Reading group, discussion on Russia and the first film screening

(Lietuviškai – kitame įraše!)

This week “Infokrautuvė” infoshop starts an intensive program of cultural events: Thursday to Monday. All events will be held in English.

Thursday, January 7, 18:00 starts the materialist feminist reading group. Materialist feminism is a doctrine that combines feminist, Marxist, anarchist, race, class, and gender analysis to serve action. From now on, every Thursday we’ll read an article from “Lies” journal vol. 2, freshly shipped from the States. No homework necessary, we’ll read on the spot, as well as agree on the further format of the group.

First text to read: To make many lines, to form many bonds//Thoughts on Autonomous Organizing by FLOC (12 pages), short excerpt: “The problem is rooted in white supremacy, patriarchy, and class, which are together fundamental to the reproduction of the capitalist social relations-and so we seek to build a praxis that encompasses all of these parts of the whole. To engage in such a project is to continuously struggle with each other, and with ourselves.”

Friday, January 8, 18:30 – Presentation and discussion “Western Left and media politics of Russia in context of war in Ukraine”

In the recent years, Russia has invested massive amounts in media and activist groups that would represent its perspective and support its politics in the West. Now Russia is reaping some fruit.

A wide range of leftist and even anarchist groups became a mouthpiece for distributing the propaganda of the Russian state. Russia sometimes seems to fulfill the hopes of all the political spectre – from leftists to ultraconservatives, from antifa to traditional fascists… How is this possible? What narratives are used and which of them are the most attractive? What does it all have to do with the Cold War and modern media-colonialism?

Questions raised and answered, discussion moderated by an ex-Russian comrade.

Monday, January 11, 18:30 – first film from the series “Inspired by Direct Action”, 1975 documentary “Santa Army” (45 min., Denmark, English subtitles)

Film series “Inspired by Direct Action”: biweekly films on the most memorable direct action practices, shown every second Monday. Revolts, wildcat strikes, temporary squatting actions, protests, flashmobs, street theatre… Before and after the film we discuss the pros and cons of direct action and engage in collective fantasy on what we, ourselves, could do next.

First film “Santa Army” takes theatre troupe “Sun’s Chariots” (Solvognen) from Copenhagen as its subject. During the 1974 winter holidays they arranged a direct action of Santa Army that lasted for 8 days. As OPEC raised oil prices, a financial crisis erupted: Denmark saw its army of unemployed growing, people were getting poorer. “Solvognen” decided to bring back the Christmas spirit and invited all actresses and actors of Copenhagen to get involved in an 8-day spectacle on the city streets.

First day of action saw the Santa parade, together with a huge toy goose, marching through Copenhagen. Some other day Santas ambushed a bank and demanded a loan of several million crowns for Christmas presents. They visited schools, elderly homes and hospitals, staged plays, presented gifts and attacked government buildings with pitchforks. On the last day, about 40 men and women, dressed as Santas, went into a supermarket and started handing out “presents” straight from the shelves, shouting: “ho ho ho, you don’t need to pay today, you worked so hard for this!”. The police arrived, started pulling Santas’ beards off, handcuffed them and lead them to the police cars, took the presents away from the children, the children started crying… The spectacle was successful: good Santas were arrested by evil cops, who involuntarily turned into actors, as well.

“Santa Army” was important that it fought the capitalist spectacle of exploitation by its own means and abused the power of naivete. Santas “naively believed”, that their real purpose is not to serve consumption, but bring joy to the people; they “naively asked”: why are people poor while banks hoard money? and they “naively reminded” everyone that red looks good not only on Santas.

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