Michigan Student Action held their Know Your Rights event on May 29 at 6 p.m. in a lowkey, friendly atmosphere with some folks coming from University of Michigan, Eastern Michigan University, and the surrounding Washtenaw area.
There was food from Palm Palace, and a grounding session that took place before the start of the presentation.
The event was for people interested in protesting, especially for noncitizen protesters as fears of deportation rise under the new administration.
The presentation covered what is within the rights of a protester, how to best organize in a team when it comes to protesting, and resources for others as they are thinking about protesting.
The speaker running the presentation was Adonis Flores-Pina, the Training Director from Michigan United.
“Training people to me is very powerful," Flores-Pina said. "Because not only are we passing down our skills to other people, but also we’re growing the movement and we also learn from people that we train.”
Flores-Pina said that protesting is more important now when people in power decide to make risky choices.
“Neither party took our votes seriously," Flores-Pina said. "I feel like they prioritize corporate interests over voters, in general, both parties. So, there’s a lot of disillusionment on voters from both parties."
Anthony Baber, the Communications and Culture Director of Detroit Action was also in attendance at the event. Baber has been a part of Detroit Action for three years, and he was in charge of the grounding session before the start of the presentation held by Flores.
The grounding session consisted of taking in deep breaths, having your eyes closed, and getting in the right headspace for the coming conversation.
“I think the opportunities to bring people together around shared values, and shared concerns for our own communities, it gives us the space to unburden ourselves and feel validated," Baber said. "That we’re not the only ones suffering under skyrocketing rent costs, and bills that aren’t getting any lower, and banks that are deeply prejudicial, and removing black and brown folks from historically black and brown neighborhoods."
There were also a group of students in attendance, with one of them being a recent graduate of Eastern Michigan in attendance as well.
The group appreciated the information shared at the event, and said it helped shape their thinking about how to properly organize and protest. Their hope is to see more and more of their generation, and even younger people get interested in participating and raising their voices to unjust power that impacts their lives.
As one of them put it, politics affects everyone.
MSA meets the first and third Thursday of each month with their next meeting coming up on June 5th starting at 6 p.m. in Bridge Cafe which is located at 217 West Michigan Ave in downtown Ypsi. You can find them on Instagram at msa_washtenaw.
