Summer Calendar

Well, with a few hiccups along the way, we have entered the Summer ‘09 Freeskool Session (applause!).

The calendar is ready for download (on the sidebar to the right) and the class descriptions have been updated.

There are 34 classes this session – our biggest ever. We hope you are as excited as we are about our offerings this time around. From Math to Anarchy and from reading groups to bird watching by bike and studying the realities of oppression and resistance on the global scale, the freeskool has great stuff to feed our minds and hearts and bodies. May you find friends, learn skills and take steps towards a just, connected and dignified world.

Enjoy your summer and share what’s in your gardens!

~Dirk
Ithaca Freeskool Collective Member

NEW CALENDAR!

The new session calendar is hot off the press! JUNE JULY AUGUST, Freekool summer session will be posted and downloadable very very soon.

So stay tuned.

We’re Looking for Teachers for the Summer Term!

Hi everybody!

It’s springtime. Forsythia blooms ecstatic in breezes that carry magnolia on their wings and cherry blossoms urge you to look up and see the robins sing. Gardens come out of hibernation. I can’t believe the kale survived that long winter! I feel uplifted by it all even as my mind solemnly ponders the implications of Unconventional natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale and I join with others to protect what I love in this place (http://www.shaleshock.org).

It’s almost May and we need you to know that May 10th is the deadline for new Freeskool class proposals for the Summer term (June/July/August). Just click the “Teach for Freeskool” for info about how to do that. We have had amazing classes and we’ll have more amazing classes. Anyone who wants to help us get flyers out consistently is our hero. This has been our biggest challenge.

Don’t forget to watch the birds. Get off the internet and go in the woods!

Yours for a truly free world,

~Dirk from the Freeskool Collective

Anti-Authoritarian Games Moved to Apr 26

Hey all, due to a scheduling conflict, the Anti-Authoritarian Games class will be moved to April 26th. Lets hope for warm sunny weather and green spring surroundings!

If you have any questions, please contact Dirk at kalewillprevail@riseup.net

Anarchist Reading Group & Tea Time.

currently reading (Last Discussion Feb 15th)
JailBreak out of History (90 pages) by Butch Lee.

This is a new, book form, edition of a text previously published in pamphlet form. This is a major biographical study, which refutes the standard “American” version of Harriet Tubman’s life. At a time when violence against women of color is at the center of world politics, uncovering the censored story of one Amazon points to answers that have nothing to do with government programs, police, or patriarchal politics.    Read this book online: www.kersplebedeb.com

Starting Sunday FEB 15th
Caliban and The Witch (285 pages) By Silvia Federici

Caliban and the Witch is a history of the body in the transition to capitalism. Moving from the peasant revolts of the late Middle Ages to the witch hunts and the rise of mechanical philosophy, Federici investigates the capitalist rationalization of social reproduction. She shows how the struggle against the rebel body and the conflict between body and mind are essential conditions for the development of labor power and self-ownership, two central principles of modern social organization.

Winter/Spring ‘09 Term Has Begun! Regional Permaculture Consulta this Sunday!

Greetings and welcome! The new Freeskool term has begun! We have 31 classes this term!! Last term, we had 16. It feels as though we’ve just hit the upward curve on an exponential graph. As I write this, the first classes of the term have already occurred.  We mark our 2 year anniversary on April 1st. Happy Birthday to us! Sometimes it hardly seems real that we were able to get this project to where it is now and with practically no budget.  Freeskool is a project driven by relationships and creativity.

We apologize for not having the PDF of the new calendar up for download yet. That will be corrected in the coming days. Click on “Class Descriptions”  and check out the stunning array of classes available throughout February, March and April.

We’re very heavy on the permaculture and other “Earth skills” classes this term. Be sure to check out the Permaculture Regional Consulta this Sunday the 8th  (1-5pm at Cornell Cooperative Extension  – 615 Willow Avenue).  A big part of the Freeskool’s mission is to provide access to skills and social situations that will empower folks to face the challenges we face in this day and age. With Climate Change accelerating, fresh water dwindling, financial collapse worldwide and 1,000 other issues equally serious and demanding our focused attention, I can think of no better time to get involved with regenerative paradigms of land use and growing our own food  (besides 50 years ago).

Love and rage,

-Dirk

Freeskool Collective

P.S.,  Our pals over at Silent City Distribution are having a “SciFi vs. Fantasy” dance party celebrating the release of the 2nd issue of their publication, “IthAca Zine.” The fun starts at 7pm at the Worker’s Center, upstairs from Autumn Leaves (115 The Commons)  on Saturday, Feb 7th. $5 with a costume – $7 without.

New Freeskool Term coming up

calendar 09 thumbnail

The Spring ‘09 calendars are printed and you can find them around town. Class descriptions are also posted here on the blog. Check it out – the biggest freeskool session ever, 31 classes. You’ll be sure to find a class that rings your bell.

