Recipes for Disaster: an anarchist cookbook

Many people think that not knowing a foreign language disqualifies them from doing solidarity work in other nations and cultures. For many actions, you don't necessarily need to know the local language yourself, you just need to be part of a group with at least one member who can serve as a translator and doesn't mind doing so. Of course, wherever you go, you should always make an effort to learn everything you can of the language and customs; many people will be happy to help you learn their native tongue, especially if you are willing to return the favor. Immersion is the best way to learn a language, anyway. Still, grounding yourselves in the basics of a language and culture before leaving to do solidarity work in a foreign context will make you more effective and your solidarity time much more enjoyable. 49''

offering Skills and Resources

Solidarity 492

Remember that many things you take for granted about yourself may affect the ways people treat you in another culture. For example, white skin often denotes "rich tourist," so if you have it, expect people to attempt to get money from you no matter how long you've been an unemployed full-time revolutionary. In some cultures, sexism maybe so deeply ingrained that people will routinely ignore you if you are a woman. Often your own assumptions will be challenged: while there aren't many older revolutionaries in the United States, in indigenous cultures it is often the oldest people who are fighting the hardest while their children embrace the North American way of life. Openly bribing cops may be unheard of where you come from, but in some societies it is a crucial element of survival. Read up in advance, talk to people who've been where you're going; if you can, go with someone who has already been and made connections. No matter how distant the place or how foreign it seems, don't let the unknown intimidate you out of undertaking worthwhile solidarity actions.

Once you feel ready to undertake a solidarity action, think about what you have to share. Having access to computers or vehicles, knowing how to communicate with the media, being from North America or Western Europe?many people take privileges like these for granted, but they can be absolutely vital to helping out other communities. Free time (see Unemployment, pg. 576) is itself a very valuable resource. Having no steady job, or a job with very flexible hours, can give you the opportunity to help people; so can being willing to risk arrest.

Sometimes all that is needed is a group to occupy a liberated space in danger of being evicted or destroyed, such as a squat, tree-sit, land occupation, or community center or garden. You may be called on to obstruct invaders (see Blockades and Lockdowns, pg. 162), hold them at bay (see Blocs, Black and Otherwise, pg. 127), or get the word out (see Wheatpasting, pg. 598; Graffiti, pg. 258; and Distribution, Tabling, and Infoshops, pg. 210).

In other situations, you may just be needed as a helping hand, to cook food, tutor children, or even herd sheep.

In some parts of the world, you can help by being an international observer. This involves no greater technical skill than simply staying at a place under threat and watching what happens. In places like Palestine and Chiapas, the forces of repression wdU be less likely to murder people or bulldoze their houses if they know international visitors staying in the community might witness these atrocities or, worse, be injured in them. This is not always risk-free?in Palestine, for example, the Israeli occupying forces have begun callously killing even international observers.

The world is full of injustices and liberation struggles that are not receiving the attention they warrant, so knowing how to do basic media work can be really important. This might mean anything from posting information or personal accounts on the internet to writing press releases (see Mainstream Media, pg. 358) or doing video documentation (see Independent Media, pg. 346). Many communities can't afford or obtain video cameras, computers, and other such equipment; delivering them as gifts, or bringing them to share while you are present, can be of great assistance. Technical skills such as automotive or computer repair can be useful, too, as can a willingness to run errands. Whatever you have or can do, somebody somewhere is in need of it.