This week’s Austin Chronicle, released today, has three impactful news items.
The big one is Michael King’s piece on Friends of Austin Neighborhoods (FAN).
Excerpt:
There’s a new kid on the block of Austin neighborhood organizations, and the longtime residents don’t quite know what to make of the newcomer. The Friends of Austin Neighborhoods (www.atxfriends.org) began organizing in the spring, and their interim board members expect to hold formal elections this month. Their founding members say they’re primarily interested in “inclusiveness” and bringing a wider range of city residents into the public “neighborhood” conversation. “We want to reclaim the name ‘neighborhood’ for what it originally meant,” says FAN Board President Roger Cauvin. “A community within a given city area, and all the voices within that community.”
Some of our neighbors are launching false attacks on FAN. (Unbeknownst to any of us in FAN, the Koch Brothers and RECA might be providing funding, speculates one source in King’s piece.) The best way to combat these false attacks from our neighbors is with the same neighborly and respectful attitude that embodies FAN’s vision. Being respectful and neighborly shines a contrasting light on other tactics and exposes them for what they are.
“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
In related news, Teresa Griffin won in the reader’s “Best Neighborhood Activist” poll, and AURA won “Best Grassroots Group” in the reader’s poll again.