The remnants of a long-lost Florida Radical Activist Network (FRAN) present a revival & celebration of Florida's visionary, grassroots counter-culture:
May 5-7, 2007 (plan to stick around Monday, if possible) at The Corbett Wildlife Area, Camp P, in western Palm Beach County
Skill-shares, Workshops, Music, Merry-making, Camping, Hiking, Networking, Community Kitchen, Action Planning
List of tentative skill-shares/workshops/discussions: Everglades Restoration; Radical Mental Health; FPLs Fossil Fuel Nightmare; Queer Uprisings; Latin American Solidarity; Anarchy 101; What/Where is Earth First!; Wild Plant Walks; Challenging Oppression Within Radical Movements; Using Civil Disobedience & Direct Action; Confronting Sexual Assault; and more. (Please bring your skills, knowledge and ideas to share.)
DIRECTIONS: from I-95, exit Northlake Blvd. west till Seminole Pratt Whitney Blvd.; from S.R. 80, go north on Seminole Pratt all the way to Corbett. Grab a map at the entrance, follow the payment instructions ($6 per vehicle or $3 person), and head a couple miles down the dirt road to Camp P.
This camp-out gathering is part of an action-packed week of events celebrating May Day around the state. More info on the Hootenanny: jeagaearthfirst@riseup.net.
WHAT'S A HOOTENANNY? Hootenanny was used in the early twentieth century to refer to things whose names were forgotten or unknown. In this usage it was synonymous with thingamajig or whatchamacallit, as in "hand me that hootenanny." Hootenanny was also an old country word for "party." Now, most commonly, it refers to a folk-music party.
WHAT'S MAY DAY? May Day refers to any of several holidays celebrated on this day. May 1 was a traditional springtime holiday, also known as Beltane, in many pre-Christian European pagan cultures. Beltane marks that the winter's journey has passed and summer has begun, it is a festival that heralds the arrival of summer in her full garb. May Day also refers to various anarchist, socialist and labor movement celebrations conducted on May 1 or International Workers' Day (a name used interchangeably with May Day), where the social and economic achievements of the international labor movement are celebrated. Its origin is in the commemoration of the Haymarket Riot of 1886 in Chicago, Illinois.
WHAT'S FRAN? FRAN was an activist network, mostly of anarchists, from around Florida (Pensacola, Tallahassee, Gainesville, Tampa, St Pete, Sarasota, Orlando, Lake Worth, Miami) originally organized around a network of Food Not Bombs groups, but which grew to organize around several May Day events, and became a basis of support for like-minded activists in their local organizing around environmental defense, anti-globalization, sustainability, challenging male supremacy, and more. Skill-sharing, communication, and support is vital to building a strong movement, and former participants in FRAN would like to see the development of a new network to facilitate strategizing, mutual aid, and growth among Florida anarchists.