Inspiration
We have been inspired by so many groups during the development and planning of this project. Below you will find some of the projects and groups that have shown us the possibility of doing things differently, our own way, and have been successful at doing so.
A grassroots group of community members in so-called Grays Harbor County, WA engaged in political direct action. We are not a Non-Profit 501c3, a business, or a club. We are normal people who try to organize the vast potential of our community to build the world we want to see, without asking for permission.
Chehalis River Mutual Aid Network is what brought the founders of Blackflower together and what put us on the streets to meet so many good hearted people in our community. It;s the reason there is a Blackflower Collective in the first place. They continue to do excellent work and we are happy to be able to partner with them so they can grow their project in our physical space.
An open collective of radical media makers. We are an Anarchist Media Collective looking to provide an outlet for Radical Analysis, Organization, & Education through various media projects.
Sabot Media was birthed from Chehalis River Mutual Aid Network and is a vital member org. They have essentially taken over the media wing of the network.
“We are a collectively-owned radical bookstore and community event space in Asheville, North Carolina. Since 2008 we’ve supported grassroots movements in Southern Appalachia while developing a workplace on the basis of cooperation, empowerment and equity.” Patreon
Firestorm would probably be the most influential in the formation of our own business plans. We looked to them early on for guidance on forming, and running a cooperative worker owned company. They were generous enough to share their insights and their operating agreement, which has formed to backbone of our own operating agreement at Blackflower LLC. They are a shining example of what we would like to model in our space, and give us constant inspiration in our own projects.
“Cooperation Tulsa is an emerging Cooperative Network in Tulsa, Oklahoma. We are part of the national Symbiosis federation of organizations in North America. Our work primarily focuses on food sovereignty, decommodifying land, and building municipal democracy. We are a horizontal organization dedicated to indigenous and cooperative values. Currently we are working on a network of community gardens and urban farming in Tulsa.” Open Collective
We have taken great comfort in watching this awesome group of folx build this project from the ground up. Since their project is so very similar to ours we love to see them succeeding and gaining attention. We hope to connect with them, and the larger Symbiosis federation they are a part of, in the future and begin a dialogue about sharing experiences and skills.
“A 20 acre black-led farm and bread school in the Middle Satsop Valley.” GoFundMe | Venmo | Paypal | CashApp
A portion of Bunkhouse Acres’ CSA food shares are donated to local BIPOC families in need and leftover or unclaimed produce gets used by our Food Not Bombs project for our Community Meal.
“We are a mutual aid group wishing to end food insecurity on Occupied Duwamish land.”
Free food for the community | Comida gratis para la comunidad. Inspired by @iohnyc. Venmo
Seattle Community Fridges are part of the wider regional solidarity network Chehalis River Mutual Aid Network sends prepared food and produce to as often as possible.
“Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods (NECN) fosters healthy communities by engaging citizens to become directly involved in determining how their neighborhood evolves, and giving them the tools to have their voices heard by policy makers and the public at large.”
Although they do excellent work in Northeast Portland, our solidarity work in the region has seen us working with many of the incredible groups listed in NECN’s PDX Mutual Aid and Support Directory. We list them here because we were delighted to be listed alongside many groups that inspired our work.
“Our national network is made up of many eco-activists, social justice activists, global justice activists, street medics, herbalists, permaculturalists, black liberation advocates, community organizers, and others who are actively organizing around supporting disaster survivors in a spirit of mutual aid and solidarity. ” Donate | Action Network
We have a deep respect for these folks, they do amazingly radical and liberatory relief work at a large scale. They are directly responsible for inspiring this group, and actively help us in procuring certain donations as a registered 501(c)3 organzation with some incredible connections.