I didn't think these necessarily needed to be in the library but should be preserved beyond archive.org
FRAC POINTS OF UNITY
We are Anti-Capitalist.
We are against capitalism because it is based on inequality, alienation and theft and does not provide the majority of world’s population with the basic necessities of life. We intend to replace it with mutual aid and a cooperative, bottom-up, and democratic form of communism where those who work control the means of production. We go by the maxim: To each according to their need, from each according to their ability.
We are Internationalists.
We support self-determination and cultural autonomy for oppressed people. We are against the system of white supremacy which seeks to maintain a cross class alliance between white workers and the North American ruling class. We seek the destruction of all forms of racism, imperialism, and reactionary nationalism. We are inspired by multi-ethnic organizing against white supremacy, and believe that it is the foundation towards its destruction.
We are for the Liberation of Women.
We are dedicated to ending patriarchy in all its forms: blatant and subtle, public and private. Patriarchy pervades our cultures and social fabric, and to be eliminated it requires a fundamental change in our thinking and relationships. We are dedicated to building a revolutionary movement where women are fully empowered with full representation, participation and leadership. Women’s liberation is not an afterthought but a full part of this struggle - both as a goal and as a process - because without confrontation, it will continue to exist in a new society. We intend to overcome male domination and male privilege that lead to mental, physical, sexual and emotional degradation and violence against women. We unapologetically support reproductive freedom and women’s control over their own bodies. We recognize the need for women to support women in their struggles, but we also call on men, individually and collectively, to confront their own sexism as well as that in the world around them. We recognize the liberation and self-determination of women as necessary for the liberation of all people. No one can be free when half the world is not.
We want Queer Liberation.
We are against heterosexism, homophobia and the simplicity of the dual gender system. We are for the liberation of lesbian, transgendered, gay, bi and all queer people. We embrace the full spectrum of consensual human sexuality and celebrate a diversity of family forms. We want to liberate desire from the binds of religious bigotry and patriarchal social conditioning.
We are Militants.
We pursue direct action and a diversity of tactics as appropriate methods of achieving our goals. We uphold the right of all oppressed people to self-defense by any means necessary.
We want to Build the Capacity to Fight and Win.
We seek to build popular power that can contest and replace state and capitalist power. We actively work to create a new world in the shell of the old—politically, culturally and economically. We do this by both challenging and confronting oppressive institutions and establishing our own liberatory ones.
We are Dedicated to Critical Analysis.
We engage in a constant process of evaluation and self-criticism of our politics and practice. No one is above criticism, and we view it as a healthy, productive aspect of strategizing and organizing. We base our politics on the realities of an ever-changing world.
FEDERATION OF REVOLUTIONARY
FEDERATION OF REVOLUTIONARY ANARCHIST COLLECTIVES (FRAC) CONSTITUTION
Version 1.4, September 2003
I. FEDERATION COMPOSITION
A) Revolutionary Anarchist Collectives
The Federation of Revolutionary Anarchist Collectives (FRAC) membership is composed of revolutionary anarchist collectives geographically situated around the Great Lakes region. Collectives are defined by the following requirements:
· Must be membership organizations composed of a minimum of three individuals
· Must unanimously agree with the federation points of unity and strategy
· Must contribute to and participate in social struggles
New collectives may become members of the federation only after they have been actively involved as a support collective for a minimum of six months time (see Support Collectives for the exact process).
The vast majority of the collectives should actively pursue and be dedicated to the federation’s revolutionary anarchist strategy and should be willing to engage in militant direct action using tactics endorsed by the federation. There is also a place for member collectives that pursue specialized projects such as newspapers, free radio stations, etc. These specialized collectives must still be committed to the federation’s strategy and collective decision-making process and should not act contrary to the will of the federation as a whole. The direction such specialized collectives take will be accountable to the federation.
B) Collective Responsibility to the Federation
Each collective is responsible for the following:
· Direct intervention in social struggles, with priority given to the collective’s local area, through active participation in social movements and campaigns directly facilitated by the federation. This can also be achieved through media work.
· Reaching out to other regional activists and collectives on the existence and actions of the federation.
· Contributing to the federation’s theoretical development through consistent debate over email, at conferences and in writing.
· Attending and participating in bi-annual federation conferences.
· Paying dues on a bi-annual basis (see Dues).
· Posting a monthly report to the email list summarizing recent actions, current projects, etc.
