Saving Ourselves: Autonomous Disaster Relief in Texas & the Failure of the State, Pt. #1

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On this episode of the It’s Going Down podcast, we speak with participants in autonomous groups across Texas, including Cooperation Denton, Stop the Sweeps in Austin, Mutual Aid Houston, Houston Tenants Union, and North Texas Rural Resilience.

late thread, but I wrote a piece last week for @grist on how mutual aid orgs filled the gap left by the state in Texas last week and provided food, water and shelter for their communities. https://t.co/FLd28X1Ure

— 🌾🌾alexandria 🌾🌾 (@HerrCaitlin) March 1, 2021

The first in a two part series, this episode discusses the devastating storms which rocked Texas and the Southwest and the context that the “big freeze” happened within: from anti-Black police violence and attacks on the homeless community, to widespread neoliberal policies that left infrastructure and housing stock dilapidated and on the verge of collapse.

Hotels are pulling tricks to kick out our homeless neighbors back into the cold or selling rooms out from under people.

Call in now to demand NO EVICTIONS FROM HOTELS

See post or images below for call in info: https://t.co/mH0mFmE6Dx pic.twitter.com/GJjl4IIkYH

— Stop The Sweeps Austin (@StopSweepsATX) February 18, 2021

Our guests describe the tragic and deadly impact of the storms, which already have caused the deaths of at least 80 people, the broad failure of the State to respond, how lines of race and class impacted the outcome of the disaster, and how mutual aid projects and autonomous groups began to find each other and get organized.

Fellow Texans. Looking at these pictures, what do you see?

The images, these are just people, like you and I and our neighbors and others in our community. They are not politicians, they don't hold some elevated spot, they don't get paid to care. They just do. pic.twitter.com/cq5mGOurNu

— Cooperation Denton (@CooperationdTX) February 19, 2021

Part testimonial to the massive catastrophe made possible by both climate change and racialized capitalism and part oral history of autonomous organizing in the face of the storm, we hope that this podcast serves to inspire as well as document.

Scenes from today’s #HoustonFreeze supply drop with @mutualaidhou @sayhername_tx. Inspired by so many volunteers and community members coming together to help one another and build power ✊🏾✊🏽✊🏿 pic.twitter.com/XtdsRkukGy

— Houston DSA (@HoustonDSA) February 20, 2021

More Info: List of autonomous mutual aid groups to donate to, Stop the Sweeps Austin, Cooperation Denton, Mutual Aid Houston, Houston Tenants Union, and North Texas Rural Resilience.