I’m Shanna Goldman, Citizen Action’s Organizer Director.

I’m spending the next few days in Detroit, MI at the United States Social Forum. The tagline is that another world is possible, another US is necessary. I’m here to absorb as much as I can to bring back to Citizen Action and also to augment my own journey in the movement. There are over 10,000 artists, union organizers, community organizers, service providers, activists and whoever else you can imagine. People are learning, teaching, talking and partying together. I’ll be writing a series of posts to share as much as I can with everyone who couldn’t make it to Detroit.

Already just from my drive here (10 hours via Canada!) with two amazing women who are artists, academics and organizers themselves, dinner with some other folks from the Capital District and breakfast this morning, several ideas and debates are percolating:

What function do art, other forms of expression and play have in the movement? Is it being valued and utilized enough in our work?

Do we need a master plan, like the corporatists have implemented over the last 50 years? Or does the Left just do what it does and assume things will ultimately come together even if it takes a lot more time (my NY’er control freak sensibility says PLAN! PLAN! PLAN!)

How do we as activists hold multiple truths at the same time? How do we live in the struggle and live in our own lives? Are those separate? Can they be?

So stay tuned as I go through the next four days and hopefully get some answers from some of the inspiring people gathering here. FYI, there are over 100 workshops during any given time slot. They range from jobs/work/economy to climate change,
youth organizing to health care reform, prison rights to culture and media.

Many organizations that Citizen Action works with regularly are also here: Jobs with Justice, The NY State Stimulus Alliance, United for Fair Economy (and our favorite trainer Jeannette) and a gazillion others. Oh and of course, Jim Anderson.

So I’m on my way to Cobo Hall in downtown Detroit to register. It’s 90 degrees and crazy humid (big lake nearby) so it feels just like home. If you want to read more about the forum you can go to the website: www.ussf2010.org. Also I think Amy Goodman is here so you can listen to Democracy Now and hear more about it.

I’ll also be tweeting @sgoldman78.