental history, multiple cross-country visits to = the community which the person of color must entirely pay for, etc.,)… = must then pay for high monthly membership fees and/or a home before being admi= tted and/or being ‘allowed’ to participate in cohousing decisions. Most cohousing i= n the USA s= trictly has no multilingual access despite their multimillion-dollar budgets and = yet they (particularly in the South) hire off-site, non-member, janitorial servants and babysitters at non-union wages who know very little, or no English. People who support capitalism will find that they are at home in traditional cohousing groups because they can accrue and horde ‘capital’ in the form of endless money poured into their individually owned homes without concern = for social justice or for access to people who cannot afford to pay their rent and fees.

Strictly Consensus. The formal cohousing consensus process is a decision making process which promotes ableism, ageism, classism, racism, sexism and authoritarian rule over others by a privileged few. This is because the process disproportionately gives unlimited power to aggressive people, yet it silences various genders, with vocal physical disabilities, members of various cultures (particularly new immigrants), ages (particularly teen-a= gers or very elderly members), and members who are uncomfortable with ‘blocking’ the entire group’s consensus decisions even = if they completely disagree with it. Rarely does the process ever have multilingual or Braille access. = For more information please see Zoe Mitchell’s 57-page thesis ’A Critique of Consensus.’ The critique can be found at: www.dsame.com/zmccwebpage.h= tm

or found as a PDF document at www.dsame.com/zmcc.pdf

Traditional Cohousing Group

Cohousi= ng is, in reality, a euphemism for gentrification.

Ideologie= s - People who support and promote ableism, ageism, classism, homophobia, racism and sexism may find that they do NOT feel at home in= a So-Jus Diversa-Village. Unl= ike traditional cohousing communities, each So-Jus Diversa-Village has a miss= ion statement which states that members strive to end (in alphabetical order) ableism, ageism, classism, homophobia, racism and sexism while working for world peace. “True= Peace is not the absence of tension, it is the presence of justice.” = -Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Letter from Birmingham Jail

&nbs= p;

The full = text (a highly recommended resource) of the Letter from Birmingham Jail can be found at: www.dsame.com/ml= kletter.doc or found as a PDF document at www.dsame.com/mlkletter.pdf

        = ;          Greatly Varies

It is a not-for-profit group, but it is not a non-profit (501c3) group so members are legally able to practice freedom = of speech, make united statements and reach decisions without restriction.

So-Jus Diversa-Village
Community

&nbs= p;

Ableism in Traditional Activist Groups – = Many have such small budgets that they must rent space in buildings with no wheelchair access, and office materials are placed far up on high bookshelves, inaccessible to wheelchair users, in order to save space. They often have no material in t= he entire office which has Braille or multilingual access (including ‘welcome brochures or welcome flyers.’) Unfortunately, stairs with no el= evator and wheelchair inaccessible restrooms are sadly considered ‘the nor= m’ rather than ‘a gross injustice’.

Ageism in Traditional Activist Groups – Many have very poorly lit offices, which is important as a very well lit office area is one of the leading reasons why so many people, including elderly progressive activists, pref= er working in independent resource centers like FedEx-Kinko’s (despite= the fact that F.E.K. has infamous, anti-union out-sourcing and multinational corporate ethics).

Classism in Traditional Activist Gro= ups - Many groups and traditional non-profit groups (in rural parts of= the USA and third world countries) are often located in places not accessible by public transit. Furthermore, those comparatively few people of financially disadvantaged social classes who do have cars, often can’t afford the gas needed to go back and forth constantly to the activist or non-profit groups and protests, particularly as gas prices are sky-rocketing.
Sexism in Traditional Activist Groups – Many activist groups rarely have free-of-charge childcare for mothers who would like to attend their meetings. Some groups= even go so far as to publicly criticize women and humiliate them for bringing their kids to the meeting saying: “YOU’LL have to find some kind of childcare arrangement because they disrupt you and our membe= rs from participating in our meeting.” For an excellent description of childcare options read ‘The Second

Stage,’ by Betty Frieden, Chap= ter 8: ‘Take Back The Day.’

