While American corporate media has focused on yet another stale election between Wall Street-financed candidates, Occupy has been organizing something extraordinary: the first truly nationwide General Strike in U.S. history. Building on the international celebration of May Day, past General Strikes in U.S. cities like Seattle and Oakland, the recent May 1st Day Without An Immigrant demonstrations, the national general strikes in Spain this year, and the on-going student strike in Quebec, the Occupy Movement has called for A Day Without the 99% on May 1st, 2012. This in and of itself is a tremendous victory. For the first time, workers, students, immigrants, and the unemployed from 135 U.S. cities will stand together for economic justice.

See below for what we believe to be the most comprehensive list yet compiled of cities where Occupy May Day events are being planned, as well as other resources. Note: This is a living document. Check back for updates! If you have any additional events, please let us know in the comment section of this article. You are encouraged to share this page in as many ways as possible!

General Resources

• NYC Full Schedule of Permitted and Unpermitted May Day Events Actions - w/ NYC list of endorsements
• 6 Ways to Get Ready for the May 1st GENERAL STRIKE
• Why And How To Strike On May Day
• Global Facebook Event
• Follow on Twitter: @OccupyGenStrk | @StrikeEverywher | @OccupyGenStrike | #M1GS | #GeneralStrike | #MayDay
• MayDaySolidarity2012
• StrikeEverywhere.net
• WhyIStrike.tumblr.com
• HowIStrike.tumblr.com
• MayDayGallery.tumblr.com

Key City-wide May Day Sites

• New York City - MayDayNYC.org
• Bay Area, California - StrikeMay1st.com
• Chicago - ChicagoSpring.org/May1
• Southern California - OccupyMay1st.org
• Seattle - May1stSeattle.org
• Cities on Twitter: #M1NYC | @OWSMayDay | @BayAreaStrike | @MayDayFlashMob | @oo_mayday | @MayDayOttawa

Show Your Solidarity!

• May Day Legal Fund
• May Day Fund NYC
• OWS May Day Food Drive
• Occupy Los Angeles Legal Defense Fund ###Find a nearby city with planned actions:

A - B

• Atlanta, Georgia
• Albany, New York
• Amherst, Massachusetts
• Anchorage, Alaska
• Asheville, North Carolina
• Athens, Georgia
• Austin, Texas
• Baltimore, Maryland
• Bellingham, Washington
• Bend, Oregon
• Binghamton, New York
• Birmingham, Alabama
• Bloomington, Indiana
• Boise, Idaho
• Boston, Massachusetts
• Boulder, Colorado
• Bozeman, Montana
• Brooklyn, New York
• Buffalo, New York

• Burlington, Vermont

  Read More...

originally published at StrikeEverywhere.net

Why are we striking? Why should you strike? And, what do we mean by General Strike?

We are striking to halt the flow of capital, reclaim a tool of resistance, and unify movements against exploitation, repression, and corruption. You should join the movement and strike because: everyone else will be doing it and it’ll be fun and empowering. But more importantly, join because you’ve experienced exploitation, repression, and corruption, and you are aware of their impact around you. Join if you are forced to work and consume; if you want to have a choice for an alternative.

By general strike, we mean everyone from all walks of life halting their role in producing, consuming, and participating within the current system. We invite the precarious workers, unemployed, undocumented, students, and everyone to join.

What do you get out of striking?

You can empower yourself. It’s an opportunity to directly stand up against what you feel is wrong. You can network. It’s an opportunity to meet and connect with others who want to improve the world for themselves and for others. You can learn about alternatives and resources that are available to you. It’s an opportunity to learn what other groups are doing to create alternatives, and what resources they are providing. You can get so much from striking; come out and learn what striking can do for you!

Curious about the General Strike on May 1 2012 but unsure what you can do?

Here are some easy, minimally involved, and low risk things you can do.

In Advance, starting now:

• Plan ahead, take a vacation. Take a personal day or two off and make a long weekend of it.
• Subscribe to the StrikeEverywhere mailing list and learn about the organizing https://lists.riseup.net/http://www.subscribe/strikeeverywhere/
• Attend meetings, benefits, and actions leading up to May 1st to get a feel for what the General Strike might be like.

April 27th - 30th:

• Use the long weekend to attend free workshops about the general strike, direct action, etc.
• Go to benefits, shows, and parties. Be social and meet others who will be participating in the General Strike. Build energy, excitement, and new friendships.
• Build an affinity group, or find a buddy or crew of friends who will go to the General Strike with you.
• Attend meetings and be a part of organizing for the General Strike. Or attend to learn about the plans and how to prepare.
• Put up stickers, posters, flyers, and agitate for the General Strike.
• If you are from out of town: pick up a map and learn the layout of the city and where you can plugin.

