Erin Baldwin Day has a heart for the people of Alaska. The social services and healthcare fields in Alaska are recognized for the services and programs they provide for the Last Frontier’s citizens, but they are also recognized by Day for what they don’t provide. In a nurturing, grassroots, community-minded practice known as mutual aid, neighborhood-style networks are established by the people for the people, to provide a variety of needs, both tangible and intangible, under the concept that “everybody has something somebody needs.” In an ocean of organizations that fulfill certain needs, mutual aid seeks to fill in the gaps of what these organizations may lack.
Day is the lead organizer of Mutual Aid Network of Anchorage–or MANA. She joins us on Hometown, Alaska to speak about the powers and processes of a community truly united, not only in apparent times of tangible need but also when it only appears that all is well. As an individual is conditioned to be masterfully silent in the face of unpopular requests, MANA seeks to encourage folks to speak up and know they have a safe space to be heard and are deserving of the same fulfilled needs as their neighbors.
HOST: Justin Williams
GUEST:
Erin Baldwin Day, lead organizer of Mutual Aid Network of Anchorage
LINKS:
Mutual Aid Network of Anchorage website
Facebook
Instagram
Justin Ezell Williams was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. A graduate of both art and sociology from the University of Alaska Anchorage, he is a father, cinephile; visual artist, podcast host and producer, as well as a musician.
He currently serves his community as a local influencer as a popular food reviewer, showcasing the best cuisine the state has to offer while studying the economy and anthropology of the local food industry.
