GA Minutes – 12/05/12

Facilitator: Katie

Stack: Mira

Timekeeper: Carlus

Minutes: Carlus

 

Rallies – May Day rally, organised by Exeter Anti-Cuts Alliance, good to an extent but turnout could have been higher. Look to support Anti-Cuts as they build for next year’s May Day, particularly on the publicity-side and leafleting. Speeches and placards were excellent. Good photo in the Express and Echo! Thursday’s strike rally also good but turnout was mostly of people who were already in the trade union movement or activists elsewhere. Feeling that there needs to be more leadership from within the trade union movement and a unified strategy for fighting the cuts. Occupy can try support those efforts as best it can.

 

Watt’s Fest – who can volunteer for stewarding, and provide an Occupy presence. Find out when the festival is and report back to the GA.

 

GM talk – 7pm, next Wednesday in the Global Centre

 

Phonic FM – we need material, hummus, and volunteers. Be wary that we have an audience so no in-jokes. More planning and induction needed for new people on the show. Instruction sheet or spoken induction to be provided.

 

Finance – proposal to shelve the idea of getting a bank account for Occupy Exeter for now. Consensus. Lots of issues to consider like the requirement to have a mission statement, three signatories, and a lengthy application process. Do we really have the resources at this point to going down this route?

 

Economics discussion event – 6th July (instead of the 7th) at Friends’ Meeting House. Alternative economics discussion as part of the general assembly that evening at 6pm.

 

Money Talks 2.0. Next Friday at Friends’ Meeting House, discussion with John Maloney from Exeter University.

 

Direct Action – idea where, after switching our accounts to ethical banks, we can write letters to the old banks and explain why we left them. Direct Action can be a high-visibility event with cameras and placards.

 

Discussion around the need to live ethically, including choosing to buy clothes from charity shops as opposed to corporate retailers. A document we can sign to be drafted pertaining to this.

 

Letter from Torquay Girls’ Grammar School. Lovely thank-you letter. Idea to talk to the people in charge of citizenship programmes at local secondary schools about holding relevant events with Occupy about citizenship.

GA Minutes 16/04/12

There was general discussion about how people in OE
follow through on commitments and make things happen within the movement. Everyone
in the circle had an opportunity to express views on this.
There was a general agreement that there needs to be a greater focus on
actions, getting ourselves out there and heard. We heard that the
Newsletter is coming on well and should be ready for publication soon.

There was a proposal that GAs other than the Friday GA should take
place in the open air in a public place where there is opportunity to
interract with the public. Some people expressed a view of feeling very
uncomfortable with meeting in a pub.
Several possible venues were discussed including Rougemont, Northernhay,
Southernhay Gardens, Belmont Park and the Park across the road from
Exeter College. Also discussed was Cathedral Green and there were
several very strong objections to this space.
Consensus was reached that Tuesdays GA (17/04/12) would take place at
6pm at the eastern end of Southernhay Gardens (end near the Civic
Centre). People would bring something to sit on if they wish and a
picnic also if they wish. The venue for the next GA will be discussed
and decided on Tuesday.
It was felt that Fridays GAs would continue as they are for now but with
food on a bring/share basis. It was agreed that the food over the last
few weeks had been exceptionally good and the efforts of K and the Guild
were applauded.

Events we are committing to taking part in are:
7th May Mayday/ Workers of the World Demo in centre of Exeter – look out
for details
Respect Festival Sat 2nd and Sun 3rd June Belmont Park 12-19.00 (18.00
on Sunday). Both a stall and A’s ideas for roving clowning etc were
mentioned . The key was how many people are going to commit definitely
to be part of the OE activity on the day.

There was a proposal that we take action over the proposed
legislation to criminalise squatting.

Question asked if there could be a Noticeboard at GAs as he has no access
to emails, internet etc and doesn’t know when things are happening. It
was suggested that there is a “Noticeboard” of events on back page of
Newsletter and that events/meetings in the next week are so are
announced at each GA.

It was reported that there is a planned talk on Sat 2pm Bedford Square
- assume this is the 21st April – it has now been suggested that the
speaker be asked to attend the OE Phonic Radio programme on that day at 2pm.

Occupier visited Occupy Totnes last weekend – very relaxed, several tents,
pop-up camp, suggest this may be a way ahead for OE.

There is a Conference at Southend Sat 14th April – Sun 15th April. 3 Occupiers would like to go and asked if travel expenses (petrol for them
to travel together) could be agreed. There was consensus that petrol
costs would be paid (receipts will be needed) as otherwise no-one would
be able to go to this. The 3 people will be asked to report back.
GA finished at 8pm and a film was shown.

