Black Rose/Rosa Negra (BRRN) recruits new members with intention. Unlike some political organizations, we do not have an open membership. This is because BRRN operates on the basis of theoretical, strategic, and tactical unity. We place a high premium on being able to collectively develop, agree to, and carry out our strategy.
Before submitting a membership inquiry, carefully read through and consider the following:
1. Our Program
Read our program document, Turning the Tide. This describes our analysis of the structures of domination that we live under, our vision of a free society, and our strategy for how to get there. Our program guides the activity of our organization and is a living document constructed through collective analysis, discussion, and debate involving the whole of BRRN’s membership.
It is important to read this document before submitting a membership inquiry so that you can have a sense of whether you agree with our analysis, strategy, and tactics.
2. Our Approach to Organizing
BRRN’s activity is grounded in a shared strategy aimed at building popular power. This strategy is realized in our sectoral approach to organizing, through which we have identified four sectors that we believe have the most potential for building popular power: labor, tenant/neighborhood, student, and anti-carceral.
Why a sectoral approach?
Too often “organizing” in the US is confused with purely intellectual pursuits, political clubhouses centered on debate, service/charity projects, or activist campaigns that are not rooted in a particular site of struggle.
In distinction to this, we organize to build a form of power that is rooted in the places where we live our everyday lives. It’s in these sites of everyday struggle that we have the potential, through direct collective action, to change the conditions that we live under. But direct collective action is rarely spontaneous. Instead, capacity for it is grown through long term efforts that organize the unorganized into democratic, militant, and self-managed mass organizations.
Examples of mass organizing projects in line with our sectoral approach include, but are not limited to: labor unions and other workplace formations, tenant unions, student organizations, and projects which organize those affected by incarceration on both the inside and outside of prisons.
When filling out the membership inquiry form, please state clearly what organizing you are involved in and how it fits into BRRN’s sectoral approach. Those who are not presently involved in an organizing project or who have no experience in organizing are less likely to be extended an invitation to join.
3. What Does Joining BRRN Look Like?
New members are expected to either join an existing local of the organization or commit to building a new local as a condition of their membership. We do not usually invite single individuals far from existing locals to join. Upon approval, our admission and integration process is around 2-4 months. This process involves a series of readings, discussions, orientation to the structures of the organization, and integration into our sectoral organizing work.
We are a dues paying organization.
4. What to Include In Your Membership Inquiry
When you write to us, please tell us about your background, where you are in the US, past and current organizing work, and what interests you in BRRN as an organization. Without these elements, we cannot guarantee a response.
Note: Please be patient as we respond. We receive many inquiries from people who are newly politicized or seeking to learn more about anarchism or libertarian socialism. We are happy to talk with you and point you toward educational or organizing resources in your region. If you are new to anarchism, we recommend that you start on this page.
