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Collective Liberation & Politics

11/20/2013

50 Comments

 
Watch the video below of Chris Crass - discussing the need for us to think about an idea called COLLECTIVE LIBERATION. 


What does collective liberation mean? What would change in our social and political systems if we acted in ways that brought about liberation for all people not just some? How would your life change if you lived in a way that didn't take away the rights and access of others? Is this possible in the U.S.A. today? If so, why? If not, why?

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50 Comments
Bolortsetseg Jargalsaikhan
4/21/2015 08:11:05 am

From watching the video and little bit of Googling the topic ‘ collective liberation’, I assume that collective liberation means being able to get together without being controlled by boundaries that hold us back from coming together to create an environment where we can be seen as equally human being. Because Chris Crass actually doesn’t use the term collective liberation, I was looking for it during the whole video to find out that his story shows that he has been going through struggles/ boundaries that he endured to be able to get out of white supremacy. He had to stand up for what was right against other white students, even though he was scared and being threatened by Dean of school. According to him, white supremacy educates people of how undocumented people stealing jobs from whites, how darker skinned people are being treated differently because nothing in this country is theirs and only history that matters and that is important to know are about whites. If we start to act in ways that makes everyone free from being judged by our skin colors, the people would be treated equally, people would start to see others as one of them. As Fannie Lou Hamer said “Nobody’s free until everybody’s free”, if your life is restricting, taking away others’ rights, you are not free just like them because just like that someone else is taking away your right and restricting your life as much as you are doing to others. It is very hard to create an environment where everyone is free because there are going to be always restrictions on people’s rights and accesses but I believe it’s not impossible to create that. We have to act like Chris Crass and put our differences aside and start educating other people and start building up society where people won’t be treated differently because of their race or gender. We need to learn from our ancestors about history and the mistakes and solutions they came up with and use it in our advance, so we don’t recreate the mistakes that have been made before.

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Fode Cheick Toure
4/22/2015 05:45:24 pm

I agree with you. We really need to put our differences aside and start educating other people on issues they don't pay attention to or they are not aware of. To unite around common cause in fighting racism, injustice and inequality In order to create a world where people won’t be treated because of who they are and how they look like.

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jorge ferrer
4/23/2015 06:34:03 am

i agree with you, i truly cant understand why whites who are into that white supremacy hate people of skin color i cant understand why they think they are better than us. ever since slavery days whites have always thought of themselves as powerful people when in reality theres no scientific proof of their skin color making themselves better than us. in fact just recently i learned that back in the days like way back people who were really really dark were considered as gods or really important people.

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Shameim Lowther
4/29/2015 08:24:36 am

it's just the fear of feeling inferior and the need to be nosy and in control. Hate come from ignornance of the unknown. people fear what they dont understand or know. This video was helpful because it shows how people can internalize their own personal experience and use that as a tool to enlighten people of like minds to bring about change.

Huimin Huang
4/29/2015 03:28:38 pm

yes. we should educating other people to treat every race and gender the same way, and this is one of the main goal of the collective liberation. we need to educating other people to realize that every person have the right to be treated equally because every people are one human kind.

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Hang Nguyen
5/4/2015 12:53:21 pm

I really like the way you said that nobody is free until everybody is free, and the way you explained it. It is true that when you take something from others, like their pride, their happiness and their rights to be respected and treated as equally, someone else would do the same thing to you, because that is how you let things be, when it shouldn't be that way. When you judge a person because of the color of their skin, I really mean no offense, but other might judge you as ignorant for just see things from its outside.

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Maurice Ainsworth
4/21/2015 09:09:26 am

When I hear the term Collective Liberation, I think of everyone aligning themselves with a common cause. I think of a population of people overcoming their privilege, and oppression, and uniting for the benefit of humanity. I think of enlightenment, and awareness, and people starting to realize, that they are all of the same mind. We are selfless. We have the all for one, one for all attitude.

Life would be dramatically different. there would be more trust and less hate. We would be concerned about the health and welfare of others. If our gov't harmed one, we would all come together on behalf of that individual. We wouldn't have so many laws passed that didn't benefit our national community. We would police ourselves, and maintain our own communities. We would try to understand others and be less prejudice. We would be more caring and understanding towards all.

In our country, it's not likely that that will happen, This is because America was developed as an individualistic society. Collectivism is the enemy of America. That is for the American citizen. The government has, and will always be collective. Republicans, and Democrats alike are collective. They have the same benefits, and retirement plans, Those who vote for them are not in possession of those standards, In other words, Collective Liberation is something that our government has had since day one. We would have to make too many sacrafices to achieve collectivism. Until we are ready to give up some of our beliefs, this is how we will exist.

