Join Third Coast Workers for Cooperation on Thursday, May 6th, 6:30-9pm, for food, drinks and music to celebrate the grand opening of 5604 Manor! Enjoy performances by Eliza Gilkyson, Mitote, Ruthie Foster, and DJ Eye One, along with a talk on the importance of grassroots organizing by longtime author/activist Jim Hightower.
What is 5604 Manor?
In a wired world, we too easily mistake electronic connections for community. Building the deep connections that come with real community takes more than email and web pages. The connections that can sustain us in our personal and political lives are nurtured in face-to-face conversation and collective efforts to build a better world. Places and spaces for this work are crucial.
Several progressive groups in Austin have come together to purchase and renovate a building at 5604 Manor Rd. to serve as the grounds for this work. 5604 Manor began as a collaborative venture of the Workers Defense Project, Third Coast Activist Resource Center, and Third Coast Workers for Cooperation. Committed to expanding real democracy and economic justice in a sustainable world, we hoped to find a building centrally located that could provide office space for non-profit groups engaged in grassroots struggles, a large room for cultural and educational events, and a spacious outdoor area for gardening and socializing. We found all of those at 5604 Manor Road in East Austin.
One central goal of the project is to create a truly multi-racial/ethnic/cultural center where we can transcend the divisions that so commonly undermine creative collaborations. While we continue to read, study, and analyze the problems created by unjust systems, it’s essential to progressive politics that we come together in collective effort toward mutual goals. Community is an experience, not just an idea. We make community by coming together in solidarity, not to ignore our differences but to deepen our understanding of each other.
Endorsements for 5604 Manor
Noam Chomsky, author of Hopes and Prospects:
I am fortunate to have the chance to travel widely and meet many people fighting for justice. Most of these people will never make the headlines, as they work patiently, with commitment and passion, focused on the collective good rather than narrow self-interest. This tradition is not new, but it constantly finds new expressions, and the new community center in Austin is one. Given the energy of progressive organizers and activists I saw when I was in Austin a few years ago, I am sure 5604 Manor will be a success.
Raj Patel, author of Stuffed and Starved and The Value of Nothing:
One of the highlights of my visit to Austin was talking with the organizers behind 5604 Manor. Their energy and commitment are a reminder that in every community in the United States there are principled people working for real change, people who understand the value of solidarity and struggle. I wish you the best of luck in building the center.