· Developing a strong federation security culture to minimize security risks without sacrificing internal democracy or the federation’s ability to function. This includes understanding that state repression is a constant, permanent feature that affects all aspects of our work.
· No collective can act in the name of the Federation of Revolutionary Anarchist Collectives (FRAC) unless previously decided upon by the federation.
If a collective fails to comply with these responsibilities, the federation can move to expel it (see Expulsion).
C) Federation’s Responsibility to the Collectives
The federation, as a whole, must seek to maximize the political effectiveness of its collectives through the coordination of activity. The federation must support member collectives through a coordinated program of mutual aid, disseminating information via internal bulletin and the email list, and physically participating in actions endorsed by the federation.
D) Support Collectives
Before a new collective can join the federation, it must first participate under “probationary” terms as a support collective. Any member collective can nominate a new support collective at any time; the relevant information must be made immediately available to the federation Facilitator and the federation itself through the email list and internal bulletin. Other member collectives have ten (10) days to reject the new support collective. If no rejections are made, the collective in question immediately gains the status of support collective.
Support collectives are expected to fulfill the same responsibilities as member collectives. Support collectives are also required to attend the bi-annual federation conferences where they will be encouraged to take part in debate and discussion but will not be counted for consensus or voting until they become full members.
After a minimum of three months as a support collective, a collective can apply for membership into the federation. This membership application should be treated as a Major proposal, and must be decided at a biannual conference. A minimum of three-fourths (3/4) of the member collective votes must approve this proposal for the collective to be granted membership status.
E) Individual Supporters
Individuals who are unable to participate in a collective can support the federation as individuals. Any member collective can nominate a new individual supporter at any time; the relevant information must be made immediately available to the federation Facilitator and the federation itself through the email list and internal bulletin. Other member collectives have ten (10) days to reject the new supporter. If no rejections are made, the person in question immediately gains the status of supporter.
Individual supporters are expected to fulfill the same responsibilities as supporting collective members, except that they are only required to pay $75 in dues per year (but they are encouraged to contribute more). Supporters are not required (but are encouraged) to attend the bi-annual federation conferences to take part in debate and discussion, but they are not counted for consensus or voting.
Individual supporters are encouraged to build their own collectives, with the support of FRAC, to fully participate in the federation.
F) Coordinating Committee
The federation empowers a coordinating committee to handle simple but necessary functions between bi-annual conferences. This committee has one representative from each collective, as well as five (5) positions, each fulfilled by a member of a federation collective, with the following responsibilities:
· Facilitator: The Facilitator is responsible for facilitating discussion and decision making between conferences. This includes making sure proposals brought to the group get discussed by the collectives in a timely manner and get voted on within the time limit set by this constitution. The Facilitator also manages the expulsion and resignation processes.
The Facilitator is also responsible for tallying and recording votes taken at bi-annual conferences, as well as making sure conference notes are included in the next bulletin. In addition to this, the Facilitator is responsible for organizing at least 2 coordinating committee meetings between conferences.
· Treasurer: The Treasurer is responsible for collecting, holding, managing and keeping track of federation money raised through dues, fundraisers or other means. The Treasurer should know the exact amount the federation possesses at all times. The Treasurer will also be responsible for reporting all donations and reporting anything unusual (such as donations from a sketchy source). In addition, the Treasurer is responsible for distributing money to individuals and collectives as required for the day-to-day operations of the federation and/or however the federation as a whole sees fit. The treasurer will give a financial report to the federation each month via mail or the bulletin.
Specifically the treasurer must work out the monthly dues amount with each collective and individual supporter, and send a monthly reminder bill to each collective. The treasurer must take part in the coordinating committee meetings to make sure outstanding debts are taken care of, or to discuss issues with collectives behind on their dues.
· Bulletin Coordinator: This person is responsible for producing and distributing an internal federation bulletin to each federation member and support collective a minimum of 6 times a year. The bulletin coordinator must post the deadline for each bulletin at least 2 weeks in advance.
· Email List Administrator: This person is responsible for maintaining the federation’s internal email listserv.
· Webmaster: The Webmaster is responsible for designing, maintaining and updating the FRAC website and internet domain.
The coordinating committee is to have at least 2 online conferences or 2 conference calls between. All members are invited to participate, but it is essential that each collective have a representative present, as well as the treasurer and facilitator. These meetings are a chance for unresolved issues to get resolved and to follow up on outstanding tasks. It is the responsibility of the facilitator to make sure these meetings happen.