GA Minutes – 30/03/12

Facilitator: Mira
Stack: Stuart
Timekeeper: Eamonn
Minutes: Carlus

“Pot-luck” food for next Friday’s GA. Bring your own food.

Newsletter in progress. Next issue on food. Talk to Jo about writing articles. Get it done by next Tuesday/Wednesday if possible.

Easter Saturday Direct Action – on the issue of opposing road tolls, in the works. Come to the DAWG meetings every Monday 6pm in the Imperial.

Finance – Ghee has stepped in to help run the working group while the current team are on holiday. We need to sort out details for setting up a bank account. Talk to Mira for details.

Regional conference went well, future for pop-up occupations. Jo stepped up to be our delegate to the Southend national conference.

Move Your Money – stall on the High Street outside one of the big banks, starting at 10.30 for an hour, leaflets about ethical banking.

Economics meeting – Jill (from Money Talk) wants to meet up with the Quakers, Occupy and Transition Exeter to discuss alternative economics. Wednesday at 3, merge with public eye meeting for that week. In Guildhall, Butternut Squash. Details to go up on Facebook.

Lets – talk to Katie for details.

Plans for Saturday – maybe have it in Rougemont Garden and focus it on Exeter Pride. More effective to do Exeter Pride instead. Proposal to do just that.

We should do more pop-up occupations. Like the Friday stall but BIGGER! Discuss more at Tuesday’s GA. Advantages of a pop-up is more regular meetings and political discussions, and improves morale.

20/03/12

Facilitator: Rebecca
Stack: Ghee
Timekeeper: Stuart
Minutes: Carlus

Cathedral Letter – we got a response. Cathedral want to returf rather than reseed the grass, and hire a contractor rather than use us for the job. Cathedral would rather we don’t help with the grass directly so we need to respect their wishes. They offered to let us help replant shrubs. Marquee option with collaboration with the Cathedral is back on the table. We need to formulate a response. Proposal to continue correspondence by drafting and approving a letter from Occupy Exeter at the following GA. Consensus

Conferences – Gary and Adam happy to be delegates for next national conference in Southend. Delegate briefing pack to be made. Use conference to get interviews for our radio show.

Cinema – we’ll have a projector by the end of the week. Quakers can store it for us. Option of live-streaming films over the internet available if for whatever reason we can’t get hold of a DVD. Proposal to check Freecycle for DVD player and speakers. Consensus

‘Spaces’ – arts organisation working on project on empty building. £1m grant for High Street. Do we want to explore this as a viable route for Occupy? Eco-Hub too. Consult Audaye

Torquay Girls’ Grammar School outreach – good event! V. successful, lots of enthusiasm and support from pupils.

Friday stall – first one was good, second one was excellent! Lots of donations and support, newsletter continuing to be very popular. Diversify what we do with the stall. Continue this every Friday

Mint Methodist Church outreach on 30th May

Free Uni talk on GM crops – discussion of the issues around that. 90 mins in the Global Centre. Proposal to defer this to the Free Uni WG. Consensus

Next newsletter – make them on a monthly basis, include a crossword in the next one.

Exeter Food Festival 15th-16th April. Let’s do something for it. Have next newsletter done by 8th.

GA Minutes – 16/03/12

Facilitator: Katie
Minutes: Carlus
Stack: Stuart
Timekeeper: Eamonn

Cinema WG – coordinating all the transporting of equipment is a pain. We’ll reimburse half of the cost of someone to collect a donated projector from a contact in Cornwall.

Radio – our show’s on Phonic FM every second Wednesday and third Saturday of each month.

Free University – we have the Public Liability insurance cover to be allowed to use Guildhall for our workshops. We also have a free university ‘form’ to fill in for planning events

Newsletter – next issue will be focused on food related issues. Our pilot newsletter was very successful, especially in donations!

Conferences – regional conference in Newton Abbot. Open delegate system meaning everyone welcome to self-finance and attend. Next national conference (provisional location Birmingham) to be organised by Global Occupy working group

Empowering Womens day – feminist exhibition at the university. Defer to outreach working group

WG mailing lists – Katie can make them for individual working groups

Friday stall – went well! Lots of signatures on our petition. Newsletter was very effective.

Saturday’s public debate GA – debate the NHS bill. We’ll spread the word for the event and bring literature/banners. Saturday GA after to be on the Budget. Note to try organise these things further in advance.