Greatly Varies. Gro= up decisions are severely restricted in non-profit (501c3) activist groups a= nd freedom of speech is sacrificed in exchange for tax-breaks. Unity is discouraged as members = are forbidden from speaking out against even the most extreme and oppressive politicians. Even if the gr= oup decided they’d like to make group statements about politicians and multinational corporations, they could lose their non-profit status. They can’t even say: ̶= 0;A vote for Schwarzenegger or Rudolph Giuliani is a vote for killing people = of color who are Nobel Peace Prize Nominees or innocent men standing on thei= r own home’s doorstep. Reme= mber Tookie and Diallo.” For more info see www.dsame.com/remember.doc= or www.dsame.com/remember.pdf= or www.dsame.com/remember.mht=

Traditional Activist
Group

Traditional Intentional Community

Priority: Varies.<= /b>

Risky financial and personal Investment
Many times, everybody shares liabili= ty.

Housing Structures in Traditional Intentional Communities, Greatly… varies. Often people live together in large buildings= in thin walled, dormitory-style rooms with no private bathrooms or kitchens. Much like living = in a college dormitory, this is enjoyable for 1-4 years, but afterwards, resid= ents permanently leave due to reasons rooted in lack of privacy, lack of space= for a family, etc.,.

Traditional Cohousing Group=

Cohousi= ng is, in reality, a euphemism for gentrification.

=

=

=

Priority: Money

Increased financial investment in capital rather than a personal investment in peace, racial and multicultural diversity and crea= ting real community.

       &nbs= p; Housing Structures in Traditional Cohousing Groups
Several smaller houses (anywhere from 8-30+ houses) are formed near a much larger common house. The entire cohousing group is us= ually advised by a cohousing consultant who charges thousands of dollars in consultant fees and then refers the group to multinational corporations to have the buildings created so that everyone’s exterior house design= is almost robotically identical. The common house often has a phenomenally expensive industrial size kitchen, a very large dining room, workshop, a library, a fireplace, an exercise room and many more luxurious rooms. Each house usually has a full-si= ze kitchen and one or more full size bathrooms. The cost of building and maintai= ning a cohousing building causes low-income people, people of color and the disa= bled to be refused entry. =

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So-Jus Diversa-Village
Community

&= nbsp;

&= nbsp;

&= nbsp;

Pri= ority: Peace

Increased personal investment in creating true communities, racial and multicultural diversity and world peace (as defined by
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.).

       =         Type of Housing       =             &nb= sp;      Financial Investment Characteristics             =             &nb= sp;              =      Housing Structure       =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;            =             &nb= sp;

Housing Structures in So-Jus Diversa-Vi= llage Communities

<= ![endif]>…Several smaller houses (anywhere from 2 or more houses) are formed near a much la= rger common house. The houses are usually built one at a time in an ecologically friendly manner, in differ= ent designs, by local people who are not part of multinational corporations. = The common house often has an inexpensive regular size kitchen and a very lar= ge dining room so that people can each bring a dish from their homes and hav= e a potluck type meal together about once a week and special occasions. Each house has, at least, a half-size private kitchen and a private full-size bathroom. The cost of build= ing a So-Jus Diversa-Village enables many activists, low-income people and peop= le of color to be a part of this community.= In addition, there is a

Soc= ial Justice Outreach House.

The Social Justice Outreach House.       =         A building used as a community meeting pl= ace and used as an
       =           emergency transition house for victims   for victims of blizzar= ds,       =
tsunamis,    f= loods, hurricanes and
       =             disasters worldwide.
disasters, worldwide.

<= ![endif]>Diversity

Traditional Activist Group

=

=

Priority: Surviving on a daily basis=

Each and every single day each member must individually w= orry about surviving and making ends meet, alone. In addition, many activists find= that every time someone starts a new activist group all the resources (office space, fax, computer, photocopier, telephone, etc.,) must be bought again. There must be a better way.   People need true communiti= es where activists live and work together.

