Who We Are:
East End Mutual Aid (EEMA) is a neighborhood-based project in Pittsburgh. We are residents of the neighborhoods of Bloomfield, Garfield, Friendship and East Liberty who work on mutual aid projects and community-driven solutions to improve the quality of life and the presence of social and economic justice within our communities.
Our Vision:
Our long-term vision for the East End is a non-hierarchical direct democracy, created by workers and residents who are assuming responsibility for the various forms of coordination necessary to create a free society. This is often referred to as anarchism, though we regard labels as far less important than people’s motivation and desire to create a more just, sustainable and empowered community. To that end, we work towards community organization to solve problems, without the need for intervention and control by government and corporate interests.
What We Believe:
We believe that a strong community and high quality of life necessitates everyone having the opportunities and resources necessary to develop their minds and bodies. It means everyone living lives of worth and dignity. This means everyone needs a safe and decent place to live, enough food to eat, strong families and social relationships, and ample opportunities for self-education and recreational activities. It means being safe from anti-social crime and from state violence. It means an end to the oppressions and discrimination that divide and poison our neighborhoods and pit groups against one another. It means a healthy environment in all its varied forms, with good air, water, food, and healthy eco-systems.
What We Stand For:
Within our communities we are for the preservation and rehabilitation of the existing housing stock and are opposed to the construction of unaffordable housing, condominiums, and further parking lots constructed primarily for profit and to serve large-scale developments.
We are for open space and a clean environment. We support expanded public transit, bicycle accessibility, and public spaces for art. We oppose the presence and proliferation of billboards and other forms of visual pollution.
We are for worker self-management, worker co-operatives, and labor rights in general. We favor family-run and small businesses over large corporations because they benefit the community, provide jobs and re-circulate resources locally. We oppose the presence and expansion of corporate chain stores. Even within the current system we do not believe there is a place in our communities for corporate businesses that do not pay a living wage.
We try to focus our work primarily on areas in which we can fill a need. When there’s a problem institution we try to combine opposition with creation of a better alternative.
Although our members share some beliefs in common, and work to develop group unity around certain issues, we are collectively committed to talking and working with those of varying beliefs and political identifications.
Our work is long-term in nature. The project is by, and for, those who have made a long-term commitment to these neighborhoods. We are interested in solving immediate problems while considering the longer-term trajectory of change. Within all of our discussions we are asking ourselves where our neighborhoods will be 10, 20 and 50 years from now, and how we can have the most positive impact on this process.
How We Are Structured:
EEMA is run by a non-hierarchical collective whose members have a commitment to the project, accountability to one another, and are able to work well together. The collective meets twice a month to discuss and decide on issues related to current and future projects.
EEMA work is supported and carried forward by a broader membership of supporters, open to anyone.
We hope to soon hold separate monthly, public meetings to give updates on our work and progress. This is important for accountability to the larger community and we hope this can incorporate public comment periods in when anyone can speak on their issues, ask questions, and give feedback on our activities.
We feel it is really important to be welcoming, to make it easy for people to give input, and to feel like their work and support is appreciated. We are for a culture of tolerance.