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Bolortsetseg Jargalsaikhan
4/22/2015 08:13:47 am

I agree that it would be more trustful between individuals, less hate toward each other, and if someone gets wronged, not just certain group, but everyone stands up for what's right and what's wrong. If something happens to someone, we stop it, not just pass by it because we see those people as outsiders. Everyone is different, but everyone is same also. We are all human beings, even though we might look different in appearance, but inside we are all same, flesh. But there are times, some see others as animals, aliens, or anything that they think they are different from them. Everyone grew up with minds that differentiate others based on what they see, like if we see a guy in hoods at night, we assume that they are not good people and walk around them. It would be so hard to stop thinking what we think of others and start realizing what they really are, one of us.

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Erkhes Bat-erdene
4/26/2015 04:11:45 pm

What do you mean by overcoming their privilege?
I agree with you that there would be more trust and less hate and that we would be more caring and understanding towards all. On top of being an individualistic society, our capitalistic economy also capitalizes on reaping benefits at the expense of others. Though I disagree with you that the government has been collective.

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Shameim Lowther
4/29/2015 08:32:11 am

Overcoming privilege … Inhereted privilege and an oppressive system is not a persons fault but if that individual understands their priviledge and participates in oppression and does nothing then there is injustice.
So identifying that there is an injustice and problem is the first step. working towards and being a part of the solution is the answer.

Lin Chen
4/22/2015 02:32:38 pm

What does collective liberation mean?
In my opinion, collective liberation means to recognizing the struggles of racial, gender,and economic needs to connected together. People need to work together to create a society which is equal and possible. And people need to recognize that “all lives matter.”
What would change in our social and political systems if we acted in ways that brought about liberation for all people not just some?
If our social and political systems bring about liberation for all people not just some, there is less complain about different. And the government will pay more attention on citizen’s benefit. And the issue of the racial will be ending. People respect each other, the whole society will be peaceful.
How would your life change if you lived in a way that didn't take away the rights and access of others?
If I lived in a way that didn’t take away the right and access of others, my life will change absolutely. I will have the right to vote, and I can have a gun if I want in my country. And there is not gender discrimination in the job places, because women will have the right to protect themselves.
Is this possible in the U.S.A. today? If not, why
I don’t think it is possible in the USA today, maybe it will possible on one day but not now. Because today USA still have some problem of discrimination the government can not deal with it, and there is some voice of anti-black racism still on USA.

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Harin Yoon
4/29/2015 07:15:41 am

It's quite disappointing to be reminded of how there are still people who are for racism. It will be a dream to see America really stepping up our game to liberate all race and gender issues within in the country instead of putting so much attentions into foregin country's affairs. This will affect many people who are still for racism and sexism and change our culture and mind sets greatly.

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Raynard Anderson
4/30/2015 10:27:01 am

inorder to create change in the USA right now their would have to be an entire shift in media today because media is accessible enough that it crafts peoples mindsets whether that be the rookie police officer to the CEO of a corporation, that is when you will begin to see the most change. because right now blacks are portrayed as every rich one is famous and every broke one is brainless or a criminal which cause thoughts of jealousy, fear, and superiority. so change the media and everything else will follow because it shapes our culture.

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Fode Cheick Toure
4/22/2015 05:20:45 pm

 

1. Collective liberation is is all about the people coming together to organize within themselves around common cause, working together across the barriers kept in place to divide them. Such as racism, injustice and inequality. I think that people should be united to dismantle and liberate themselves from the oppressive system. To make the US a better place to live for everyone.

2. Things would be great and people would enjoy their life much better and spread the love. There won't be no civil disobedience,  no protest and no disruption in our daily lives. Everyone will enjoy peace and live a decent life free of hatred. Coming together as one people and loving each other is important in a nation.

3. My life would be full of joy and happiness. I would care more about my neighbors and care less about fighting racism, injustice and inequality. I would spread love more than hatred. I would fight  and help more  people that can't help themselves, and I would make sure everybody is safe and secure.

4. This is possible in the US if all groups of people put their differences aside and come together as one people around common cause to tackle issues that divide them and  solve them once for all.

