Once and for All
The National Council on Oppression is bringing together people from every community who recognize that all oppressions are intrinsically linked and that solving for one means solving for all.
We think of oppression as a disease to be cured. Historically, resistance movements have treated the individual symptoms of the disease that harm our daily lives. While these treatments are critical for our survival, we must also endeavor to cure the disease by addressing the root cause.
What if oppression is something that can be solved — or at least drastically reduced — if we just put enough concentrated effort, dedication and resources towards finding innovative solutions?
Let’s work together and end oppression once and for all.
The human-animal divide is the ideological bedrock underlying the framework of white supremacy.
— Syl Ko, Aphro-ism
Holistic
We humans are equal opportunity oppressors. We subjugate other humans, other species and earth’s natural resources with impunity. It is imperative that we address the root of all oppression holistically and inclusively across all living creatures — at the intersections of race, gender, ability, nationality, sexuality, religion, and species.
We’re addressing the root cause of all oppression, acknowledging that we can’t solve one until we solve all forms of subjugation. Our solutions must consider our most primal need to dominate the other.
Additive
We are all fighting the same enemy — the oppressor. The oppressor has many faces, and so do we! All of our projects and efforts are intended to supplement current anti-oppression movements. We’re all in this together, looking for unconventional ideas to achieve the same goal.
There are enough of us, with varying capacities, passions and resources to complement our diverse strategies and tactics. The goal of the National Council on Oppression is not to find better methods than currently exist, but to identify, create and nurture new and effective solutions that move society in a better direction.
Replacement
What if we produced new systems and institutions to replace what exists today? These institutions haven’t always been here. They had to be created from nothing. By people. People who wanted to oppress others. What if people who want to liberate others created our own systems and institutions, designed specifically to tear down the oppressive structures and replace them with non-oppressive alternatives?
What might these new systems look like? Let’s launch them into the real world and find out. And while our efforts and projects may take divergent — sometimes experimental — forms, they’ll travel on parallel paths towards this ultimate objective.
Exploring new systems that replace systemic oppression leads us beyond individual laws, politicians and institutions. We aim to reform our society at a cultural level.
“You have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world.”
— Angela Davis
Roadmap
We are currently in the process of establishing the National Council on Oppression (NCO) as an organization that defies and redefines non-profit and for-profit structures. Stay tuned.
In 2023, we will invite individuals from diverse backgrounds to join and help organize the Council.
We’ll raise money to launch our projects like ETHOS, and create a fund directed at curating and developing all the future projects sparked by our think tank and community sources.
At NCO, we’ll never limit the wellspring of groundbreaking ideas to internal sources, so at least four times a year, we’ll facilitate in-person community forums in public spaces and always keep our digital channels wide open for participation.