Welcome to the contemporary Recreation Center, reimagined for radical creatives & squishy weirdos. As an inclusive online classroom for creative play, we believe that when we embrace the creative process we empower ourselves and our communities.
Our Values
We strive for all of our actions, words, thoughts, and creations to be a step towards liberation. We believe that creativity is the path towards liberation, and that true freedom requires creative thought.
We believe that living is a creative act, and that creative-living allows us to be at the forefront of kinder & more radical ways of existing in the world.
We believe that curiosity is the beginning of radical action. By asking ourselves if there is a different way- a kinder way, a more interdependent way, a more conscientious way- of moving through the world, we begin to imagine and co-create a new reality.
We believe that nothing happens in a vacuum- we are always part of a larger collaboration. We believe in intersectionality and the myriad of ways harm shows up in late-stage capitalism. We honor histories and ancestries, while moving towards sustainable futures. By honoring the past, we are able to fully see the future.
We believe the “local” extends beyond geographic location, and are curious about how we can cultivate community roots that span space and time.
We believe that everything has indigenous roots, and that play itself stems from the wisdom of our indigenous ancestors and caretakers of this earth. By engaging in and honoring these practices, we move away from colonialism and begin the healing process.
We believe that the creative’s role in society is to act as a seer and healer- our gift as creatives is to envision a new future, and create the reality from which we all heal.
Why play?
Play is inherently radical. In our definition, play is the intersection of presence and pleasure. Play is in direct defiance of convention and the intentional suspension of disbelief. When we believe something could happen, we create hope. We defy a world that asks us to find value in productivity, instead of value in the process. We defy a world that places a higher value on commercialism over human life. When we play, we create a new world, even in small ways.
We believe in radical action, and radical community. Please join us in adding to our living document of radical resources.
A Squishy Glossary
Play- The intersection of presence and pleasure. When we play, we are engaging with a more imaginative way of seeing the world, and one that is rooted in radical action. Play asks us to think beyond our given systems, constraints, and confines. Enacting play can be as simple as imagining a different way of doing something. Play is a learning tool, a mindset, an action, and a way of being. It is both noun and verb.
Radical- We embrace the words of Angela Davis- “Radical simply means ‘grasping things at the root.” Radical can be large or small, it is not a one-size-fits-all approach. To be radical is to be revolutionary. Radical thought means questioning systems. Radical action requires digging at the root level. We all can, and should, all be radical, the term is not exclusionary or purist.
Pleasure- Not all pleasure is of the orgasmic variety! Pleasure can simple relate to the etymology of the word please- from the ancient Greek of Plaki, to give permission, and the latin Placare, to soothe. When we engage in pleasure we engage in self-permission. Permission to feel good. Permission to soothe. Permission for ease. Pleasure can also mean the alleviation of pain and suffering. We are all seeking pleasure.
Presence- In the words of Ram Dass- BE HERE NOW. When we say here, we also mean present for history and ancestry. Presence asks you to notice, to be aware. Presence asks that we are in the moment, and being in the moment asks that we are aware of all of the moments that have lead up to this one. To be present asks us to be connected.
Squishy- To be mailable and flexible. In the words of our Director of Community Care, Lucia Calderon Arrieta, “I think that being a ‘Squishy Weirdo’ is about seeing the world through a non-normative, playful lens.” We aren’t rigid in mind or body, we curve and slide outside of normative perception. To be squishy, is to see a full view of something, and its myriad of connections.
Soft- Softness extends far beyond texture or feeling. In a world that asks us to work harder, to be more rigid, we are suggesting the opposite. Softness entails tenderness, ease, and care.
Simple- We value the core and the roots of ideas, concepts, and theories. We like to investigate ideas at the root level, and ask that you do too. We like to make things easier, when appropriate, and pull back from overworking, overcomplicating, and over-saturating.
Weirdo- Like most things at Rec Center, we work towards defying the norm. We are non-normative thinkers, with big feelings and even bigger ideas. We hold two things true at once. We call in whimsy, and believe in magic. Again, to quote the amazing Lucia Calderon Arrieta, “a weirdo sees the disparate parts of themselves and does not shrink themself.”
Rec Center is inspired by, and ever grateful, to the teachers, artists, activists, and guides that have paved the way for us. We would like to honor and name…
Bell Hooks - Audre Lorde - Angela Davis - adrienne maree brown - Octavia Butler - Ijeoma Oluo - Sonya Renee Taylor - Tricia Hersey - Robin Wall Kimmerer - Priya Parker - Citizen Potawatomi Nation - Lindsay Mack - Lexi Merritt - Lenea Sims - Stuart Brown - Jenny Odell - Alok Vaid-Menon - Lindy West - Maggie Nelson - Mary Oliver - Ana Mendieta - Co-Conspirator Press - The Feminist Center for Creative Work - The Allied Media Conference - Dr. Kristin Neff - Our Families, Friends, and Communities - Our personal Ancestral Lineage, including but not limited to the work of Sicilian Stregheria and Jewish Mysticism- …and many, many more unnamed sources of wisdom and courage.
Commitment to Liberation
This is an ever-evolving statement of education, and putting education into practice. We ultimately strive for the liberation of all beings, and work towards creating relationships of mutual interdependence and respect on this earth. Specifically, we work towards the liberation of our Black and Indigenous communities, and for the abolition of racism we see enacted daily.
We are committed towards anti-racism, ending white supremacy, decolonizing our thoughts and actions, and acknowledge the continuous education that this commitment entails. We believe this is a daily choice and action, and that the work towards liberation is never finished. We choose to commit to ending racism, white supremacy, and colonialism daily.
Rec Center was founded by a white able-bodied human being. As such, we are committed to listening, protesting, protecting, caring, and demanding justice daily. We recognize the whiteness from which this organization was founded, and are not absolved of the violence perpetuated by whiteness.
Care and Kindness are our guiding forces. Everything we do is steeped in compassionate action. No one deserves to be humiliated, shamed, guilted, mocked, harmed, gaslit, hurt, or stripped of their liberties. Our classroom and community spaces, both online and in-person, are guided by the same principles.
We see our online classroom and community spaces as a place for constructive and caring thought, and investigation into the systems from which our beliefs were born. We encourage curiosity, both internally and externally, around vulnerable ideas including but not limited to micro-aggressions and internalized racism, and support a culture of calling-in and calling-out.
We believe that everything is connected, and if we can uphold radical resistance within our daily actions, we will see our actions mirrored in our environment and communities, creating a an ever-growing circle of liberation.
Alex’s Story
Alex Brennan-Arnopol, Founder and Director