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Nafi Watson
5/1/2015 02:38:10 am

I like how you worded what collective liberation meant. It amazes me how even though a lot of people may agree on one thing but is still divided in so many ways . I really liked the part about how people's lives would be more happier than it is now. It is important for us to come together and fight against what is wrong and stand up for what is right

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jorge ferrer
4/23/2015 06:29:14 am

Collective liberation is not just a value, but its an action. When we work together across the barriers kept in place to divide us, we strengthen our organization. Chris Crass basically talks about his own struggles as to how he had to stand up against white supremacy but if we brought liberation for all people not just some in our social and political systems I think people becoming one voice to stand up for whatever believes they have we can turn out to be very powerful! One example I can think of is racism still going on with African Americans. Even though they have worked hard very hard and have struggle to end discrimination towards them, they are very powerful people because they all unite to stand up for their rights. Racism might not be as it used to but other people label African Americans as bad people when in reality they are not. For example I work at a gas station and everything a young African American goes in the store m y manager always observe them because for some reason he thinks they are going to steal something. My managers are from Iran and it bothers me that they think of that way towards all African American young men. Im Mexican and my people have fought hard enough for students to become U.S citizens for us to attend good colleges and have the opportunity to get financial aid along with a good education. People always have to stand up and unite as one that way we become more powerful and make opportunities into reality.

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Emerson Lovato
4/30/2015 05:56:45 pm

I agree with you, if we were able to get more support from the government we would be part of greater society because not allowing immigrant students to get federal aid doesn't allow them to go to college because they can't afford it. Immigrants have proved they are here to work hard and to help out this country. U.S. elites don't want to do anything to help majority of hard working immigrants so it would be fair if they at least give help to their kids (students). We do not have enough resources to go to college and be successful because most of us tend to struggle with financial concerns once we apply to 4 year institutions.

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Jacob Bandel
4/26/2015 01:33:29 pm

I agree that it would be more trustful between individuals,because it would create allot less ''hate'' towards eachothe everyone is samer. When something happens we bring it to a halt, and not just let it pass by it because we see those people as ''just another person''although Everyone. Were all apart of the human race even though we might look different in appearance, but inside we are all made of the same materiel.There are situation many winess others as aliens. If we see a guy wearing dark shady clothing we just assume that they have a criminal agenda, and walk around to avoid them.

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Erkhes Bat-erdene
4/26/2015 03:26:49 pm

1. What does collective liberation mean?
I believe collective liberation is about understanding the differences of racial, gender, and economic disparity and uniting the masses for the cause of overcoming those differences for the better. Everyone would need to realize that despite our differences of caste, that we all matter, and we should all be treated equally.
2. What would change in our social and political systems if we acted in ways that brought about liberation for all people not just some?
Isn’t that the idealism of a utopia? For everyone to be liberated from the cages of castes and be free from the negatives of society. The entire global political system would collapse, and our social systems would probably thrive. The political system on a global scale, and nation scale for us, is about the exploitation of the lower class. It would be erroneous to say that the overall global economy is capitalistic, but it is the majority. And capitalism relies on, once again, exploiting the poor. The social systems would thrive because the masses, who are at the bottom of the food chain, are now more equal to those at the top. There would far less animosity towards each other.
3. How would your life change if you lived in a way that didn't take away the rights and access of others?
It would be a positive change in my life, but I can’t imagine how drastically it would change. All these movements for equality among races and sexes wouldn’t exist and people would be far more kind to each other, so I suppose it’d be a great change.
4. Is this possible in the U.S.A. today? If so, why? If not, why?
Pragmatically no it wouldn’t be possible. Liberation in the full sense of the term will never really be possible, because that’s just how it works. Someone will always hold more power than others, and the power disparity leads to the differences in caste. This has been true since the beginning of recorded humanity: power is desirable and people will always seek it.

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Angela Tam
4/29/2015 02:04:39 pm

I like how you noted it would be a utopia. Seems almost unrealistic right? It doesn't seem tangible me to but I'd like to think that we could thrive as such nation. If there was no poor, if there wasn't such a huge economic gap. We could afford to all being doing some what well and we could all poor into economy through spending because more people would have spending power. Then everyone would benefit. But we'd have to stop exploiting the poor right? That doesn't seem like it's in the near future.

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Erik Hoffmann
4/28/2015 04:05:47 pm

Collective liberation means coming together to help free each other as a whole. Support cannot be garnered for a cause if there is support for the parallel cause against it, especially in the case of racial discrimination and white supremacy, where there's a whole mindset embedded into it. If that mindset were to be taken down, i believe the world would be a totally different place. In a world where nobody would blame a problem in a community on the dominant race or culture of that community but instead the real world factors that went into creating that problem, the problem would likely not exist due to the support and understanding that would come from the clarity of a truly colorblind society. Race doesn't just separate groups of one skin color from another, but it also blinds those races judgement and makes them look at the stereotypes and prejudices and not their humanity. A black bear would likely not care that a brown bear is brown or a polar bear is white, because all it would see is a bear, making racism a human concept, and more importantly a societal concept. Living in a world without that concept would be like living in nature, where more people would view each other as what they are and not as society would define them. I feel this could be possible in the U.S. today because of all the police killings of unarmed black people raising awareness about how racist society is. At the same time though there is a high level of support for racism in the parts of the U.S. where there isn't a racially diverse population. California and other places with mixed race are blessed with diversity and don't normally encounter the same problems as areas with mainly blacks and whites. It's hard to say whether it could happen or not, but if anywhere, the U.S. would be the place to do it since it's advertised as the "free" and "diverse" country it claims to be.

