What is our response to be in times of need?

Mutual aid, a term that became familiar to many during the COVID years, operates from a collective will to address a human need that is unmet by the society’s structures and institutions. In response to a specific need – access to transportation, medicine, funds, food etc. – members of a community come together to create relationships and form a network that provides help to those who need it. Mutual aid efforts vary in scope, complexity, and longevity, but exist specifically to address a need that comes out of systemic inequalities in the distribution of resources in the society. They are not unique to North American contexts either. Growing up in a working-class household in Jamaica, I understood the importance of mutual aid efforts before they were called such. Pardna, or partners, is an informal banking system organized largely by women to save money for large and important expenses. One’s draw – or turn to use the collective funds that had accrued – provided education and housing for many families. My grandmother was also a member of a “burial scheme” where members pooled resources to ensure that each person had a dignified burial at the end of their lives. Upon an individual’s death, funds were given to the family to pay for the funeral, and members showed up to the funeral en masse to celebrate the person’s life. Unlike other kinds of benefits, there are no strings attached to receiving support from mutual aid efforts. You receive help because you need it; in turn, you contribute what you can when you are able to. For communities that are underserved and marginalized from the existing structures that are supposed to serve and support them, access to mutual aid can make the difference between living and dying. Mutual aid does more than address the urgent needs of now; it also opens our eyes to what and whose needs are consistently being left unmet in the way that we currently do things. Mutual aid points us in the direction towards ensuring that justice and equity remain at the center of how we distribute the most basic resources that we need to survive – from food to water to shelter to health.

1. Hurricane relief

Since 2011, I have spent a portion of every summer in western Jamaica. There, I have been engaging young people – from babies to young adults – and their families in creative activities designed to foster literacy and enhance personal and community wellbeing. This is some of the hardest work that I have ever done, but it also brings me enormous joy. Watching the destructive path that hurricane Melissa carved through the community that I have worked in for years, and recalling the experience of Puerto Rico and Haiti in the wake of previous disasters, I have a sense about how challenging the days and years ahead will be. I am also reminded that tropical storms may be part of the DNA of the region, but the increasing ferocity and destruction tells us far more about countries of the global north – their wants, desires, habits, and the increasingly negative impact on island-countries like Jamaica. What can you do? Certainly, it is always a good time to learn more about the region through the work of Caribbean feminist writers and scholars who have been talking about the intersection of gender justice and climate justice for a long time. You can support feminist and queer efforts in relief work on the ground. Closer to home, you can also support local efforts here at UIC to gather supplies that can be used by families as they try to rebuild their lives. There are multiple collection points if you want to drop off items like sanitary napkins, sleeping bags, non-perishable food items, books, and games for children, etc.

• East campus: WLRC – SSB, 1200 W. Harrison, Suite 1700; Department of History – 9^th Floor, University Hall; Arts & Exhibition Hall – 400 N. Peoria, 3rd Floor, Rm 3206; Black Cultural Center, Addams Hall, 2^nd Floor; Gender and Sexuality Center, 1st Floor, BSB.
• West campus: Odeh Health Equity Center, 1750 W. Polk Street, Suite 220

2. Coat drive for children of UIC parenting students

As the colder months approach, Little Sparks and WLRC are inviting you to donate winter coats and accessories to support the children of UIC parenting students. Many families on campus face extra challenges in preparing for the season, and your generosity can make a big difference.

We are seeking donations of new or gently used:

• Winter coats (ages 8 through 10, kids’ Small – Large)
• Hat and mitten/glove sets (handmade items welcome!)
• Infant snowsuits (newborn – 24 months)
• Snow pants (kids2/XS – 10/L)

Our goal is to collect 50 items to help keep our student parents’ children warm, comfortable, and confident this winter. We will distribute the coats during the week of December 8.

3. Expanding the food ecosystem at UIC

Food insecurity among college students is not a new thing, but there is growing recognition of just how important it is for universities to have formal mechanisms for addressing this problem. UIC’s Pop-Up Pantry located in Student Center East and Dion’s Dream Vault in Student Center West are examples of such a response. The recent government shutdown which disrupted access to benefits including Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) serve as a reminder that we as a university community need to do more and better for each other if we are to rise together. WLRC is working with Gender and Women’s Studies Program and the Chancellor’s Committee on the Status of Women to come up with a tangible way of adding to the existing resources available at UIC in a way that makes sense for our students. Stay tuned for more information and how you can support this effort.

Until next time, take care of yourselves and each other.

Natalie Bennett