Resistance in Brooklyn

Elspeth Meyer, 1938-2024, ¡Presente!

Dear family,

We are saddened to share that at 1:45 pm on June 28th, 2024, Elspeth Meyer drew her last breath. A beloved mother, grandmother, sister, neighbor, partner, auntie, elder, comrade, and friend to countless people, she spent her life struggling for the rights and freedom of others and working for the happiness of those around her. Born in Scotland in 1938, she moved to the Brooklyn she so very much identified with and enjoyed in 1969 and lived there for the rest of her life. A dedicated educator and parent advocate, Elspeth worked for decades in daycare and early childhood education, helping to found some of Brooklyn’s most consistently progressive and sustainable schools. Elspeth was a fine artist who also helped design posters for the causes she believed in; she worked in batik, collage, oils, pastels, and markers. An inspiring organizer, she fought without equal as a north american solidarity activist for the freedom of Puerto Rico, working with unparalleled non-sectarianism as a behind-the-scenes support person for all initiatives, individuals, and organizations working to bring about positive change to the land still colonized by US imperialism. As a young supporter of the United Farm Workers labor union and the burgeoning, independent Nigeria where she lived from 1963 to 1968, Elspeth went on to help found Resistance in Brooklyn (RnB), working tirelessly till the very end of her life to free all political prisoners and support all freedom movements, from Haiti to Palestine and beyond. Perhaps her greatest legacy, however, is the warmth and humanity that Elspeth permeated in her encounters with others. Insistent and sometimes stubborn, she nevertheless made a point of sharing kindness, respect, and genuine interest in whomever she was talking to, meeting with, passing by. She loved children (almost all of them but especially her own and her grandchildren) and loved nature and the Botanical Gardens which were right across the street from her home. Now our dear Elspeth is forever a rose in the midst of all nature surrounding us.

Sincerely, all of us.

Elspeth Meyer is survived by her sister Alison Glen; her brother Graeme Brown; her children Erika and Sean; her partner Michael; her grandchildren Shibi, Michael Del, and Molly Soo; and by a large community of loved ones. Plans for her memorial and other tributes will be forthcoming.

Guilty of Genocide! How can it be that it was only two years ago today that we were standing alongside our beloved Baba Sekou Odinga for the delivery of the Final Full Verdict of the 2021 International Tribunal on US Human Rights Abuses Against Black, Brown, and Indigenous Peoples. That historic verdict was delivered here to Spirit of Mandela Coordinating Committee members Odinga, dequi kioni-sadiki, Tag, and Matt Meyer (me) by Tribunal Chief Jurist Magdalene Moonsamy of South Africa. Also present via virtually were SoM CC members Jihad Abdulmumit, A'isha Muhammad, and the United Nations Representative of Western Sahara. Now is the time to REDOUBLE OUR EFFORTS AGAINST GENOCIDE, war, and imperialism EVERYWHERE, as some of us are off to a Pan-African Peace summit for just those purposes. FREE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS! FREE THE LAND! FREE PALESTINE!

Today I'm finding it just a little hard to believe that it has been one full year since IPRA's successful biennial general conference held in Trinidad & Tobago. I happily stumbled upon this Northwest website, managed by Paul E. Nelson, which contains photos from that time together, as well as an interview with me about IPRA current and future work. Check it out here: https://cascadiapoeticslab.org/2023/05/ipra-making-peace-in-trinidad/

Proud to be a special guest at the 65th anniversary commemoration of the Tibetan Uprising. Here with Tibet MP and independence activist Namgyal Dolkar, IPRA co-Secretary General Marìa Teresa Muñoz, and CLAIP SG Marcela Agudelo, we will be spending some days getting to know the current anti-colonial movement better. TIBET WILL BE FREE!

co-sec.general

RnB: Anti-War, Anti-Imperialist, Anti-Fascist: RnB wrote the rare collective statement on the current crisis. For the full text and/or more information, write to us at: [email protected]

For over 3 decades, RnB has held annual holiday card-writing parties to send greetings to our incarcerated comrades: us political prisoners who have fought back against genocidal conditions including imperialism, colonialism, white supremacy, patriarchy, militarism and more. One of those prisoners, Jaan Laaman, most consistently wrote us back with messages of "RED HOLIDAY GREETINGS!" A particular joy of 2021 was seeing Jaan finally free, along with our dear David and Maroon, and Jalil out in time to be a staunch on-the-ground organizer for the Spirit of Mandela International Tribunal. Our job now, as we CELEBRATE THE INCOMING YEAR IN A RED REVOLUTIONARY FASHION, is to work together to make 2022 even more meaningful and successful! AMANDLA!!