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Michael Le
4/29/2015 07:23:35 am

I agree with you when you say that racial discrimination and white supremacy is a whole mindset that is embedded deep into that person's and his/her family's history. It has to start with breaking their mindset, getting them to question their actions, and then letting them know that change is gradual and takes a lot of time.

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LENA COLETTO
4/29/2015 01:26:17 am

Collective liberation is people Uniting for freedom and quality. People collectively being active and making the effort to create a change that promotes freedom and equality.
Our social and political system would drastically change if it was working in a way to bring liberation to all. Our political system we be doing the opposite. As of now the system is basically a white supremacist system trying to keep everyone in their "place". Which includes keeping people down. Politically if this were to change there would be higher wages, less incarcerations, there would not be specific boundaries, the lines would be blurred. The change in our communities, we would all be brought together. As tacky as it sounds, hatred would be replaced with love and communities would thrive because there would be a genuine caring for one another. We would all feel connected to one another. The invisible lines that seems to divide us would be stripped away. We would all just feel and know that we are all truly equal beings.
It is not possible for this to happen in the U.S.A. right now. This sort of drastic enlightenment does not happen overnight. This would take generations of a shift in mind state. The U.S. would have to replace its core of racism, even after the civil rights movement the core has not changed. We have to change the core to change anything. This will take generations and generations to take place.

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Erik Hoffmann
4/29/2015 09:50:06 am

I agree with you on this being unattainable in the U.S. today. All the old conservative people holding onto the mindset of the past need to die off first in order to allow the new generation with this mindset to teach the next generations that color doesn't matter. There are still a whole lot of people alive from the 50's that can't let that mindset go.

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Harin Yoon
4/29/2015 06:40:20 am

Collective liberation means people coming together to solve or liberate issues regardless of all race and gender. I think a lot of things will change if we looked beyond the colors of our skin and genders socially and politically since we will care less about who are applicable for certain laws and will also ease the tensions among different races. We will also be able to collect our hearts easier to fight for justice or issues since we will have the power to do so however, I feel like the government fears our collectivism. Whenever the citizens of America get together to protest, the government do best they can to stop the activities and cover up the issues through media. They also try to block ways for Americans to be educated on their mistakes and dark histories by exaggerating the "enemies" evil intentions to hurt us. So if we lived a life that didn't take away our rights for anything, we would be living in a society that was empathetic and fairer for all, where truths are supported and lies are revealed.

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Dongho Kim
4/29/2015 05:23:20 pm

I thought it was very interesting when you said you feel like the government fears our collectivism. And yes Its very true that government always tries to cover up their secrets and they use media to do this. People should be educated to notice the lies and the fallacies presented in the media.

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Qin Chen
5/1/2015 04:19:30 pm

I agree with what you said. In my opinion, our law is equal enough, because it already emphasize that we are all equal. However, people that govern us is not impartial, and people that execute the law are not impartial, yet. This is the reason why our society cannot become better.

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Michael Le
4/29/2015 07:17:16 am

Collective liberation is the act of gaining equal rights and creating a level playing field for people of all socioeconomic backgrounds. It involves the act of truly caring about the well-being of the next person. It requires people to look past a person’s financial status, like bank statements and cars, and past physical appearances like skin color. It requires the people to have a mindset where they admit that they are divided and racist, and have the desire to change their selves for the better collective good. One of the reasons that this is difficult for us to achieve is that we live in a capitalist society, a system that thrives on manipulation for personal gain and completion. If we truly started to rid ourselves of our selfish desire for personal gain, a domino effect would take effect. People would worry less about money, showing up the next person and spending so much money on things they didn’t need, which will then lead corporations to lose money and power because the demand for their product dropped. If I lived in a way that didn’t take away rights away from others then I would be more understanding and sympathetic towards people. I believe that collective liberation will be too difficult to achieve in America because not only do we live in a capitalist society, we also have a long history of slavery, and racism that is still active today.

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Ri'Chara Glenn
4/29/2015 03:47:41 pm

Your input on this topic is rather intriguing , however I got caught up in the part where you talked about capitalism and reduing selfness. If I would to compare communism and capitalism for serving a better future for the people. Most of us would most likely settle with capitalism. It's hard to remove our desire for personal gain because to live in a capitalized country, means a person capitalize off of everything that makes her/him happy. We can't be wrong for that , but I understand where you coming from.

