Sandy Solidarity Caravan
Three years ago, Brooklyn College students planned a trip to New Orleans to do recovery work and community organizing in post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans. We worked in an area called the Lower Ninth Ward, which, even 6 years after the storm was still trying to build back their community as well as their homes. We learned that people power is what we need to build in order to make change and move towards a more sustainable city after similar disasters.
Today, we are organizing a Sandy Solidarity Caravan guided by similar sentiment. Sandy Solidarity Caravan is a student-led, service-learning trip to Far Rockaways and other neighborhoods affected by Hurricane Sandy. The caravan will be open to students, staff and faculty who are interested in learning about the history of Brooklyn, working with social justice organizations and working to assist in the recovery effort post-Hurricane Sandy in the most affected areas.
All attendees will be required to attend mandatory debriefs and participatory workshops before and after the on-the-ground recovery efforts to discuss the implications of social policy and social geography in shaping who is the most affected by natural disasters. The Caravan will be free for all attendees but we do encourage people to donate items such as gloves, coats, blankets, industrial mop buckets, shovels, etc. More information about the relief efforts we will be involved in are available on the Occupy Sandy website.
While the caravan itself will last a day, the recovery process will be much longer–as members of the Brooklyn College community we are committed to working with neighborhoods who are struggling for the long-haul.
SANDY SOLIDARITY CARAVAN DATES:
Caravan # 1: November 25th
Caravan # 2: November 30th
The sign-up form is available HERE. Students, faculty and staff can volunteer to attend the Sandy Solidarity Caravan. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at bcstudentunion.outreach@gmail.com.
–Brooklyn College Student Union
(Sponsored by the Brooklyn College chapter of the Professional Staff Congress-CUNY)
This post originally appeared on TakeBackBrooklyn.wordpress.com.