April 30th – May 1st:

• Out of vacation days? Take a sick day or two. Make a long weekend of it.
• Don’t get sick days? You’re not a slave, take a couple days off.
• Don’t spend money. Make use of the free resources that will be available through groups like OWS and others organizing alternatives to capitalism. Take part in and enjoy these alternatives!
• Come out into the streets and see what other people are doing. See for yourself what is happening (don’t rely on the media to show you). Experience the General Strike for yourself!
• Join in and participate in actions or play it by ear if you are uncertain.
• Bring your friends, a crew, an affinity group, and everyone you know. The more people that you take to the streets with, the safer you will be.

Convinced? Planning to take part in the General Strike need something concrete to do:

• Go to StrikeEverywhere.net and look at the calendar of events to see if any of the actions are something you want to take part in.
• Go to http://strikeeverywhere.net/framework/new-york-city-tasks/ and volunteer to do a task, or suggest a new task for people working

Self-employed and unsure how you can participate?

You can stop producing and consuming. If you are a boss, give your workers and yourself a long weekend. Come out to the streets. Participate in and enjoy alternatives to capitalism.

Unemployed and uncertain how you can participate in a strike?

Come out into the streets, enjoy alternatives and resources that are made available to you. Join the movement, join people in the streets, and support others who are in the same position as you or in a precarious work situation.

Undocumented and uncertain how you can participate in a strike?

If you feel at risk, take precautions and make sure you feel safe at all times. If possible come out into the streets, enjoy alternatives and resources that are made available to you.

If these low risk activities result in any backlash or threats from your employer:

• Write us at info@strikeeverywhere.net
• Post it on facebook and twitter
  You are not a slave, and have the right not to work. Actions will be organized to help shutdown hostile work environments and provide support and solidarity for those who chose to not work.

For Legal Support, contact:
National Lawyers Guild 212 679 6018

S t r i ke E ve r y w h e r e . n e t
Strike Everywhere!
Global General Strike!
info@strikeeverywhere.net
http://strikeeverywhere.net
facebook.com/strikeeverywhere
twitter.com/strikeeverywher

Originally published at Occupy Together.

May Day is an international day of celebration to honor the labor movement. This year the Occupy movement has made a call for mass action—the May First General Strike (#M1GS): a day without the 99%. Several cities have organized in solidarity with this call to action. A general strike is a way to build and demonstrate the power of the people. It’s a way to show this is a system that only exists because we allow it to. If we can withdraw from the system for one day we can use that day to build community and mutual aid. We can find aspiration and faith—not in any leaders or bosses but in each other and in ourselves.

If you are inspired by the day of action but don’t live near any organized events you can still take part. If you can’t strike, take the first step. We can work to shift the balance of power back into the hands of the people little by little in our everyday lives.

Here are some examples to get you thinking:

1. Move Your Money: If you haven’t already, May Day is as good as any to move your money out of a national, corporate bank into a local bank or credit union. Support your local community and break up the “too big to fail” Wall Street banks that threaten our economic system. Learn more about moving your money here: http://www.moveyourmoneyproject.org

2. Have a Potluck: Share a meal with others and and talk about subsided agriculture and factory farming or make a meal with friends to serve to local homeless people a la Food Not Bombs.

3. Start a Personal/Community Garden: On May Day, start or pledge to start a personal or community garden. Growing our own food means independence from corporate farms. This is one more way to take your self out of a system bent on keeping us complacent.

4. Have a Free Store/Fair: Get together and share your unwanted items with others. As they say, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. You could be helping someone who was about to go out and buy a (fill in your item here) anyway.

5. Ride your bike to work/carpool with friends: Ride your bike or arrange a carpool to work. When you do this you are lessening our country’s dependency on outdated, unclean energies.

6. Screen a Movie: Invite your friends or neighbors over to watch a documentary. After, have a discussion about how it relates to your values or the ideas of Occupy. You can watch political documentaries online at the following links for free:
http://http://crimethinc.com/movies/
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/category/politics/
http://www.documentarytube.com/category/political-documentaries
http://freedocumentaries.org/

7. Have a Skill Share: Give a free class to share your skills and knowledge. This could be as simple as giving a knitting demonstration or as complex as teaching someone a new language.

We have the power in our hands to change the course of our day to day realities if we are willing to participate and reach out to our neighbors and communities. In the words of Steven Biko, ”the greatest weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed.” Big business should not be in control of us, we are the many and they are the few. We’d love to hear how you are planning to take part on this day of action. Please email your stories and pictures to bootz@occupytogther.org so we can share them!