People’s Assembly

Politics and social issues have always been breeding grounds for grass-roots community groups. The groups give voices to those who feel helpless and ignored in their circumstances.

The People’s Assembly, one such grass-roots group, came to Pierce on May 2.

It was the last visit in a small series to gather community feedback.

Michelle Voo, one of the co-organizers, said, “We are a grass-roots collective. We work to address social inequalities, specifically anti-blackness and intersections of marginalized identities.”

Cathy Nyugen also a co-organizer, said, “We started in 2014, shortly after the Michael Brown shooting (in Ferguson, Missouri). We promote advocacy, we are anti-racial, and pursue for justice. We want people to know what it looks like to create a holistic freedom.

On the walls around the room were long sheets of paper. The group created an interactive display where people could write. For example, one heading read “Freedom _______ feels like, smells like, etc.

We use these as one of our tools to get feedback from community. We want to know what are the commonalities,” said Brianna Jones, another a co-organizer.

The mission of the group is to connect with community, to give them place where people can express their experiences. By the end of the year they expect to have enough data to give a comprehensive presentation to city and state governments and be able to make recommendations.