Something that stops organizing around where I live is that no one actually lives here. I don't mean it's underpopulated or rural. I'll be open and say I live in Houston with 7 million people. It's a populated place with plenty of marginalized communities, a whole bunch of queer people, and a very working class character. You'd think it's ripe for organizing, and there are good people who've done good stuff (shout-out to the local IWW and the Starbucks union campaign), but getting anything big off the ground is like pulling teeth.

When I say no one lives here I mean no one stays here. It's a community by happenstance, everyone is here just long enough to move along to somewhere nicer. It's not a place to grind your feet into and refuse to back down, it's a place where you're already worn down and you're scraping up enough to move to a house in the suburbs just leave Texas in general. Not to mention the physical separation of people here. The whole city is a bunch of highways and HEBs masquerading as a society. Everything's so far apart and people are so scattered it's hard to coordinate anything, especially because these are poor, stressed, working class folk who already have a bunch on their plate. Everyone's tired and no one wants to be here.

Me personally I'm impacted by all of that. I dream about leaving, so it's sometimes hard to get too involved with organizing because it would chain me here. I do work around here the best I can, but a lot has to get done. I think a major thing would be getting more Latino people involved. I mean this as constructive, but the socialist orgs around here really do fit the nerdy white guy in college stereotype. That's not necessarily bad but it does mean outreach is a problem.

Non-white folk around here, if they have leftist tendencies, tend to filter into orgs with more focus on fighting racism rather than explicitly advancing socialism. Like there's a Brown Berets chapter here and some César Chávez folk. There are some really cool indigenous people's groups as well. I wish all the orgs here would coordinate more, that would really be a good first step. Most of the time when I see multiple orgs at the same thing it's more by happenstance and shared interests than coordination. Everyone tends to get along like comrades at events, but communication is poor and coherency is worse.

It's not all bad and there's a lot of room to improve. I'm hopeful and I'm gonna keep helping out where I can.

I've built a smallish community of fellow comp sci majors in my college town but it still kinda sucks. They're all great people but not the kind to go to parties which severely limits what I can do with them. The problem is that I don't feel comfortable cold approaching people. I can get them to go bowling or drinking which is fun but I kinda also want to meet other people outside my major. I can be a social butterfly if I have someone to back me up, but I suck dick on my own.

The town is kinda dead on its own with most of the events being for middle aged couples. The university is a place to meet young people but they're either busy as hell or not socially available.

I don't know how to talk to people I don't know and people just most of the times don't seem to be interested in forming any sort of actual bond (which has kept my friend circle terribly small since I've moved two years ago) and all the leftist organizations around are just really not particularly inviting (they are nice and open but there's always some stench of the scene to them), but here's some good news: There's some student organizing that seems to be brewing at my university with more than one genuinely spontaneous action against the university leadership (and the continuous police presence on campus) in the last two weeks that I've been part of. We'll see if more develops from that (the Christmas break sure has put a damper onto things) but I'm in good spirits, people do really seem to have some energy for once and I sure hope to find a place for me within there somehow. There's a resurgence of politically organized house squatting in my city as well, which in a city where the rent prices are absolutely ridiculous is great to see.

I’m waiting for Xi to liberate us.

I live in an area that, on paper, should be pretty fruitful but nobody's really applied a correct line. We have lots of groups but they're all anarchists, and when I tried to steer a group that I was foundational to towards a more practical and less idealistic line it exploded due to completely worthless social infighting.

Seriously, watch out, if you're not careful you CAN get taken advantage of and be left with nothing if malicious actors get in on the ground. And they're not malicious actors because they're innately wrong or evil or backed by the FBI or something, just hurt people who don't do the work for themselves to stop hurting others. I lost a lot from it, and it was humiliating to lose everything after so much work; so don't feel bad for practicing prudence with who you work with.

I think I'm still salving myself after that as selfish as that is

Most people where i live are reactionary/rich/capitalist scum.

I got involved with/helped build a pretty energetic mutual aid (meals and supplies) distribution group during the pandemic. It pretty much fizzled once everyone went back to work/school. I miss it, but I've got a full-time job now and it doesn't leave much room for organizing.

A lot of people are just plain busy. I'm not really an exception, in addition to regular person stuff I also hold national positions in a certain org with a good number of people. I have been getting significantly more involved locally in the past year though.

Something I see a lot is people joining up and becoming a member, but for one reason or another not participating. Y'all, please show up to a meeting. I'm begging you.

I have MAYBE a couple hours after 10pm to do things to relax. Until then it's work, kids, responsibilities for days. So, no time to focus on anything for me other than an hour (if I'm lucky) to go be out with people.

Yes, that sucks, but also it's life and too many depend on me so as they say, it is what it is. And yes, I'm burned out but as per usual, but if I'm not actively doing things, they don't get done.