Stone Soup Group

Stone Soup Group

Founded: 2024

About

The Stone Soup Group is made up of ideologically diverse members who have a shared belief that compassionate, bold action is necessary in a time of rising fascism in the USA. Our focus of attention is on those who are the most targeted and at risk of injustice - the LGBTQ+, BIPOC, Immigrants, and the unhoused communities. Our actions involve education, mutual aid and making important social justice issues visible to the community. We come together twice a month to eat together, share and support one another, and strategize ways to be active in the community for the benefit of others. Supporting existing local social justice organizations is a priority. The Stone Soup Group makes an effort to witness the connections between the injustices that are in front of us in our smaller community as well as the injustices in the wider world. They are opposed to the genocide in Gaza and support the people of Palestine in their long road to liberation.

Core Values

Compassion, Integrity, Commitment, Cooperation, Justice, Antiracism, Direct Action, Respect, Generosity, Courage, Support, Knowledge, Advocacy, Unity, Freedom, Environmental Justice

Actions

1. Visibility Brigade - Organizing Freeway overpass messaging that highlights shared concerns in the USA and our communities.
2. Ask a Trans Doctor Lecture - Supported a local Trans Physician, Dr. Kristine Coons, and the Spokane Trans community in an educational event through planning, set up, and providing food and drink. "Ask a Trans Doctor lecture" was a compassionate, science-backed overview of human sex development, gender identity, and the natural diversity found in both. The lecture explored how how biology defies binary categories and how intersex and gender-diverse identities are part of the human spectrum. It was designed for those seeking to better understand the science behind sex and identity and to dismantle myths with empathy and evidence in order to foster a more informed, inclusive community.
3. Mutual Aid Actions - Supporting M.A.S.S. (Mutual Aid Survival Squad) in direct action to feed the hungry in Spokane
4. Local Resistance - Participates in and organizes local events -Say it Saturdays (BA Clark Park), Federal Fridays (location varies), Mikey Mondays (Outside Mike Baumgartner's office)
5. LGBTQ+ Support - Ongoing volunteering for events organized by Spokane Pride and Trans Spokane
6. Immigrant Rights Support - Volunteering for WAISN (Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network) in rapid response efforts, Latinos in Spokane at El Mercadito, and donation support of the Manzanita House.
7. Rural Resistance - Supports and networks with nearby rural communities in their efforts to fight fascism.

History

The Stone Soup group began as four strangers who met at a library for an Indivisible Meet Up after the 2024 Presidential election. They asked each other "What can we do" and now they share with each other what they are going to do. While many turned away in silence, they wanted to talk about it, face it and take action. They turned their meet up into a potluck and quasi support group for coping with the rise in fascism. Their membership continued to rise and their organizational skills continue to develop in all of their shared commitments and efforts towards justice.

External Links

1. "Ask a Trans Doctor Lecture" : https://youtu.be/20Cwl73jNuw?si=Y_T5BjGBUEUEyKzB