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Shameim Lowther
4/29/2015 08:18:14 am

Collective Liberation means nobody’s free until everybody’s free-by recognizing that all of our struggles are intimately connected, and that we must work together to create the kind of world every person is worthy of dignity and respect and that with systems of oppression everyone suffers.
In this the speaker talks about personal experiences (through a close friend and mentor) that brought about change within his mind to liberate from racism. In that he discusses systematic change in society, racism, economic inequality, colorblind post civil rights era, social justice, legacy of liberated movements, life experiences of taking part in change and the social construction of whiteness. He give a talk about how ignorance, fear, media can scare people away.

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Angela Tam
4/29/2015 02:00:35 pm

Collective liberation is the coming together of all of us, all races and liberating ourselves from the institutionalize racism that we are unaware of. In the video Chris Crass’ friend Terrance said, “White supremacy hurts because it colonizes your mind and cuts you off from the deepest traditions of democratic social justice struggles”. We are not liberated because we are taught to stay in our place and stay in your place. So because we are taught this we feel awkward when we fight together against a cause. But through coming together we can fight oppression and stop letting authorities instill fear in us. If acted in ways that brought about liberation for all people not just some, we would learn a tremendous amount from each other. We would become more aware of different expenses and our happiness would not come at the expense of someone else’s expense. Take for example they want to cheaper tuition. They made the immigrants seems like the ones that caused this so that they could pit two groups against each other. This whole idea of, if I don’t have it is because someone is taking it from me, therefore, the other group needs to be denied so that I can have. Why can’t we all have equally without one group suffering over another? My life would drastically change because it has changed ever since I began this class. I never realized that our society was set up so that if one has, others don’t. But for the one to have, the others must not have. My husband is a wounded veteran, and we hear it all the time, Illegal immigrants causing the government to not have money so they have to take pull from the VA benefits to be able to fund the illegal immigrants. So the veteran community is outraged because their benefits will decrease, and whom do they blame? Illegal Immigrants. But, now that I have taken this class, I can see now that it is a plot to get two groups against each other. How dare we take our American soldiers benefits for illegal immigrants? So Americans are outraged and they blame the immigrants instead of the government. Now I see that both should be funded because we should be taking care of those immigrants and we should still be taking care of our veterans. No one should suffer for another. I honestly don’t think it is possible for today’s society to understand this. Facebook and other social media sites prove that there is much ignorance in society today. We are blind to how unfair our thoughts are. I think that this could be achieved over time, with collective liberation and education we can educate the community.

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liang zhang
4/29/2015 02:55:16 pm

What does collective liberation mean?
I think collective liberation mean we are working as a group to make our community equally. we are working together to create the kind of world we know is possible. everyone is equal, everyone get treat same.

What would change in our social and political systems if we acted in ways that brought about liberation for all people not just some?
I think it will be so great, people will not complain about get treat different. everyone is the same, people will not worry about can not find a job because of their skin color. people will trust and love each other more. we will be act more like a group, not act like individual.

How would your life change if you lived in a way that didn't take away the rights and access of others?
I think it would be a great change if I lived in a way that didnt take away the right and access of others. everyone will understand each other better, and people will help each other more.

Is this possible in the U.S.A. today? If so, why? If not, why?
I dont think this is possible in the USA today, I know if it is possible , it will be great for us, but from what i see today, this is not going to happen. Because there are always someone holding more power than other people, and there are always someone richer than other people, and we only have one president in the state. Not everyone is president. So this will not happen and everyone will not be equal.

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Huimin Huang
4/29/2015 03:15:36 pm

Collective liberation means an action that makes people of all skins color comes together to organize over the barriers that dividing people and to against all the inequality and discriminations, to get everyone together, to let everyone realize all color are the same, all color are human kind and no different. The inequality will disappear in our social and political systems if we acted in ways that brought about liberation for all people not just some. A lot of things will change if I lived in a way that didn't take away the rights and access of others. there will be love between every race. everyone will have the real freedom. people will have the real rights that they should have. no discriminations will still exist in our country then. But this is not possible in the U.S.A. today because not every people are educated to knowledge that every race are equal. some people don’t realize that everyone are just the same human kind that live in this earth. also some people don’t have the sense to respect others. people should be educate how to love others and not to discriminate others and hurt others. And these problems are not going to be solved anytime soon in this country.

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Lin Chen
5/1/2015 03:09:10 pm

I agree with you. If there is not equality on USA, it would be a dream to see America had a situation of collective liberation. And what I mean by equality is not mean people need to absolute equal, my definition of equality is people should respect each other. And collective liberation needs to recognise the struggles of racial, gender, and economic. It is not easy for USA to deal with it now.

