Campaigns
Divest From War;
Invest In Human Needs
60% of the U.S. budget is military spending, and those in favor of this budget are often opposed to plans like the Green New Deal and Medicare for All. We’re creating a force for change that urges L3Harris, a weapon contractor in Northampton on track to become one of the top ten weapon contractors in the world, and its investors to re-evaluate their priorities and invest in community needs.
Stop Recruiting Kids
As one of the few remaining organizations that addresses the military recruitment of young people, we regularly issue Military Recruitment In Western Massachusetts Public High Schools, a report which details the presence and influence of military recruiters and the culture of militarism in the 53 public high schools in the region.
Press Pause on Facial Surveillance
Facial surveillance is a form of systemic violence, attacking democracy and personal privacy in public spaces. Research shows that this surveillance is dangerously inaccurate and bias, often misidentifying people of color, trans people, women, and children. That’s why we’re working with community partners and elected officials to pass a moratorium on face surveillance in towns and cities across Western Massachusetts.
Safe Communities Campaign
We have been working on policies to protect immigrants since a decade ago, including helping to pass what are now deemed “sanctuary” policies. We have worked independently and in coalition with other organizations to preserve the civil rights of everyone in our community, from the #BlackLivesMatter movement to racial profiling to the increased surveillance and data collection by our state and federal government.
Programs
When my peers were washing dishes to be able to afford college, I was able to learn activism skills … I was taught to do these things, and I was treated as a potential future source of energy and power and importance, and it was an incredibly affirming thing. I don’t see anyone else in the local community doing what The Resistance Center does with young people to create a system where they can be supported, and be paid, to be an activist.
Youth Internship Program
One of the most intensive and long-standing pieces of our work is our Youth Internship Program, which recruits youth from local colleges and community organizations. Interns are paid or given academic credit to learn how to organize and do research; unique to TRC, though, is the opportunity afforded interns to explore a curriculum of social justice history.
Nonviolent Direct Action Training
The Resistance Center has trained thousands over decades in the practice of nonviolent direct action. We are continuing to offer workshops virtually, including eviction blockade trainings, environmental direct action, the 6 principles of Kingian nonviolence, and more.
Mission
The Resistance Center recognizes and resists the ills created from oppression and the culture of militarism in Western Massachusetts and beyond. We work to create a society based on peace and social justice. We strive to be the connective tissue between communities, organizations, faith institutions and elected officials. We seek to educate and empower communities in confronting these problems and find lasting solutions which build unity and foster peace.
