Mutual Aid Reflections from Pappy’s Favourite Grandchild & Disinherited Intended Beneficiary
A photograph is seen. Pappy, a grey-haired brown man is seated on an uncomfortable chair, hugging Grims, a black-haired brown woman, with his left hand, while Krystal, a brown girl, sits on his lap, eating a bag of chips, as he hugs her with his right hand.
Today is the birthday of the man who I first saw practicing mutual aid.
Pappy died when I was only 9 years old, but from when he took early retirement until 1995, I regularly accompanied him on his boat when he went fishing, after which, he would distribute most of what he caught to villagers.
He understood that neighbours could likely not afford seafood often, so he would drive to their home, and ask folx to meet him outside at his trunk with a basin full of ice so that he could share some of the fresh fish he had caught.
I never heard Pappy utter the words, "mutual aid," but I saw him live that practice, which deeply informed my commitment to Disability Justice."
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