Housing Structure in Activist Groups is… “Fend for yourself, make it to meetings, volunteer with no wages or stipend… and if you have anything left, donate or pay membership dues…” Typically, activist groups have no shared house or building in which activists live together, free-of-charge. <= /span>The cost of living individually, paying rent, paying for childcare, for food, electricity, heat, and bus fare to attend activist meetings across town, causes extremely low-income people, people of color, single parents and t= he disabled to be unable to participate in many activist groups, especially in the Fa= ll and Winter. Also, many low-= income activists feel barred from the group’s social events which usually consist of going to restaurants, café’s, coffee shops, etc,. These are outings not financially possible for many people. There must be a better way. It is= time to create real and true communities. It is time to create So-Jus Diversa-Villa= ges.

        =           =

= =

= =

=

=

So-Jus Diversa-Village Workshop and Community Meetings

So-Jus Diversa-Village Workshop and Community Meetings

<= /span>

Juice, cherry and grape tomatoes, organic tortilla chips, hummus, sesa= me sticks, grapes, and bananas are a few of the vegan snacks that you will = find at our meetings… all free-of-charge. We invite you to join us!
=
Join the email list to receive announcements of futu= re meetings at:
www.aworldofpeace.org/s= jdv.html
www.dsame.com/sjdv.html=

=

So-Jus Diversa-Village Workshop and Community Meetings

(From left to righ= t) Emmy and Jake playing music at a the So-Jus Diversa-Village Community Meeting at the People’s Free Space. We look forward to seeing you = at our next meeting! All are wel= come / Bienvenidos.

“Pooling Our Experience”

This workshop is essentially about: Pooling Our Experiences, Pooling Our Resources and Pooling Our Communities to create a =

So-Jus Diversa-Village= .

This particular, pocket-size, special edition of this publication, was created for students = in the workshop, was created to aid people in teaching this workshop to other people all over the world and was created as a resource for activists worldwide. This publication is anti-copyrighted and may be duplicated and reproduced and modified without advance permission to help you create your = own community.

This presentation and workshop will be taught at the upcoming A World Beyond Capitalism Confer= ence, the Annual International Multiracial Alliance Building Peace Conference. See = = www.aworldbeyondcapitalism.org or www.CommonUnityPeaceConference.org

There are four things which I would like to emphasize before getting into the details of the workshop. If you learn nothin= g else from this workshop, please try to remember these four things.

#1. Love is the most impor= tant part of any successful activist, community or movement to create a better world. It is the glue that ke= eps any positive effort, or any group of people held together. Without an emphasis on love, any achievements or accomplishments made should not be considered as achievemen= ts or accomplishments, but rather a colossal failure waiting to occur. You must learn to love not only yo= ur friends, but also your enemies. In the absence of love there is hatred (not neutrality as is commonly believed= ). Even a little hatred can distort y= our perspective in any conversation, activity or community in which you are involved. Even a little hatre= d can soon become self-corrosive and will eat a person from the inside out, usual= ly very slowly, in ways which are only detectable to your closest of friends.<= o:p>

<= ![endif]>#2. The second thing, whic= h should be remembered, is that capitalism is the exact opposite of true communities, and true communities should encourage their members to learn about the destructive nature of capitalism. Anything less is like teaching someone unfamiliar with dynamite-size= d-firecrackers (industrial fireworks) how to gather together to light the fuse to see something beautiful, without teaching them the destructive, and possibly fa= tal nature of the explosion… if it is not released from your hand at just= the right moment. Some things, li= ke fireworks and capitalism, should always be propelled far away from people. = J

Capitalism teaches peo= ple that if they selfishly accumulate enough money and look out for themselves = with complete independence that they will be O.K. Otherwise, if they don’t hor= de money, they may go hungry, go homeless, go without healthcare and eventuall= y be forced into government housing in a crime-infested ghetto or forced into an understaffed retirement home (at best) or left to die in anguish for four d= ays in situations like a Tsunami or Hurricane Katrina (at worst).

Real and true communit= y is the exact opposite of capitalism. It teaches people if they selflessly share and look out for others, through mutual aid and interdependence they will live a happy life and work through all obstacles with a support network: a community.