Student Walkout was very successful!

Finance – consensus reached on opening an Occupy Exeter bank account with the Coop bank.

Seeds for Change – workshop being run on how to keep our movement moving ans growing sustainably so we don’t exhaust ourselves.

GA Minutes – 13/3/12

Facilitator: Rebecca
Minutes: Carlus
Stack: Eamonn
Timekeeper: Stuart

Walkout update – our comrades organising the student walkout are meeting on Wednesday at 11.30 at the Buller Statue. They plan to then march to Bedford Square for a rally, then march back to the College and Uni to present a list of demands. Occupiers are more than welcome to come. Discussion of what issues are affecting students.

Occupy’s radio show – on the same day, we’re doing a show on Phonic FM. We need people to call in or be there. Would be great to use the show to mention other events we’re doing and tie in with them.

Money Talks – we need to give out flyers for the talk, make sure to come to the event with questions.

Dom to make a mobile donations-only ‘mugis’ mobile coffee machine/kitchen. Tie in with Friday’s stall

Cinema – discussion of logistical issues surrounding getting the film screening ready that Friday

Cathedral/Grass – we gave the new Dean a letter asking for a new start in relations, and for us to move forward together on reseeding the grass.

Response to Andrew Godsall’s article in the Guardian – the article was more a response to Giles Fraser than an attack on OE, bit late to send in a response ourselves so let it drop. Better things to do!

Regional conference – going ahead as planned. We’re busy pulling together the essentials on the logistics side.

Newsletter – ready to print.

GA Minutes – 10/03/12

Facilitator: Eamonn
Stack: Gina
Minutes: Carlus
Timekeeper: Eamonn

Debate

Whether OE should increase its focus on local issues or increase its focus on national and international issues. Conferences at a regional and national level fit in quite nicely for strategizing for the larger issues while we can focus on the local stuff. Disagreement, we need to focus on the bigger picture: that was what Occupy was born out of. Also need to coordinate with other organisations and movements. How do we do that? ‘Occupy glue’, Occupy movement as a way to bring those other organisations and movements together. That was a motive for how to use site 1. We can use the time we have now without a site to plan what we are going to do.
In order to answer this question, we need to fully understand what Occupy is about, and we need to know if occupying is a tactic or is the movement. One idea that Occupy’s purpose is to raise questions rather than to answer them. The act of occupying involves political self-empowerment. Strong sense of kinship has developed within the movement, becoming a community. We can focus that energy on particular issues and objectives.
A lot of local issues are not separate from larger issues, but are more like examples of the national, international or even global issues everyone is facing. Global issues can be as captivating as local ones. Important for people to look at the structural side of all issues. Idea that focusing on *just* the local issues means we are isolated as a movement.
Difficult to generalise people. Some people are happy with the current system, benefiting from it, and want to keep it. Others are struggling, worried about paying their rent, worried about their jobs. Occupy needs to be a forum for those who want change from the present system.
If we are to be a hub, we need to be clear what we’re going to be a hub for. There are plenty of organisations and movements out there with different objectives, which ones are we supportive of.
We can reach out to people by not just talking about “global issues” but how those issues have a local effect. Where do we act? And how do we make sure we don’t do our own thing while other organisations/movements fill the same purpose: perhaps support them rather than trying to pull together a second action for the same problem.
Possibility of a regional conference. Our consensus based democracy and fluid structure is our strength.
Occupy was the first time in a long time that ordinary working people have seriously questioned the fundamental problems of the system. The movement hasn’t originated from far-left groups.
Issue of whether we want to seek the support of local businesses – are they part of the system and therefore the system? Aren’t we all feeding into the system whether we like it or not? Needing a job to put food on the table doesn’t inherently make you a willing member of the capitalist system. Not a viable alternative within the economy. The problem lies in larger institutions rather than individual people.
Activists have varying levels of involvement, not a problem.
Change in behaviour by individuals is going to have a negligible effect on changing the system. A transition away from capitalism requires coordinated action. An individual’s decisions work on a moral level, while coordinated action works on a practical level which will bring actual change to the system. However, it’s difficult to show people an alternative system simply by “opting out” which is only really possible by living as a hermit in the woods. The best option is to work out what exactly is wrong with the system and what needs to happen on the level of society as a whole to fix it.
Centrality of the banks to the problem discussed. Buying and selling of debt as a product is part of the problem. Alternatively, whoever controls the banks controls the economy. Are banks an expression of the crisis or the crisis itself? Regardless, society needs to sort out the financial industry.
More broadly, society needs to mobilise. Activists can express eloquently the issues that emerge if and when mass movements emerge, being part of those movements. Millions are already talking about the underlying problems of the system.
Action is what’s most important! What is OE actually going to do? Spread the word about those issues. Anything we do isn’t going to have a huge effect which will change the world overnight, but we can be analytical about what actions we do in terms of maximising their effect, judging how much effort we want to put in.