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liang zhang
5/6/2015 01:43:24 pm

I am agree with you , all color are hunman kind and no different. but not everyone are knowing that. even they knows, still they are acting like they are better than anyone else. Everyone is different in this world. we can not make other people to do anything, all we can do is to do the right thing.

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Richara Glenn
4/29/2015 03:27:21 pm

Collective liberation means that people unite to show solidarity and they'd fight against barriers that were put in place to divide them. I believe people are to be in sync with others in order for the collective liberation to perform at it best.

This would be a dream come true for everyone seeking liberation. This could change the whole dynamic of our social and political system in ways we've imagined. No more racism, no more riots or outbreaks , no more lies, less violence and the list goes on. We'll all embark onto a journey that will allow us all to finally be happy without having to try so hard at life. It would be like dismantling our country's bad history and starting anew.

My life could be better or it couldn't . I never really went far towards visualizing how my life could've been different if my rights were never taken from me. It's sad because I'm accustomed to everything that exists so it prevents me to really see the light of things. I'm under the impression that if I ever live in this world where my rights mattered just as much as living then maybe my life would be easier because I don't have to concentrate so hard on living properly instead of living how I choose to. It's exhausting to have to live in a way that is expected of you. It's pretty constant and I think if I had a bit more access then I can relax a bit more.

Here's my take on it, anything is possible . If you can dream it then you can achieve it. I refuse to say that it's impossible for our nation to change because the picture that we've painted of this country shows that America is capable of doing anything that comes to mind. Look at our history what is that an example of? We fought and earned our stripes using different mechanisms. For some one to even speak the word "impossible" is just as delusional as the person who created the word.

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Qin Chen
4/29/2015 04:39:25 pm

In my opinion, collective liberation means understanding the history of anarchist struggle and tactics, movement building, racial justice organizing, and the work that gender privileged people must do to collectively challenge sexism. It is hard to have a perfect society at the beginning, so we need collective learning, organizing, accountability, and liberation.
If we acted in ways that brought about liberation for all people not just some, then our society will be very wonderful and developed fast. A large number of people in our society cannot do what they can just because their sex. Especially for women, almost half of people in the world, they usually cannot do what they want just because they are women. If I live in a way that did not take away the rights and access of others, then I do not need work harder than other people to prove I can do it. Such as I do not need prove women can do it, the only thing I need prove is I can do it. I believe it will be possible in the U.S.A. one day but not today. U.S.A. has one of the best society in the world; however, it still not great enough. Homosexual still cannot marry each other in some state and it is even illegal in some state. Female still cannot have equal environment in lots of place. We still need do a lot to collective liberation,

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Dongho Kim
4/29/2015 05:10:52 pm

Collective liberation is an action that all different group and community of people take together to make changes in our society. If we really act in ways that brought about liberation for all people from different back ground, many things will definitely change. There will be no more civil disobedience, complaints, discrimination, and etc. I assume there will be more peace throughout the whole country. There will be no need for competition and will be much more caring for other people. People will change their life style from being more self-centered to community-centered. Each individual’s voice will be heard to everyone and inequities will cease to exist. My life would change a lot too, my community and I will help and care more for other communities and my life style would be more relaxing and comfortable and joyful. I do not think this is possible in the US today, because many people desire more wealth and power than others. Wealth people will not give up keeping the wealth to themselves and desire more and more. People with power will not stop using their power against other people and take advantage of them. Also there is a racism and discrimination still existing all around the world. Although it sounds sweet, I doubt that US will ever become like this.

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Guadalupe Hernandez
4/30/2015 09:21:52 am

I agree if we all move in the same direction we can make change for us. We need to live in a country where discrimination, and injustice violence is no longer existent. It is sad that we are not their yet. We would live in a much more pleasant place, where we are all satisfied. We need to balance out the power. The government has most while we are stuck in the shadows, and when we want change we have to fight for it. Why isn't that we the people should not have to fight to heard, but be working together to make change happen. Things are not equal, and thus people are upset.

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Emerson Lovato
4/29/2015 05:42:23 pm

After watching this video, I have come to the conclusion that Collective Liberation means fighting as a whole and not as individuals to destroy the barriers of inequality and discrimination set by certain white folks to keep minorities oppressed. If people fight together it's possible to defeat those who want to keep them segregated and powerless because if we don't fight together we have less power to put an end to the atrocities they have committed. Liberation for all would bring peace to the U.S. because there would be no more conflicts or riots, people would feel safer and part of something bigger than just a country but a family. This would allow us to be happy and not engage in acts of violence, it would bring more stability to the U.S. and I believe this would change my life drastically because I would have the opportunity to live in peace, go to college, and live financially stable. I wouldn't have to worry about going back to my country or having to worry about how to pay for college because I would get federal aid. However, I don't think this is possible because there's people who won't allow this to happen. They want to us to be powerless and to not have any opportunities because they are selfish and they want everything for themselves.