Many people feel that = it is possible to create true communities without confronting capitalism. I completely disagree. If a cow wanted to accrue lots of = money to help other cows around the world, and he chose to invest a large amount = of <= span style=3D'font-size:10.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:9.0pt;font-family:"Arial Narro= w"'>money into stocks such as McDonald’s or Burger King, it is very possible th= at the cow would make a large profit from those stocks, but at what cost? Sure, the money made from the stoc= ks could be used to help save a few cows, but that investment in those stocks would also help to increase the mass slave camps and extermination of other cows worldwide. The same is t= rue for capitalism. If a community wanted to gather members without confronting capitalism, it is very likely = that members will join the community, but at what cost? Sure, the members might gather tog= ether and speak of peace and social justice, but to ignore capitalism is to help increase the worldwide slave-wage sweatshops and extermination of other peo= ple in communities due to never-ending wars, embargoes, tariffs, CIA sponsored dictators and third-world country national debt necessary for capitalism to exist and thrive worldwide. <= o:p>

#3. The third thing, which should be remembered, is that any form of community or cohousing group crea= ted strictly by each member’s ability to pay rent or pay fees is a commun= ity or cohousing group rooted in racial discrimination. When responding to questions about Hurricane Katrina, even George Bush, one of the world’s most oppressi= ve, war-addicted, truth-dodging individuals had to admit: “poverty is roo= ted in racial discrimination.” The truth is so omnipresent it must be admitted. If a community or cohousing group = makes money a requirement for eligibility, how can that community ever truly say = that they are selflessly looking out for others? They can’t. They can only admit exactly what t= hey are: They are a false community that selfishly looks out for people who are privileged enough to pay some or all of their rent and monthly maintenance fees, period. They are a false community that selfishly accepts people of color… ONL= Y if those people of color are privileged enough to be able to pay some or al= l of their rent and monthly maintenance fees, period. I say ’period’ because= there are a lot of people (in denial) who like to make excuses and worn out, intellectual rationalizations for their rent and fees which exclude people = of color.

Any lack of people of color in such false communities or cohousing groups is not accidental or unintentional… it is created by a group of people who are intentional= ly ignoring the reasons why people of color cannot join their groups. They are structured fr= om their very foundation to exclude minorities and marginalized, financially disadvantaged people.   <= o:p>

#4.   The form of community which I am telling you about is called a So-Jus Diversa-Villag= e. The specific So-Jus Diversa-Villag= e that is now being created is called Networking for Peace So-Jus Diversa-Village. The email list for updates on this part= icular So-Jus Diversa-Village is found by going to www.aworldofpeace.org and clicking on subscriptions. The email list archives= are public. Despite what y= ou may think, it is not a radical new idea. It is a very old idea, thousands of years old, proven to work, with a new name and a return back to several important indigenous, tribal ideas: =

ŸIf you take care of your elders (house th= em in your community, rather than ship them off to nursing homes and retirement homes) and if you take care of the less fortunate in your community, it will strengthen everyone in your community because people will not feel a need t= o horde in order to look out for themselves, and they will share. Once upon a time elders were consi= dered the most important part of the tribe and the community, but in most industrialized nations, they are mistakenly and erroneously seen as a finan= cial burden. In a real community, = the cost for housing a senior citizen, must be met, otherwise, the young member= s of your community will correctly realize that they too may be labeled as a financial burden one day and marked as expendable. The cost of taking care of oneR= 17;s elders is an investment, because it strengthens the entire community belief that no matter what, they will not abandon one another, but take care of one another, as a true community should do.

=

ŸIf you look out for people when they are = at their worse (such as form a rescue, relief and transitions shelter team for people such as Hurricane Katrina victims) they will not feel a need to hord= e in order to look out for themselves, and they will share with you, and by look= ing out for others, you will teach your children and future generations to look= out for you.

Ÿ The lifelong nomadic flame that burns bright and warm in every person’s heart, that suddenly encourages people to travel and wander, should not be extinguished by a wage-slave commitment to a 9-5 job or a commitment to one materialistic structure with a roof and monthly dog-leash for humans (known= as rent and car payments) that capitalism brainwashes people into believing is necessary to have a ’home’ or necessary to have ‘the Amer= ican Dream.’

ŸJust as indigenous tribes, from aborigina= ls to Native Americans, were encouraged to travel the earth on walkabouts and treks without destinations (rather than horde materialistic possessions whi= ch keep you anchored) so should we encourage activists to travel the earth, and yet ensure them that they will have a home to return to and still be a part= of many
So-Jus Diversa-Villages located throughout the world.

