Rochester Update
Rochester's Activists Against Racism Movement (better known as AARM) has been working consistently to build relationships and networks in anti-racism work. Their current campaigns span from media accountability and education reform to recent efforts in organizing against misdirected, racist RICO charges on 24 individuals in the city. AARM is also currently facilitating a free skool class entitled "Understanding and Confronting Individual and Institutionalized Racism."
Rochester Students for a Democratic Society has been consistently reaching out to the community with weekly open meetings, monthly discussions and film screenings, and a budding counter-recruitment campaign. Some upcoming events include the G20 in Pittsburgh (September), the National Day of Action Against War in Afghanistan (October), and the North East SDS Regional Convention (fall 2009 in Rochester!). For more info, check them out on Facebook: Rochester SDS. The Flying Squirrel Community Space is the multi-use community center being renovated at 285 Clarissa St., formerly the location of the historic Flower City Elks Lodge. Most of these renovations are being completed by volunteers, supported by donations from Rochester activists and community organizers. We expect a formal opening in late October.
Together, we want to provide a welcoming space that cultivates and sustains long lasting relationships between artists, activists, and community members in Rochester so that we may work together to create positive social change. We are excited about the location because of its historic significance as a community center, its potential as a multi-use building, its central location as a gathering space for Rochester area groups, and the rich cultural history of the Clarissa St. neighborhood.
Email us! FlyingSquirrel (at) rocus.org
Join the mailing list at: http://lists.riseup.net/www/info/Rochester-Community-Space
Look us up on FaceBook: FlyingSquirrel CommunitySpace