Affinity group

From Free net encyclopedia

An affinity group is a small group of activists (usually from 3-20) who work together on direct action.

Affinity groups are organized in a non-hierarchical manner, usually using consensus decision making, and are often made up of trusted friends or other like-minded people. They provide a method of organization that is responsive, flexible and decentralized.

Affinity groups can be based on a common ideology (eg. anarchism), a shared concern for a given issue (eg. anti-nuclear) or a common activity, role or skill (eg. street medics). Affinity groups may have either open or closed membership, although the latter is far more common.

A collection of affinity groups working together is called a cluster.

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History

The use of affinity groups dates back to 19th century Spain, where they were called tertulias or grupos de afinidad by Spanish anarchists [1]. They became popular again in the 1970s in the anti-nuclear movement in the United States and Europe. The 30,000 person occupation and blockade of the Ruhr nuclear power station in Germany in 1969 was organized on the affinity group model[2]. Today, the tool is used by many different activists: animal rights, environmental, anti-war, and anti-globalization, to name some examples.

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Quotes

Noam Chomsky: "If you assume correctly that whatever group you are in is being penetrated by the FBI, when something serious is happening, you don’t do it in a meeting. You do it with some people you know and trust, an affinity group and then it doesn’t get penetrated. That’s one of the reasons why the FBI has never been able to figure out what’s going on in any of the popular movements." [3]

Luke Hauser: "Affinity groups serve as a source of support and solidarity for their members. Feelings of being isolated or alienated from the movement, or the crowd, or the world in general can be alleviated through the love and trust which develops when an affinity group works, plays, and relates together over a period of time. By generating familiarty and trust, the AG structure reduces the possibility of infiltration by outside provocateurs." [4]

Starhawk: "An affinity group is a group of people who have an affinity for each other, know each others strengths and weaknesses, support each other, and do (or intend to do ) political/campaign work together."[5]

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