Third Coast Workers for Cooperation is an Austin-based organization committed to the development of ecologically sustainable worker cooperatives. Our mission is to empower low-income communities to create a thriving network of eco-friendly, worker-owned businesses throughout the greater Austin area--combating the growing crisis in our economy and the environment at the local level. Read More
From August 6-8th, Third Coast Workers for Cooperation joined members of Yo Mamas Catering, the first graduates of the Cooperative Business Institute, for the 2010 National Worker Cooperative Conference in the Bay Area. Hundreds of worker co-op members, developers and supporters from across the country attended the conference, representing all four regions of the US Federation of Worker Cooperatives. Through a series of workshops, plenaries, worker co-op tours and social gatherings, TCWC and Yo Mamas were exposed to the diversity, enthusiasm, and dedication of a growing national movement for workplace democracy.
On day one of the conference, we piled into separate tour vans for a glimpse of the various worker-owned businesses in the Bay. On the media tour, our first stop was Ink Works Press, a worker-owned, union print shop specializing in “sustainable printing for peace and justice”. We arrived just in time to see their recently unveiled mural documenting the relationship between Ink Works and the various social movements their work has contributed to in the course of over 30 years of printmaking. We took a tour of the workshop, met some of the worker-owners, and absorbed some history before moving on to what Ink Works considers its sister shop, Design Action Collective.
Design Action Collective was started as a spin-off of Ink Works in 2002 as an independent design and communications company, providing high quality “graphic design and visual comm
unications for progressive, non-profit and social change organizations.” Since its inception, Design Action has done an impressive array of design work, from posters to websites, for a variety of groups in the Bay Area and throughout the US. In fact, they’ve designed book covers for AK Press, a worker-run, radical book publisher and the last leg on our media tour.
While some of us took the media route, others followed the Arizmendi Association tour. Beginning with the Cheese Board Collective, “the mother ship of the Arizmendi Association,” members of Yo Mamas were led through a discussion of the origins and philosophy of the Arizmendi Association, one of the most exciting, innovative and successful cooperative development initiatives in the country. In addition to the history and philosophy, of course, they also sampled some of the food that has made the Arizmendi bakeries so popular throughout the Bay.
While the tours offered a broad sampling of the rich history of worker-ownership in the Bay Area, the conference workshops, plenaries, and social gatherings offered a more intimate look at the variety of worker-ownership models at the national level. Austin’s own Jim Hightower ushered in the conference Thursday night with an engaging key note speech at the Women’s Building in San Francisco’s Mission District. After a series of early morning workshops the following day, members of the Evergreen Cooperative initiative, Ted Howard and Medrick Addison, gave an inspiring presentation on the exciting “place-based” strategy for cooperative development in Cleveland, Ohio. The folks at Evergreen have already produced two worker co-ops, Evergreen Cooperative Laundry and Ohio Cooperative Solar, and have ambitious plans to develop an integrated network of 10 cooperatives with approximately 500 worker-owners in a 3 year period!
In a time of economic crisis, TCWC and Yo Mamas are proud to play a part in the growing effort to build a new economy based on democracy, sustainability and cooperation…and we look forward to hosting the US Federation of Worker Cooperatives for the 2011 membership meeting in Austin, TX!
One of several Arizmendi Bakeries
Raquel from Yo Mamas samples food on the tour
Andi and Carlos at the award ceremony
Raquel, Nini, Jeanette, and Sylvia awaiting the tour bus
Join Third Coast Workers for Cooperation on Saturday, July 31st, at 5604 Manor to congratulate the first Cooperative Business Institute graduating class! Over the course of 16 weeks, we worked with a dedicated group of women from Mamas of Color Rising who will now move on to form “Yo Mamas Catering Cooperative”, Austin’s first worker-owned catering business. During the CBI, participants covered a lot of ground – from the history, values and principles of cooperatives, to the organizational and financial essentials needed to start and expand a worker-owned business. Now that the class is over, it’s time to celebrate! Enjoy music by DJ Mahealani, sample Yo Mamas Catering cuisine, and take home something special from our silent auction, featuring a variety of goodies from around Austin.
