TAKE BACK THE LAND!

Greetings Community Member,

My name is Vera F. Allen. I am currently the Director of Programming at the Minneapolis Television Network, channels 16, 17, and 75 in Minneapolis. I write to you as a concerned citizen with an idea to initiate leadership and self governance in our current time of material distress.  It is common knowledge that currently we are living through the worst economic circumstance of our time. We are all trying to understand what we can do to either help our own situation or those who might live next door to our family. Recently, I was able to see author/activist Max Rameau give a presentation to a group of people gathered for a media/food justice institute about the movement called “Take Back the Land” which he began in Miami, FL. The essential progress that Mr. Rameau is offering comes from a grassroots understanding and offers a logical remedy to the unbalanced situation between the banking system and the “poor man”. Mr. Rameau is articulate, forthright, dedicated, and a force to be reckoned with in regard to homelessness in particular and social justice overall. It is my great hope that you will read the following information about his movement and sign on to bringing him here to Minneapolis. His leadership would serve to organize and rally a team of community members who can offer the same relief he has given to families and frustrated communities alike across our struggling country. If his visit will serve as nothing more, it will be an opportunity for young and old to experience an activist that walks the walk. Mr. Rameau is indeed an inspiration to stand up and make the presence of the critical mass seen, heard, and felt.

On his visit Mr. Rameau will be part of a presentation geared at the humanity of the homelessness situation. The presentation will include local housing advocates as well as other community members who focus their activism on poverty in the Twin cities. Max will also conduct a workshop entitled Black Men: Leaders in Their Own Struggle. The three day event will conclude with a specialized workshop for people interested in organizing their community to help fight homelessness.

“Max Rameau is rather soft-spoken for a radical freedom fighter. An organizer, author, and political theorist, he has become the voice of this city's disenfranchised and underserved citizens. As leader and spokesperson for two major projects — CopWatch and Take Back the Land — he makes eloquent arguments for why housing is a human right and justice is necessary for all. Throughout his campaigns to "take back" vacant public housing and to fight against the expansion of police power, Rameau has offered his message calmly and without violence. Ask him about his top accomplishments this year, and he'll talk about his advocacy for the Liberty City and dealing with the aftermath of the Umoja Village fire. Then he'll tell you about his most important project this year: raising his two-year-old son. This is a man who has his priorities straight.”  –Miami New Times

It should be noted that recently Max Rameau was a part of what was called the “The New Orleans Delegation to Gaza” for the New Orleans Human Rights initiative in May of 2009. He has also appeared on the news program “Democracy Now” as well as other national media newscasts. Most recently he was featured on the PBS news magazine “Now”.

 Any addition you or your organization can make to this once in a lifetime event will be used with the most respect and with the full potency of your gift. Mr. Rameau has agreed to work our event for whatever donation we can raise. Any checks should be made to either Max Rameau or “Take Back the Land”. For questions or to volunteer, please call me at: 6123820829

The following is a synopsis of the skills that we will be fortunate to witness from a first hand distance.

Max Rameau is a founding member of the organization *Take Back the Land*, a project of the Center for Pan-African Development.

Max fuses political theory and concepts together with the practical applications of on the ground forward looking progressive campaigns. His presentations include multimedia (videos and photos), speaking and audience participation.

In standard presentations, Max outlines the theoretical and political underpinnings of Take Back the Land's core campaign of seizing control over vacant land and homes. Those theories are applied through the detailed description of the campaign, including events, outcomes and the decision making process.

Participants leave with a clear understanding of the thinking behind the campaign and the inspiration to join an organization and develop their own campaigns.

Max Rameau is a long time activist and Pan-African political theorist and the author of numerous published essays and a book, /Take Back the Land: Land, Gentrification and the Umoja Village Shantytown/, and is working on a second book. The work of Take Back the Land is detailed on their website, *takebacktheland.org <http://takebacktheland.org>*. Max lives in Miami with his partner and their two children.

*Movement Workshops*
Max Rameau's movement workshops transfer knowledge and experience to your organization. Coming off a series of successful campaigns with CopWatch and Take Back the Land, among other groupings, Max develops and conducts objective driven interactive workshops for organizations, coalitions and social movements. Workshop areas include:

  * *Liberating Housing*. Develop a campaign to liberate and defend
    vacant land and homes, such as foreclosures. This workshop is
    based directly on lessons culled from Take Back the Land's
    experiences and campaigns.

  * *Developing Political Goals and Objectives*. Any organization is
    only as good as its goals- and it's ability to meet those goals.
    This workshop helps regain organizational focus and direction,
    mapping out a plan of action for the future.

  * *Designing Political Campaigns*. Turn your political vision and
    objectives into highly effective campaigns. Learn to convert ideas
    into correlating campaigns and actions plans.

  * *Organizational Structure*. Create the organizational vehicle to
    get you to your political destination. This workshop examines
    existing organizational structures against political objectives
    and helps connect one to the other.

All workshops are custom designed to meet the unique needs and situation of the participating organization(s). As such, pre-workshop interviews and preparation is required.

Max Rameau is a long time activist and Pan-African political theorist and the author of numerous published essays and a book, /Take Back the Land: Land, Gentrification and the Umoja Village Shantytown/, and is working on a second book. The work of Take Back the Land is detailed on their website, *takebacktheland.org <http://takebacktheland.org>*. Max lives in Miami with his partner and their two children.  

Thank you for any consideration.

vera faith allen