Collective CC reps are to be continuous between conferences, and chosen by each collective in a manner they see fit. This choice should be presented to the Facilitator as soon as possible after the conference. The External Communications Committee would be represented at the CC conferences by their collective representative.
The coordinating committee’s positions are held on a volunteer basis and rotated at each bi-annual conference. The rotating of these positions, however, will not be forced if the federation unanimously endorses their continuation. These positions are completely revocable if the federation feels that the work in not being accomplished (see Revoking Positions).
Each committee position will also have one “on deck” backup/replacement person, chosen the same as the position holders. This on-deck person will have access to all of the information necessary to assume responsibility for the position should the position holder need to be replaced. Committee members should train the on-deck people and make sure they have access to everything necessary (listserv passwords for the Email List Administrator on-deck, money in storage for the Treasurer on-deck, etc).
G) External Communications Committee
The federation will also maintain an external communications committee to handle communications with other anarchists/revolutionaries, both inside and outside of the U.S. and Canada. This committee is empowered in the name of the FRAC to write official communiqués and to endorse actions outside of the U.S. and Canada as long as they conform to the federation’s points of unity and strategy.
The External Communications Committee is also responsible for managing FRAC membership. This committee is responsible for making sure applications for supporter status (of individuals and collectives) get delegated to the proper collective, and get processed in a timely manner. They are to maintain the Federation PO Box, and email account, answering all mail within one week. This committee is also responsible for keeping all FRAC documents up to date, distributing new documents, and designing material for outreach purposes.
This committee will be made up of one member collective. Collectives will be nominated at the bi-annual conference and the decision to endorse them handled as a standard proposal. This committee will rotate between member collectives once per year (every other bi-annual conference) unless the federation unanimously consents to keep the collective currently serving in this role for another year. This position is revocable if the committee acts beyond the bounds of their allotted position.
H). Working Committees
The federation may establish working committees to undertake specialized projects. For example, there may be a working committee formed to work on a specific propaganda project, or one responsible for conducting research for a particular project. These committees shall be created with the adoption of a specific proposal and will be dissolved when the task is accomplished.
II. DECISION MAKING PROCESS
A) Proposals
Member collectives may submit proposals to be decided on by the federation. Proposals are broken down into three categories: Minor, Major, and Emergency. The collective submitting the proposal designates what type of proposal it is, based on the following criteria:
· Minor proposals are those which do not involve collaborative work among collectives. This may include the federation’s endorsement of events or actions, which individual collectives may voluntarily elect to work on. Also included are decisions that involve less than $250 or 10% of federation funds. Minor proposals may be decided upon at any time. Collective decisions on Minor proposals are due two (2) weeks after the Facilitator distributes the proposal.
· Major proposals are those which involve the commitment of Federation people, labor, and resources, any change in Federation strategy or politics, or any expense of more than $250 or 10% of Federation funds. Any proposals to amend the Points of Unity should be treated as Major proposals. Major proposals can only be decided upon at a bi-annual federation conference. Collectives must submit Major proposals a minimum of thirty (30) days before the conference to allow collectives enough time to discuss and decide on them. If a Major proposal is severely modified at the conference, it may be passed at the conference, but then is submitted to each collective after the conference for a final ratification. The Facilitator collects the decisions on this ratification, which are due two (2) weeks after the Facilitator distributes the proposal. If the modified proposal is not passed, it must be resubmitted as a Major proposal at the next conference.
· Emergency proposals are those that require immediate action by the Federation, including decisions on revocations of Federation positions, some expulsion decisions, and instances of intense state repression (including arrests of or raids on members of Federation collectives). Collective decisions on Emergency proposals are due five (5) days after the Facilitator distributes the proposal.
Proposals should be submitted in written form to the Facilitator, who will then distribute them to federation collectives via email and internal bulletin.
B) Consensus and Voting
For proposals discussed at bi-annual conferences, the federation should first strive for consensus, using the following consensus process:
· Proposals are presented. The facilitator entertains any clarifying questions and makes sure the proposal’s implications are understood. Discussion is held.
· The facilitator checks for disagreement, opposition or concerns of any kind from the member collectives. If none, consensus is reached and the proposal passes. If there are concerns, the facilitator seeks to clearly identify them.
· A discussion is held on each specific concern in turn. These concerns may be resolved through discussion, or collectives with concerns can formally propose amendments to the proposal.