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Guadalupe Hernandez
4/30/2015 09:17:11 am

Collective Liberation is having us work together as one to fight for our community, and demand change. People's lives would change if we acted in ways that brought about liberation for all people and not just some. By allowing all people to be more free with their decisions this would ultimately change our society greatly. We would have happy ones, and some upset. But ultimately everyone should be able to live as they please, and not be restricted to do so because of others opinions. Those who firmly disagree and want no association can distance themselves from this. My life personally would be affected with both pros and cons. With too much liberation their may be chaos, and with not enough their will be unfairness. So, I find myself usually stuck in the middle. I have a few topics that come to mind that I find myself stuck. I want more liberty to those directly effect, but find some personal beliefs coming in and not allowing me to fully accept. Changing to country where we don't pick and choose who has what right is possible. We live in a country where we accept that we are evolving. With changing generations, comes changing new desires. We can adjust to make those individual lives more comfortable, since we are a country of equality right?

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Raynard Anderson
4/30/2015 10:55:01 am

I completely agree with this movement because for us to ascend to the society that we want to become we need to iron out the kinks in our culture because it is extremely hindering growth as a world. racial equality is one of those though because of ignorance and full knowledge of that we are all the same and that our only differences are external and culturally which now even those are becoming more blurred as we all mix into one culture. examples of racial inequality are the fact that when you think of immigration you think of Mexicans but more Asians would be helped by Obama's immigration reform. or the fact more blacks are pulled over by cops even though we commit less crimes than whites and make up a smaller demographic.

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Tonivi Truong
5/1/2015 01:41:50 am

Collective Liberation is when a group of people set their differences aside in order to work together and achieve one goal. This means that the people are putting aside any discrimination, which makes a powerful group who really shows that something needs to be done in the oppressed system. If everyone were be brought to liberation rather than just some, I feel that this society would become chaotic. Laws for example, hold us down, it limits us, without it, everyone would be free to do as they please. Doing anything has a rule on it, smoking, drinking, and even Driving would be havoc. There are other cases where collective liberation does happen though which includes health care, welfare, retirement plan, insurance, and anything that includes working with another person, or a group of people with each other to achieve one goal. In the political system, they have always been doing it. There are the House of Representatives and Senate who have to work together on bills, the three branches in the checks and balance system; in fact, our system runs on collective liberation. But that would be the "some people" in our case. I believe often times, the rights and access of others need to be taken because people tend to abuse it, even for unjust reasons. Everyone wants to take advantage of the government and abust it all they can, limiting it all would be the best choice. Living in a society where everyone's rights are equal I would say is impossible because as the way I believe we America's see it, anyone can be dangerous, anyone can be harmful, and our eyes can be deceived. That would even mean there would be either no use or chaos among the police whom are what defense the citizens internally. We have all seen the good and bad of many, and know there are criminals who are out there that need the be oppressed too. America, the "Land of the Free," wants everyone who should be free, to be free, rather than everyone being free. They give people opportunities to be free, but over course, this means that the oppression needs to be around.

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A.J. Roderos
5/3/2015 01:30:51 pm

In a sense, collective liberation is group collaboration for resolving issues that pertain to individuals as a whole. Instead of focusing on self-interests, collective liberation is a way for creating an environment, where individuals are equal among each other. If collective liberation comes into play in the social and political platforms, people of all ethnicities could achieve liberties and opportunities that are not limited to one group of people. For this reason, the world could be a better place with the accomplishments and success that collective liberation can bring. It can be a step to cut the stems of discrimination and injustices that our nation has been suffering with for the past couple of centuries. If rights and access of others are not taken away, my life would change dramatically. People of all color can thrive if these social and political limitations did not exist. Social issues, such as poverty, may come to a stop if collective liberation becomes active and enforced. In the contemporary world, I believe that it is not possible. We are delayed by such setbacks. These setbacks involve racial and monetary issues that have been going for years now. If we can get past these issues and work together as a whole, then it can be a possibility.

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Nafi Watson
5/3/2015 04:16:59 pm

Collective Liberation is not just a value, but an action. When we work together across the barriers kept in place to divide us, we strengthen our organizing
A lot of things would be different and equal, I think it would be wonderful if we did come together to fight for our values. People would feel safer and valued by the government.
I would feel that everybody is equal and have equal rights, even though we have them now but there is still some restrictions to the rights. My life would change because I wouldn’t have to fear if I do something against the law or if I didn’t something wrong I wouldn’t get the same punishment as someone else because of the color of my skin.
I don’t think it is possible because of how the U.S.A was made and they still believe that people are equaled separate but equal. They only want rich and highly educated people to have the same rights anyone else.

