About Us

About Our Mutual Aid Network

Salt Lake Community Mutual Aid (SLCMA) seeks to facilitate projects and education that meet the material and social needs of the community while imagining a postcapitalist world. Our beliefs can be summarized by our Points of Unity

• Who/What: Every person deserves support regardless of ability, race, gender, nationality, citizenship, criminal record, sexuality, health, or class. We believe every person has a right to autonomy, self-determination, food, shelter, medical care, education, and comfort. 

• Education: We believe education is a crucial element for both empowerment and liberation. To accomplish this, we seek to share knowledge and learn together  in both theory and practice.

• How: We believe the practice of mutual aid builds communities that are resistant to the structures which cause immense harm. Mutual aid is a collaborative practice of reciprocal support amongst a community

• Community: Our group depends on active and enthusiastic participation. To achieve this, we seek to facilitate a safe and welcoming community for all.

• Structure: Our group is dynamic, growing, and continually improving. We depend upon community members contributing input, criticism, and taking initiative. 

• Beliefs: We are anti-capitalist, anti-fascist and anti-racist

Structure

We have no paid employees meaning no money donated goes towards an executive's salary.

Our group emphasizes the importance of everyone getting a voice. Rather than having a complex system of leaders and managers, we make decisions horizontally through consensus. Every single member is encouraged to participate in making decisions.

Our Projects

• Unhoused Community Distribution: In December 2020 we began our weekly unhoused distro. Each week we provide warm meals and supplies based on the most pressing needs of our community members. Rather than perpetuate models of charity, our goal is to build community and practice solidarity with those we meet.

• Free Community Fridges: We began setting up community fridges (freedges) in October 2021. The freedges are available for anyone to take or leave food as they need. The motivation behind them is to try to help address food insecurity and apartheid through community care. Maintaining the freedges is a collaborative effort between SLCMA members and non-members to stock and clean the freedges weekly.

• Really Really Free Markets: Our First Really Really Free Market (RRFM) was held on May Day 2021. Since then, we’ve made them a recurring event on the last Sunday of each month. We pick a local park location and invite community members to bring things they want to give away for free. Anyone can come and give or take! The RRFM has been a great place for people to get to know each other while imagining alternative ways of sharing things.

• Disaster Response: We have been working to improve our community’s resilience to disasters. Following the windstorm that struck Salt Lake in September 2020, we came out to help folks cleanup the damage and clear out debris. Other projects include helping people build DIY air purifiers and fundraising for the victims of the Silverado Apartment fire.

• Community Events: We coordinate events with the goal of bringing in the broader community and promoting our values. Some of these include our Harvest Party, The Second Weening Halloween Party, Joe Hill Commemoration, and our alternative pride events Edirp and Pride Without Police. We’re tremendously thankful for those in our community offering resources to make these events possible on a tight budget. These events are a space for our community to have fun while trying to be accessible. Often, we invite fellow organizations to participate by tabling or speaking.

• Misc and more: Some of our past or smaller projects are: the Gender Affirming Clothing drive, a Community Garden located at our Sugarhouse Freedge, our Little Library at the murals, distributing seedlings, fundraising projects, calls for political action and more! We are always starting new projects.

What’s Next?

One of our greatest ambitions is to be able to establish a physical organizing space in Salt Lake City. This would enable us to have an accessible community pantry, gender affirming closet, shared event space, and more. Our intention is to make this space one that is shared among similar groups in SLC. While this is a distant goal, we are excited for the possibilities that will come with it!