· Each amendment should be clearly explained and discussed in turn.
· The collective that submitted the proposal decides whether an amendment is “friendly” or “unfriendly.” Friendly amendments are incorporated into the proposal. Unfriendly amendments are rejected.
· Once all concerns and amendments have been discussed in turn, the facilitator checks to see if there are any remaining concerns for the (modified) proposal. If none, the proposal passes. If concerns remain, the process is repeated.
· If the discussion runs dry, new ideas are raised or time runs short, the facilitator can call for a vote instead (see below).
· The collective that submitted it can drop a proposal at any time.
For Minor or Emergency proposals made between conferences, or for Major proposals on which consensus cannot be achieved, a vote is held. Each member collective receives two votes. Votes can be cast “For” a proposal, “Against” a proposal, or as an “Abstention.” A collective can submit any combination of two votes. Only member collectives are allowed to vote.
When a vote is made, the Facilitator tallies the votes. Proposals are passed if they receive a two-thirds (2/3) majority of the votes, not counting abstentions. For expulsions, revoking of positions and changes to the Points of Unity, a three-fourths (3/4) majority of the votes is required to pass (not counting abstentions).
If a collective fails to submit their votes, their votes are registered as abstentions. Federation decisions require a quorum of three-quarters (3/4) of the member collectives. In other words, at least three-quarters of the federation’s collectives must participate in a vote for the decision to be valid.
The Facilitator is responsible for recording the results of all decisions and documenting them to the federation (over email and in the internal bulletin).
C) Bi-Annual Conferences
The federation will meet two times a year with the following goals:
· Discuss and vote on proposals
· Re-assess and critique the direction of the federation
· Continue theoretical debate
· Network with members of other anarchist federations
· Collect dues
· Rotate positions of coordinating committee
· Rotate position of external communications committee
D) Facilitation
Volunteer facilitators will run the meetings at bi-annual conferences. These facilitators will share, rotate, and trade-off facilitation duties as necessary. If any member collective formally objects to a specific facilitator, that person will immediately step down and a new volunteer will take up facilitation.
It is the facilitator’s job to ensure that all federation discussions are fair and representative of the different positions within the federation. The facilitator should allow for all persons, who so desire, to speak. The goal of such discussions should be to reach federation consensus whenever possible. Positions and ideas held by minority blocs within the federation should be granted the time and ability to present their views in a fair and open manner. Facilitators must actively respect minority opinions, especially when engaged in official federation decision making, in order to prevent the marginalization of minority factions within the federation.
E) Emergency Circumstances
If communication and federation decision making become impossible due to extreme circumstances (war, etc.), member collectives are empowered to act in the federation’s name as long as they abide by the Points of Unity and federation strategy. If and when communication is re-established, the federation should hold an official conference as soon as possible. At that conference, all decisions/actions taken by collectives in the name of the federation should be reviewed and either approved retroactively or criticized with the intent not to repeat such mistakes in the future.
III. EXPULSION & RESIGNATION & REVOKING POSITIONS
A) Expulsion of a Collective
The federation as a whole has the ability to expel collectives. Obviously, the situation must be especially severe for a collective to be expelled, such as violating the federation’s Points of Unity.
To expel a collective, another member collective must submit a Major Proposal (or an Emergency Proposal if the situation requires urgency). This proposal must be submitted to the federation (via the Facilitator) in writing and must explicitly detail the reasons they propose to expel the collective. Collectives that are targeted for expulsion must be given a chance to defend themselves, if they choose, in writing.
The Facilitator facilitates the expulsion process and is responsible for distributing this defense to the federation. The collective targeted for expulsion is not counted (for voting or quorum purposes) when the proposal is decided upon. A three-fourths (3/4) majority of votes is required to expel a collective.
Expelled collectives will immediately be removed from the federation’s email lists and mailing lists. They will no longer receive internal federation communications. The Facilitator and External Communications Committee will issue written statements to all relevant parties acknowledging that the collective has been expelled. Expelled collectives may not be nominated as support collectives.
Expelled collectives may appeal the decision in writing to the Facilitator, who will distribute it to the federation. After an appeal is made, the expelled collective will be granted temporary access to the next bi-annual conference for the sole purpose of making a verbal appeal to the federation (after which they must leave). Following this verbal appeal, if any member collective proposes to overturn the expulsion, a three-fourths (3/4) majority of votes is required to overturn the expulsion.
Supporting collectives and individuals can be expelled in the same process as defined above.
