From ACT UP to the WTO: Urban Protest and Community Building in the Era of GlobalizationBenjamin Shepard, Ronald Hayduk In March 1987 a radical coalition of queer activists converged on Wall Street—their target, ‘Business, Big Business, Business as Usual!!!’ It was ACT UP’s first demonstration. In November 1999 a radical coalition of environmental, labor, anarchist, queer, and human rights activists converged in Seattle—their target was similar, a system of global capitalism. Between 1987 and 1999 a new project in activism had emerged unshackled from past ghosts. Through innovative use of civil rights’ era non-violent disobedience, guerrilla theatre, and sophisticated media work, ACT UP has helped transform the world of activism. This anthology offers a history of ACT UP for a new generation of activists and students. It is divided into five sections which address the new social movements, the use of street theater to reclaim public space, queer and sexual politics, new media/electronic civil disobedience, and race and community building. Contributions range across a diverse spectrum: The Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition, Jubilee 2000, Students for an Undemocratic Society, Fed Up Queers, Gender Identity Center of Colorado, Triangle Foundation, Jacks of Color, National Coalition for Sexual Freedom, Lower East Side Collective, Community Labor Coalition, Church of Stop-Shopping, Indy Media Collective, Black Radical Congress, The Theater of the Oppressed Laboratory, Adelante Street Theater; HealthGAP, Housing Works, SexPanic! and, of course, ACT UP itself. |
Contents
Introductory notes on the trail from ACT UP to the | 11 |
PART | 17 |
A short history of radical renewal | 35 |
How we really shut down the | 36 |
This city is ours | 41 |
STARHAWK | 52 |
Students sweatshops and local power | 74 |
An ACT UP founder acts up for Africas access to AIDS | 88 |
theatricalizing dissent in | 242 |
PART FOUR | 261 |
Mayan technologies and the theory of electronic civil disobedience | 274 |
The birth and promise of the Indymedia revolution | 290 |
So many alternatives The alternative AIDS video movement | 298 |
an exemplary blend of hiphop and political | 306 |
invasions of three NYC Starbucks | 316 |
world city politics and the | 326 |
PART | 103 |
Jail house rocks Matthew Shepard lives | 121 |
From WHAM to ACT | 141 |
Amanda Milan and the rebirth of the Street Trans Action | 156 |
an oral history | 172 |
PART THREE | 197 |
Reclaim the StreetsNYC | 215 |
the struggle over community gardens | 229 |
Can Black radicalism speak the voice of Black workers? | 334 |
The fight for living wages | 342 |
Building a healing community from ACT UP to housing works | 351 |
a movement toward social justice | 361 |
Bibliography | 395 |
Contributors | 409 |
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abortion ACT UP's activism affinity groups AIDS activist American anarchist arrested began Black August Black radicalism Bronx building called campaign Center Church Ladies city's Coalition color community gardens community organizing convergence corporate created culture demonstrations direct action economic efforts electronic civil disobedience essay feminist fight Gay Liberation gender GLBT global justice global justice movement grassroots harm reduction heterosexuals hip-hop homeless housing immigrants Indymedia Internet issues justice movement labor lesbian Lesbian Avengers lives living-wage Lower East Side mainstream Manhattan March mayor meeting ment neighborhood participate party political protest public space queer rally Reclaim the Streets resistance safer sex Seattle SexPanic sexual Shepard social movements spokescouncil strategy struggle sweatshops tactics targets theater thing trade transgender union urban wages women workers York City Zapatistas zoning