Proceeds from the silent auction and donations made at the event will help members of Yo Mamas attend the US Federation of Worker Cooperatives conference in San Francisco this August. Help us meet our $2,000 goal to bring the entire group to this important event, and celebrate a milestone in worker cooperative development in Austin. If you can’t make the graduation but would like to help the Mamas get to the conference, donate to the “Cooperative Networking Fund” here. Thanks for your support!
From August 6-8th, UC Berkley will play host to the 2010 National Worker Cooperative Conference, “The Work We Do is the Solution,” organized by the US Federation of Worker Cooperatives and the Network of Bay Area Worker Cooperatives. The theme of the conference revolves around worker co-ops as a vehicle for addressing the current crisis in our economy and the environment through worker ownership and sustainable business practices. This years conference will include a variety of exciting speakers, workshops, and a tour of the “hidden history of the Bay Area.” Speakers for the conference include Austin’s own Jim Hightower and members of the innovative Evergreen Cooperatives in Cleveland, Ohio. Early registration ends on June 30th, so make sure to register soon and join Third Coast Workers for Cooperation in the Bay Area!
For decades, cooperatives have been used as a vehicle for economic development in a variety of marginalized communities throughout South America. Some of the first cooperatives in the Southern Cone can be traced back to the early 20th century, with noticeable spikes in cooperative activity in the 1960’s during John F. Kennedy’s Alliance for Progress initiative, designed to undermine the influence of guerrilla movements in Latin America in the wake of the Cuban Revolution. In recent years, the Chávez administration in Venezuela, along with workers on the ground in Argentina and other countries of South America, have seized on the cooperative model as a pathway out of the economic crisis and into a more just and sustainable economy.
In a recent article for Upside Down World, “South America: Mercosur’s Cooperative’s in an Age of Integration,” independent journalist Michael Fox explores the history of cooperative development in South America, as well as recent trends around the challenge of integrating cooperative activity across national borders. As Fox explains, “co-ops across the region are breaking previous paradigms and proving that they are not only economically viable, but have the capacity to join together and support each other in their struggle…It is often not easy, and not always successful, but many are trying.”
Join Third Coast Workers for Cooperation on Thursday, May 6th, 6:30-9pm, for food, drinks and music to celebrate the grand opening of 5604 Manor! Enjoy performances by Eliza Gilkyson, Mitote, Ruthie Foster, and DJ Eye One, along with a talk on the importance of grassroots organizing by longtime author/activist Jim Hightower.
In a wired world, we too easily mistake electronic connections for community. Building the deep connections that come with real community takes more than email and web pages. The connections that can sustain us in our personal and political lives are nurtured in face-to-face conversation and collective efforts to build a better world. Places and spaces for this work are crucial.
Several progressive groups in Austin have come together to purchase and renovate a building at 5604 Manor Rd. to serve as the grounds for this work. 5604 Manor began as a collaborative venture of the Workers Defense Project, Third Coast Activist Resource Center, and Third Coast Workers for Cooperation. Committed to expanding real democracy and economic justice in a sustainable world, we hoped to find a building centrally located that could provide office space for non-profit groups engaged in grassroots struggles, a large room for cultural and educational events, and a spacious outdoor area for gardening and socializing. We found all of those at 5604 Manor Road in East Austin.
One central goal of the project is to create a truly multi-racial/ethnic/cultural center where we can transcend the divisions that so commonly undermine creative collaborations. While we continue to read, study, and analyze the problems created by unjust systems, it’s essential to progressive politics that we come together in collective effort toward mutual goals. Community is an experience, not just an idea. We make community by coming together in solidarity, not to ignore our differences but to deepen our understanding of each other.
Noam Chomsky, author of Hopes and Prospects:
I am fortunate to have the chance to travel widely and meet many people fighting for justice. Most of these people will never make the headlines, as they work patiently, with commitment and passion, focused on the collective good rather than narrow self-interest. This tradition is not new, but it constantly finds new expressions, and the new community center in Austin is one. Given the energy of progressive organizers and activists I saw when I was in Austin a few years ago, I am sure 5604 Manor will be a success.
Raj Patel, author of Stuffed and Starved and The Value of Nothing:
One of the highlights of my visit to Austin was talking with the organizers behind 5604 Manor. Their energy and commitment are a reminder that in every community in the United States there are principled people working for real change, people who understand the value of solidarity and struggle. I wish you the best of luck in building the center.