Ÿ The first toys that you give to your child or any child help to teach that child about greed and selfishness. = If you buy your child a toy and they simply stockpile it and horde it in their bedrooms with their arsenal of other toys, it will only teach your kids to horde items rather than share. Just because the phrase “Mine! Mine!” from a 2-year old in the USA is = common, doesn’t make it any less scary (scary because it foreshadows a future= of greed). However, if the toys = and some of the other smaller items that you give to your child as a gift are placed into a common house (which is standard in a So-Jus Diversa-Village),= or a shared playroom in the community, where your child grows up learning to s= hare gifts given to him/her, then it will help your child learn what true commun= ity is all about.

“We must thin= k in terms of restructuring the home itself, so that it can be made more suitabl= e to the demands and diversity of our new families.” -Betty Fre= idan

Likewise, if you allow your child to watch you gi= ve something you value and own to someone as a gift, as indigenous people have done for thousands of years, or make something, rather than purchase more items, (in a community of people doing the same thing) it will teach the ch= ild the value of sharing and giving, rather than accumulating more possessions = and purchasing items from multinational corporations which have no ethics but plenty of sweatshops. Convers= ely, what do you think it teaches your child, when she/he watches you purchase g= ifts made by non-union labor that came from overseas sweatshops?

In an effort to encourage international discuss= ion about creating So-Jus Diversa-Villages If you would= like to respond to these articles (with your name or anonymously) on a public Bulletin Board please visit either of the below websites:=

<= o:p>

www.aworldofpeace.org/peaceforums/viewtopic.php?p=3D260#260 or use the shortcut web addresses at: www.aworldofpeace.org= /sjdv.html or www.dsame.com/sjdv.ht= ml

A Few Recommendations

Below is a non-traditional list of recommendations. Traditionally, lists of academic references are cited at the end of a document and people largely tend not to read or view anything on the list. However, the below references include children’s books and pop= ular movies with the hopes that people of all reading levels and backgrounds will read or watch some of the references. Thank you. In order or priority:

#1. The Giving Tree, by Shel Silverstein   (a boo= k, available in many languages) – This is a children’s book with colorful pictures and only a few pages.&nb= sp; Through teaching the true nature of selflessness, it illustrates how= a true community should offer services to the world.

#2. Jonathan Livingston Seagull (a book or an audio-book, available in many languages)– Richa= rd Bach beautifully describes how you can learn to think outside the box and o= pen your mind to new ideas and a better quality of life…with a story of a bird.

#3. The Island<= /st1:place> (a movie) – Starring Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson. This is an action movie, rated PG-13. Some of the action scenes are a bit over t= he top. However, the underlying, symbolic plot is that multinational corporations will someday ‘breed’ human beings as a product designed only to keep the gea= rs of consumerism and capitalism thriving for a few privileged people in our society. The symbolic plot ma= kes it an interesting movie. As long= as human beings, particularly minorities and financially disadvantaged people,= are isolated and not forming true communities with one another, we are almost completely dependent upon multinational corporations for everything: vehicl= es, gas, computers, and even entertainment such as this movie. It is to the point where even farm= ers who once lived without corporate dependence are now forced to buy genetical= ly modified crops with corporate ‘terminator-seeds’ that yield no seeds for the next year’s crop.   The pollen of genetically mo= dified crops also irreparably changes the crops of organic crops. The bait that ke= eps us in this brainwashed state of non-community is the belief that we will go= to ‘The Island,’ or ‘have the American Dream’ of our o= wn house, car, and our personally owned materialistic items... rather than to begin sharing, selflessly with one another.

#4. “Creating a Life Together: Practical Tools to Grow Ecovillages and Intentional Communities” –by Diana Christian. Th= is is an excellent book by a wonderful person and a very wise author. Unfortunately, the book mostly cov= ers the how-to methods of creating fee-required ecovillages and communities.   Nevertheless the author has devoted her life to communities and is also the editor of ‘Communities’ magazine (also recommended, even though the magaz= ine caters to fee-required cohousing groups in the USA more everyday). The manner in which the book has a page-by-page detailed listing of the problems to avoid when creating any fo= rm of community (using actual examples) is priceless.

