Freedom School Movement....

I'm sharing our new website along with a letter a friend of mine sent out to friends providing a more intimate introduction. A course she and I took together was instrumental in helping her shape a pedagogy of freedom.https://sites.google.com/site/freedomschoolmovement/home


Dear Friends,

As many of you know, my sisters and I are growing the freedom school family and starting to build the freedom school movement: a network of self-sufficient living-learning communities that have the potential to transform regions ravaged by disaster and poverty into thriving self-sustaining spaces. Think: eco-village meets alternative school.

I was initially thinking about obtaining land and building a school on it, but I’ve decided instead to become a freedom school consultant. I am currently drawing up a plan to transform any given space into a freedom school (provided adequate access to land and raw materials). I would like to share the working document with you, my friends and confidants, so that you can contribute your ideas and suggestions. You can check in at any time to see how the blueprint is evolving.

In the meantime, we are looking to make contact with existing schools or communities about beginning the project(s). Right now I’m thinking about Haiti, New Orleans, California, Florida, Jamaica, Honduras, South Africa …I spoke with a friend of mine recently who started a school in Port Au Prince, Haiti. They have a new school building, but they are struggling with expenses. Food alone costs $1000/month and fundraising is a constant battle. They have a small garden, but aren’t currently on enough land to grow sufficient food for the school. I said to him on facebook messenger, “What would you think about a team coming in on a four-year plan to help you build a living-learning space where gardening and building are part of the educational program integrating math, science and writing with the tasks of building and producing much of what you need, gradually eliminating dependence on outside funding while working toward complete self-sufficiency?” He said, “voila that will work.”

Please send along any suggestions you have for locations and feel free to use the above pitch!

The only other detail I’d like to share with you in this email—everything else will be outlined on the website we are creating—is the people we envision on a freedom school team. We need at least one of each of the following. If all goes well, we will be launching the first freedom school in a year or so, asking all volunteers to make a one-year commitment.

1. Gardener (Indigenous farming practices, forest gardens, permaculture organic/bio-dynamic farming, etc.)
2. Carpenter
3. House and Shelter expert
4. Architect (landscape and buildings)
5. Water expert
6. Energy expert
7. Clothesmaker
8. Craftsperson (textiles, furniture, etc. )
9. Herbalist/Medicine Person/Spiritualist
10. Midwife
11. Chef with expertise in healthy cooking and food storage
12. Mathematician/Physicist
13. Linguist
14. Cultural Philosopher
15. Musician(s)
16. Movement expert (yoga, tai-chi, etc.)
17. Storyteller
18. Critical Explorer
19. Freedom Education expert
20. Peacekeeper
21. You

I’m also hoping that people from all walks of life will come help us build and learn: high school and college students, retired people, artists, homemakers, people with their own label, people with no label…

I look forward to hearing your thoughts and incorporating your ideas into the freedom school vision. Thank you all for your friendship and love.

PeaceLoveUnity,

Nikomo