Remember how, last year, we all got together on May Day and launched a few thousand seed bombs onto Water Street? Well, if you’re up for it, quite a few of us will be gathering there again on Thursday. There won’t be seed bombs, but my sense is that we’ll have a pretty good time in spite of it. (Some of our native wildflowers are already starting to come up.) The potluck will begin at 5:30, but there will be events on Water Street throughout the day. As of right now, here’s what’s on the agenda.
1:30 PM Anti-racist reading group, discussing “Who is Oakland: anti-oppression activism, the politics of safety, and state co-optation“
2:30 PM Eco-Justice workshops coordinated by the Ypsi Free Skool:
“Michigan’s Getting Fracked Up” with the Sierra Club
“The Basics on the AATA Bus Expansion” with Partners in Transit
“System Change, Not Climate Change”
3:30 PM “The History of May Day” puppet show with Momo & Blake
5:30 PM Potluck
7:00 PM Our Local Native American History walking tour with Matt Siegfried
Everyone is welcome.
[As events are subject to change, check YpsilantiMayDay.org for updates.]
Also, as in years past, Billy Bragg will be with us in spirit.
8 Comments
If a dead Tupac can play Coachella, why can’t Billy Bragg play Water Street? We have the technology.
The history of May Day:
Read more:
http://www.iww.org/history/library/misc/origins_of_mayday
How’d the seed bombs work – can you tell yet?
A lot of stuff came up last year. My hope, though, is that we see ten times as much this year. I guess we’ll have to wait and see… Remind me, and I’ll post photos in a few weeks.
It’s going to be chilly. Can there be a fire?
For Ann Arborites who’d like a copy of this year’s free May Day book, but can’t make it to Ypsilanti tomorrow, there is hope.
Ohhhh yah i vote for a fire. would be nice for it to be accessible too, but thats hard I understand
May Day also has a spiritual dimension — aka “Beltane.” Beltane is a cross-quarter day, halfway between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice. It’s the traditional “seed of Summer,” the first day, which is why Summer Solstice is also called “Midsummer.” It’s directly across the wheel of the year from Halloween. Halloween begins the winter and Beltane begins the summer. These two holidays reflect each other, with similar themes of Love and Death. Humans making love in the fields was believed to bless the seeds and welcome the summer and the death of the winter. The maypole is a traditional pasttime at both Beltane and Midsummer: the ribbons on the pole represent wishes we are weaving together with others in our community. Nowadays, it’s usually reduced to a children’s activity only, but at one time the maypole was a potent symbol of our lives intricately interwoven with one another and with the cycles of the earth.