Any-Other-Business

Regional Conference – options of a “rucksack conference”, small event for the delegates. Other option is a larger event which OE can offer to host. Depends a lot on who can put in the effort to organise it. Proposal to let conference-goers organise the rucksack conference for two weeks, and offer to do the one after. But whatever we do, make sure we do a great job of it! Consensus

GA Minutes – 6/3/12

Facilitator: Jake
Minutes: Carlus
Stack: Stuart
Time: Eamonn

Working Groups – outreach meeting might need to be postponed because lots else happening that day (NHS action). Free University, 6pm twice a month. Money, money, money event coming up. Media group have ad-hoc meetings to respond to things as they happen. Art department published printing costs. Newsletter almost finished.

NHS action – 10am, desk outside the RD&E on Saturday. Leaflets being made. Get banners too, bring cameras.

Student walkout – Occupy Exeter needs to support this, people volunteer for leafleting

NBI – can we try use this wonderful venue as a pub as well as a meeting space? Be conscientious.

New site – we need it. Build momentum before we lose it.

Sunday’s GA – not working, not a great day for it. Propose to move to a Saturday. Maybe combine it with a DA where possible. Public debate. Proposal that Saturday’s GA be held in a public place. Consensus.

Don’t neglect small DAs as well as larger ones.

Hold Sat GA in Bedford Square. Talk to Critical Mass as they’re doing something on the same day.

Issue of OE’s strategy. More discussion.

Radio show – 14th March 4-6, following Satuday 12-2.

February GA Compilation

Contained within:

1/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/14/ga-minutes-010212/
2/02/12 – AWOL
3/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/14/ga-minutes-30212/
4-5/02/12 – other minutes book
6/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/08/ga-minutes-60212/
7/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/08/ga-minutes-70212/
8/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/08/ga-minutes-80212/
9/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/09/ga-minutes-09-02-12/
10/02/12 – missing
11/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/14/ga-minutes-110212/
12/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/14/ga-minutes-120212/
13/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/14/ga-minutes-130212/
14/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/14/ga-minutes-140212/
15/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/15/ga-minutes-150212/
17/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/18/ga-minutes-170212/
21/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/02/21/ga-minutes-21212/
28/02/12 – http://occupyexeter.wordpress.com/2012/03/08/ga-minutes-28212/

(I couldn’t come to mots GAs that last week, can someone try upload the rest? Thanks)

GA Minutes – 28/2/12

Facilitator: Tom
Stack: Bruce
Minutes: Carlus

DAWG feedback – meetings every Monday at 6pm in the Imperial. Last meeting included an assessment of what our direct action should be. DAs to aim to encourage members of the public to politicise. 7th March NHS stall starting at 10am with a 1pm public debate. Outside the RD&E hospital. Make a press statement for the event. Consensus. Workfare action on Saturday against McDonalds. WG contact: directaction.occupyexeter@gmail.com

Working groups to meet this week. Cathedral Liason – even though the cathedral are yet to respond to our emails, keep trying! Don’t forget we can outreach to other religious organisations at the same time. Proposal to communicate positively with new dean when he arrives as a letter passed by the GA. Consensus

Publiicity for events is too ad-hoc. Make an art department! Consensus

Purpose of Occupy – discussion around aims and demands of OE. More about ‘positive solutions’ rather than ‘demands’. Weave this discussion into the new occupy exeter newsletter and leaflets.

Women’s WG – weekend to explore gender issues with workshops. Resurrect ‘Women Occupy Exeter’? Group feeding back to GAs is a great way to get a conversation going about addressing patriarchy and wider gender issues. Equality angle to outreaching. Int. Women’s Day coming up March 8th. Clothes swap in the works.

Discussion of what constitutes sexism. Racism too. Maybe use film screenings are part of the discussion.

Benefit gig – Gina to set a date

Future of Occupy – discussion of legal routes we can take. More political GAs would be nice, get involved in regional and national conferences. Brainstorming ideas for May

Legal options for Occupy meeting – Thursdays NBI 7pm

College stall for student action being done tomorrow 12pm. Occupiers welcome.