Healthy Cycles: Positive Menstruation

Healthy Cycles: Positive Menstruation
This Thursday, Nov. 20, 7-8:30 pm

This class will be a lively and fun workshop about positive perceptions
of the body and menstruation, and how to make healthy and
planet-friendly choices that work for you. A brief history of beliefs
and attitudes regarding these natural and necessary life cycles across
cultures and different kinds of media will be discussed, including
charting a menstrual cycle, safe and sustainable menstrual products,
herbal remedies, strategies for health, and ways to embrace a more
natural and healthy view of menstruation. Tea provided, everyone is
welcome. Please bring any information you want to discuss or hand out,
and a friend! Facilitators are Kendra Lynn, Promoter of Sustainable
Cyclery, and Sarah Brylinsky, Ecofeminist Menstruation Consultant.

Call Greenstar Cooperative Market at  (607) 273-9392‎ to reserve your space- only 20
seats available!
Questions can be directed to Sarah at sbrylinsky@gmail.com

Ith(A)ca Zine

Hey freeskool folks!

I know y’all have lots to offer and I wanted to announce the very soon deadline for ITHACA ZINE submissions. It’s thursday nov. 13th. Get it in!

This is the chance to do that project you’ve been putting off…

www.silentcitydistro.org

for more info.

–

Intro To Anarchist Studies 101 – Friday

Hey there,

This week’s anarchist studies class will be meeting on friday at 6pm at the OWL cafe’ on the commons. Readings will be provided. The theme of this weeks class is Anarchist History and Origins of Anarchist movement. See you there!

the following is the complete syllabus for Anarchist Studies 101

Welcome Class
>>
>> This is Intro to Anarchist Studies 101
>>
>> I'm honored to have such a great class this semester for the Ithaca
>> Freeskool and excited about the adventures and readings that we have
>> ahead
>> of us. Attatched in this e-mail is the reading from last class on wed.
>> october 15th. Please catch up. And if you'all are into it, use this
>> e-mail
>> list for discussion.
>>
>> Description.
>>
>> This class is an overview of the Anarchist movement, ranging from
>> historical texts and theory, to contemporary anarchist beliefs,
>> actions,
>> lifestyles, etc... We'll be looking at how anarchist movement is
>> influence
>> by other liberation struggles around the world. We'll be studying the
>> anarchist movement in other parts of the world such as south america,
>> europe, and asia. In the anarchist tradition this class is
>> participatory
>> and slightly on the edge.
>>
>> Schedule.
>>
>> 1st class. October 15th 6pm OWL CAFE in Autumn Leaves
>>    -  Readings: (attatched) "Peace is Patriotic, and that's the
>> problem.
>> An Anarchist Perspective" Pamphlet. Found this somewhere a few years
>> back.
>>    - This reading is a response to the emerging anti-war movement's
>> response to the war in iraq. Marches and protests that were contained
>> and permitted within the police sanctioned "freespeech" zone. The zine
>> discusses and defines an "anarchist perpective on war".
>>    - Our discussion was informed by reading the centerfold of this
>> zine
>> titled "Anarchists, what we stand for".
>>    - the second half of the class we took a walk to the secret tunnel
>> beneath cornell. Did some role plays and had discussions about the
>> kind of world we want to live in.
>>
>> 2nd class. October 24th (friday) same time. 6pm at OWL CAFE in
>> Autumn Leaves.
>>    - the theme of this class is History. We'll be reviewing some
>> significant moments in anarchist history across the world. Comparing
>> it to todays anarchist movements. We'll be looking at the North
>> American Dropout culture in the 16th & 17th Century; pirate utopias,
>> resistance to witch trials, indigenous liberation movements, slave
>> uprisings and abolitionists, etc... etc... so much to explore here!
>>    - Second half of the class is a field trip to be announced.
>>
>> 3rd class tba ( we will decide this together as a class either in
>> person
>> or on e-mail. Send your proposals now)
>>    - Theme, Anarcha Feminism. Historical and contemporary. What is the
>> relationship between anarchism and feminism? We'll be exploring the
>> ways that anarcha feminists have been participating in Women's
>> liberation movements since the formation of patriarchy.
>>
>> 4th class tba
>>
>>   - theme, Primitivism and eco-anarchism, anti-civilization movements.
>> This class will dive into some of the philosophical framework behind
>> the earth liberation movements and animal liberation movements. How
>> anarchists have participated and how contemporary anarchist
>> philosophy/lifestyle in North America have been informed by these
>> movements.
>>
>> other upcoming themes;
>>
>> 1  - theme, contemporary anarchist movements. This class will be
>> providing info about existing anarchist community projects around the
>> world that are accepting participation. We'll be talking about and
>> sharing experiences about anarchist culture and groups processes and
>> etiquette that have developed in the contemporary anarchist movements.
>>   - we've seen a huge shift in energy from the anarchist movement in
>> North America since the 80's and then another shift in the 90s with
>> inspiration and influence from the Zapatista uprising in mexico. Since
>> 911 and the greenscare repression, the anarchist movement has shifted
>> again. What are these shifts and how can we stay informed and inspired
>> in a decentralised movement?
>>
>> 2   - Advanced anarchist theory.
>>
>>    by advance i mean you will read the text in advance, and help the
>> class understand the messages and philosophy by giving a 10 minute
>> presentation on your selected texts. You can either choose from one of
>> our many zines and books in the Silent City Distro, or better yet,
>> find something we've never heard of.  This class will be a discussion
>> of anarchist theory and how it can inform our actions.
>>