The Lutruwita Activist and Mutual Aid Social Centre is the soil from which a thriving grassroots network can grow. It is a radical community space deeply rooted in valuing, practicing and pursuing justice along leftist and solidarity-based work.
Key amongst these are decolonisation, ecological and social justice, anti-repression, anti-capitalism, mutual aid, anti-fascism, abolition, reduction of AOD harms, community building and pluralism. The Lutruwita Activist and Mutual Aid Social Centre is a meeting place in both space and time, representative of radical action towards community independence and resilience within the institutional and cultural bounds of a society that individualises us at every opportunity.
When so many of the things we fight for run against our society’s dominant culture, it’s on us to build alternative cultures. Here we can collectively unlearn the disempowerment and indifference we grow up with, and build new ways to relate to each other that work towards equity, accessibility, inclusivity, diversity, and harm minimisation.
At the LAMA Social Centre we will strive to make these cultures as normal as breathing, and hope/expect people to participate in these ways;
- Accountability:
To practise transformative justice ourselves we must hold others, and be held, accountable in our community. We ask that people respect communal processes that resolve conflict and redress harm. When we are proactive in finding solutions for harm or conflict within the community, police and other state institutions don’t need to be involved.
Having a sustainable support system is how we grow together and thrive. We ask participants to actively practise care and empathy for those around them, and their own capacity. Caring is integral to activism - holding space for everyone means we are a stronger and more resilient community.
- Consent:
Consent is central in all interactions. We ask people in the space to respect each other’s physical and emotional boundaries. This happens through regularly and actively asking for consent – e.g. before physical contact, bringing up heavy or triggering topics, or sharing someone’s personal details with others. We also ask that people keep any addictive substances (cigarettes, alcohol, other drugs) out of communal spaces, and similarly keep activities that might draw police attention to the centre off the premises.
- Equality:
We are taught that it’s normal for humans to command and subordinate one another and the planet – unlearning this is key to building a just world. We ask that people do not harm or threaten any living beings in the social centre, and don’t subject others to coercive or dominating behaviour. Bigotry of any kind is unacceptable. We also ask that people respect others’ autonomy and the many theories of change that coexist in the centre.
If groups or individuals behave contrary to the values of the space, if they compromise the safety of the space, or if the way they operate goes against our mission statement/participants agreement, they will be asked to not use the premises.
The mandate of the LAMA Collective is strictly to make the social centre operational, and thus only functions during the preparation stage. Thus far, membership of and participation in the LAMA Collective is governed by a vouching system by which individuals either request membership or are invited in on the approval of existing members. All decisions are made via reaching group consensus. As a registered unincorporated not-for-profit, we currently have a president, treasurer and secretary. However, neither these individuals nor any others have any more power in decision-making than any other people. Instead, the diversity of knowledge and skills within the LAMA Collective has been used to upskill all members through non-hierarchical and consensus sharing of learnings.
Upon operation, the social centre will be governed through the structure which all participants agree on. Whilst this is important for the legal requirements of the social centre, it will not affect the internal workings of governance. A board of authorised officers will be constituted of spokespeople for the working groups necessary to fulfill the legal obligations of an incorporated not-for-profit. Membership into these permanent working groups will be open to active participants in the social centre but beholden to the completion of specific inductions that ensure they are skilled, knowledgeable and capable. The table below outlines examples of specific duties of the working groups, as well as spokespeople who will be the authorised officers for each.