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Tonivi Truong
5/5/2015 12:27:30 pm

I think you bring out an interesting point that everyone would feel safer and valued by the government. It is interesting that we want equality, but if everything was equal, it would be America's worst enemy. I also agree with the fact that people should not be judged for something like the color of their skin, it is completely unjust. And doing more research on my own, it sucks that racism has been going on since America was born. As soon as different colored-skinned people appeared, there came slavery, as if they were instantly labelled which is horrible. Because of these reasons, USA definitely cannot be fully equaled. and i too believe there will always be some sort of tension between race and culture.

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steven gissentanner
5/4/2015 02:11:41 am

Collective is that we should work together as a group and take action to make something better. If we work together we can make things better in our communities. I feel like If liberation for all would be good so we could fight to get things done in our communities. There would be less drama if everyone agreed on things that are right and would be good for them and the people around them. It would change my life a lot because I would feel confident about standing out and doing something spontaneous for my community. I would love to start a company that helps all who are being miss treated. I cant see this happening in today's society because there's too much power to shut change down. If this happen then the 1% would be shaking in their pants because they are afraid that the lower class is going to take over,

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Hang Nguyen
5/4/2015 01:19:02 pm

As I watch the film and searching Google for clearer information, I see Collective Liberation here has the key words is "Collective" - Together!
I think of the term Collective Liberation as we are connected in every aspects of our lives, whether we recognize it or not, whether we like it or not. Our struggle is connected to each other, probably one's benefit causes another's suffer. Everyone, regardless of their skin color or where they come from, all is worthy of dignity and respect. We all say that we dream of a justice and liberty world, then we need to work together to create that world, which is not impossible.
I have read that "Collective Liberation is not just a value, but also an action". Just like Chris Crass has mentioned through the video, there are things called "barriers" that keep us apart from each other, separate us, divide us and make us weaker while we can be stronger when stand up side by side. And sadly, those "barriers" were, and still is created by ourselves. Our diverse identities make the world what is it now, beautiful and diverse. But because of some judgement from old knowledge, we push the people who does not look and think like us away. The worst thing is, some people give themselves to treated others as "not fully human", like they don't deserve to be treated kindly. And we push them out of "our society".
The true is, there is no"white society", or "black society" or Latino or Asian ect, all of us no matter how we look and think, we have made only one big society. Every part of us, the differences, all affect that society, is it just make us have our own special remark, but does not make we so different apart. We all exist with one and another. And those remarks, they make us stronger.
“Nobody’s free until everybody’s free”_that is what Fannie Lou Hamer said. And I am really into the idea. You can take on a person, others can take on you. You can look down on a person because they are not white, others may tell you how dump you are for just seeing the outside.

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Roy Christopher
5/11/2015 08:16:02 am

I like your interpretation of collective liberation. Your right many people don't bother to try and recognize how connected all our lives can be. How we can all relate in some type of way. Some people just think the world revolves around them and no one else is going thorugh things. But really we're all in this together, we're are a all on the same team. If not the same team, we're fighting for the same side. Although like you said, yet we still let barriers divide us. I also strongly agree that we are becoming very diverse and that we are one society.

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Roy Christopher
5/6/2015 04:57:19 pm

What does Collective Liberation mean? Collective liberation means people cooperating as a group to fight for good against oppression systems have enslaved us under.

What would change in our social and political systems if we acted in ways that brought about liberation for all people not just some? I feel that if we acted in ways that brings liberation for all rather than some we would be a lot more unified. Communities would be a lot more different. People would have a lot more trust in others. A lot of injustices in the political system would be solved and fixed. A lot more laws would be passed that benefits all citizens. There would most definitely be a lot more equality amongst us all. Also we would have better relationships with our foreign partners and people across seas. There would be a lot more awareness for others and less prejudices, discrimination, and racism.

How would your life change if you lived in a way that didn't take away the rights and access of others? I feel if we all did this overall the psychology of life would be super different. I think a lot of things would be at a different pace. I feel life would be less competitive and more enjoyable. We wouldn’t have to feel like we might be enemies or something. We could all work as a team.
Is this possible in the U.S.A. today? If so, why? If not, why? Yea, I think this is possible in the U.S.A. Its hard to say its not with all the people in our country. I feel we just need more and more proper influence among nations. It’s hard to say its not when everyone has potential that can be put to anything.

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