#5. Hellraiser (the horror movie) – As an eyewitness, I can te= ll you that all the academic and intellectual documentary movies made about the inhumane conditions which currently exist in nursing homes in the USA (and = most certainly Third World countries) are only sugarcoated, watered down depicti= ons of the actual crisis. However, there is a scene in this movie, when a person is walking down endless hallw= ays with rooms on each side and they can hear people scream in loud, agonizing = pain in each room, without end…. which reflects what it is like in many corporate retirement homes and nursing homes. Here are a few common, well docume= nted reasons for those endless screams: A. Nurses turn off the patients ‘H= elp me’ buttons, because too many buttons are being pressed by so many pe= ople unattended. This causes the patients to scream; yet no one comes to help as nurses must attend to others who need more urgent care. B. Nursing homes and retirement homes are a magn= et for nurses who are drug addicts because they can steal the patient’s = very expensive narcotic pain killers, use them and sell them and the only person= who is aware of this inhumane betrayal is the patient lying in the bed in unthinkable pain. C. Although= there are many nurses who genuinely care about patients, due to patients passing = away on a weekly basis, the nursing profession is a high stress, high turn-over field, and yet most multinational corporations pay the nurses little more t= han minimum wage with little or no benefits.&n= bsp; To have a community built upon such death and lack of appreciation is neither natural nor healthy for anyone, especially the elderly and disabled patients. This situation is worsening exponentially due to social service cuts, increasing health-care costs and the Baby-Boomer generation becoming the world’s largest sen= ior citizen population.

#6. The Barefoot College: Knowledge Demystified (VHS documentary) –A non-fiction movie so wonde= rful that I cannot sufficiently describe it.&nb= sp; It details how a college in India learned to teach their members, free of charge, about creating sustainable communities by relying = upon local teachers rather than paying self-empowered gurus/consultants from abroad. Also, see the college’s website for extensive information: www.barefootcollege.org


Thank you very much.

Love for the people,=

-T, the peace guru <= br> www.dsame.com/sjdv.html or www.aworldofpeace.org/sjdv.= html

I use the name ‘peace guru’ as a symbol of my thoughts regarding creating true communities. I define peace a= s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. defined peace: “True Peace is not the absence of tension, it is the presence of justice.” In addition, I believe that in a t= rue community, there is no such thing as a guru, because even a 2 year old can teach an el= der how to smile, laugh and have fun again... sometimes much better than anyone else in the community can teach it. We must not rely on the government or self-empowered professional community consultants (gurus) to teach one another about creating community… we must create it for ourselves, while we are still free to create it.

"The first prob= lem for all of us, men and women, is not to learn, but to unlearn."= -Gloria Steinem

"I see in the near future a crisis approaching that unnerves me and causes me = to tremble for the safety of my country ...corporations have been enthroned an= d an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money power of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until all wealth is aggregated in a few hands." =

-U.S. Pr= esident Abraham Lincoln, Nov. 21, 1864

"As we view the achievements of aggregated capital, we discover the existence of trusts, combinations, and monopolies, while the citizen is struggling far in the re= ar, or is trampled beneath an iron heel. Corporations, which should be the carefully restrained creatures of = the law and the servants of the people, are fast becoming the people's masters."

-President Grover Cleveland, 1888

The time to create p= eace activist communities, the time to create So-Jus Diversa-Village= s, which look out for all people, for your friend= s, for your family and for you… for the rest of your life … is now.

        =             &nb= sp;            =

        =

<= st1:place w:st=3D"on">Portland, Maine So- Jus Diversa-Village ‘Build-It!’ Convergence

An International EcoVillag= e Providing Services of Equality to the Community

= &nb= sp; = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp;

The So-Jus Diversa-Village Mo= del is based on an actual Village Model… but it is a permanent home that expands, rather than transitional small homes.

“Pooling Our Experience”

A Few Recommendations

<= st1:place w:st=3D"on">Portland, Maine
So- Jus Diversa-Village
‘Build-It!’ Convergence