B) Revoking a Position
A member collective can make a Major or Emergency Proposal to revoke a member of the Coordinating Committee or the External Communications Committee itself. This process follows the same procedure as expulsion of a collective, above.
If the Facilitator position is targeted for revocation, the on-deck Facilitator immediately takes over the position and facilitates the process. If the Facilitator position is not revoked, the original holder gets it back.
C) Resignation
The resignation of a member collective, support collective, individual supporter or position holder can be submitted in written or verbal form to the Facilitator and should be made available to the federation as a whole. If the resignation is due to perceived problems of the federation, such issues will be discussed on the email list and at a scheduled meeting, where an attempt to critically analyze such perceived problems will take place.
A member collective is considered to have resigned if they are inactive for a period of six (6) consecutive months. The Facilitator will give such collectives a one (1) month advance warning and then a final resignation notice. Inactive collectives will be removed from internal federation communications.
IV. FUNDS
A) Dues
The Treasurer will collect dues on a monthly basis. The treasurer will also work out the monthly dues amount with each collective/supporter, and send a monthly dues reminder.
Each member collective will pay monthly dues equal to one percent (1%) of the total estimated income of that collective’s individual members. Minimum dues are $300 per year.
Supporter collectives will pay yearly dues equal to one-half percent (0.5%) of the total estimated income of that collective’s individual members. Minimum dues are $150 per year.
Individual supporters will pay yearly dues of $75.
Members and supporters who are parents or who have dependents are only asked to pay half the appropriate dues.
B) Donations
We accept them. All donations will be accepted on a charitable basis, and no status will be gained through such charity. The federation reserves the right to refuse donations from unwanted sources.
V. INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS
A) Internal Bulletin
An internal discussion bulletin will be distributed to each member collective, support collective and individual supporter within the federation. Each collective/individual supporter will receive one copy of the bulletin. It will be the responsibility of the collectives to see that all of their members have an opportunity to read it. The bulletin will be distributed by the Internal Bulletin Coordinator a minimum of six (6) times a year and contain content from the email list, proposals, press releases, position papers, etc. The Bulletin Coordinator will set due dates for the bulletin.
One internal bulletin will be distributed two (2) weeks prior to each scheduled bi-annual conference to ensure that each collective can attempt to form a position on proposals in advance. Dues will provide funding for this project.
The internal bulletin should not be distributed to groups or individuals that are not part of FRAC.
B) Email List
There will be a closed email discussion list for member collectives, support collectives and individual supporters only. It is the duty of the Email List Administrator to maintain the list and handle all necessary tasks associated with it.
The Federation of
The Federation of Revolutionary Anarchists Collectives (2001 - 2005) was a regional revolutionary anarchist federation located in the Great Lakes region of North America. It contained four member collectives, the Burning River Revolutionary Anarchist Collective (Cleveland), the Nightvision Anarchist Collective (Lansing), the Northstar Anarchist Collective (Minneapolis), and the Brick Collective (Chicago), as well as individual supporters.
Disbanding of The Federation of Revolutionary Anarchist Collectives (FRAC)
To those fighting for a better tommorrow,
The Federation of Revolutionary Anarchist Collectives of the U.S. is officially disbanded. As a revolutionary anarchist federation based in the midwest/Great Lakes region we started this project nearly 3 years ago now. In that time we have had collectives in the cities of Chicago, Minneapolis, Lansing, and Cleveland. We had the opportunity to work with many comrades and make many friends. While our drive for a world free of domination continues to thrive, our ability to maintain FRAC as an organized threat to the power of state and capital has waned. We do not question the need to have an organized revolutionary anarchist federation in the Great Lakes region and hope that such a project can succeed in the future here.
We hope to put out a much more detailed and reflective piece in the future looking back on the lessons we have all learned from these past 3 years. We wish all similiar revolutionary anarchist projects nothing but the best, whether here in the U.S. or around the world.
In Solidarity and Struggle,
The now defunct FRAC
Burning River Revolutionary Anarchist Collective
P.O. Box 27376
Cleveland, OH 44127, USA
Email: [email protected]
Web: http://www.burningrivercollective.org
NorthStar Anarchist Collective
2441 Lyndale Ave. South
Mpls., MN 55405, USA
Email: [email protected]
Web: http://www.arampls.com/northstar/
June 2005
https://www.anarkismo.net/art
https://www.anarkismo.net/article/30380
of interest