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SHNATEJAS

I have a plan for a year long program. I don't mean to take the wind out of the current Shnat plan being developed -- it's great that people are making strides from all different directions simultaneously. These different streams of creation will surely entangle and feed off each other in the very near future.

That said, the program that I have conceived has developed from the same basic considerations with a different solution. I went on Mifgash three years ago and was inspired by the energetic movement towards urban kibbutzim. The Shomrim on the trip came from different backgrounds and interests but by the end we were really on the same page and wanted more than anything to share our experiences. And as soon as there was a critical mass, we would definitely start communot. So far I think these are the basic goals of anyone who sees the communa movement as the next phase in hagshama.

My proposal is that we start a communa now in the U.S. Specifically, there is a communa now in Austin, TX that has a lot of momentum. The goals of the year program (codenamed ShnaTejas and pronounced ShnaTechas) are:

* Learn through experience what communa culture is like
* Refine the objectives/direction of the communa & movement
* Become active in the local community
* Refine/define reasons for living in a communa
* Be experienced in establishing and maintaining a communa financially, socially, and movement-wise for a full year. These duties include:
- Running peulot for one another
- Hosting weekly Shabbat dinners (Sha-Pot Lucks)
- Benefitting the local community through projects
- Maintaining a website and communication channels
- Sustaining ourselves financially (eventually through our projects)
- Establishing a non-profit org for the communa
* Developing a new leadership program for Hashomer Hatzair
* Living our hagshama today!

Just as Shomrim used to gather from all over North America in Liberty and learn to farm, learn to function communally, bond their kvutzot, and define their goals for several years before making aliya and establishing kibbutzim, so we need a platform to leap from. Some people are ready for Israel now, want to learn Hebrew, see themselves developing these skills in Israel, etc. That's great! I don't want to detract those people at all. However, there are advantages to starting a communa here:

1) First of all, there are social factors in our favor here. We all speak what passes for English, we have bank accounts, we have cars and stuff, we can lease houses and get jobs. I don't think those are the challenges the communa needs to face now. Eventually, if a kvutza/communa makes aliya together, they will face these issues and all the other challenges associated with establishing in a new country.

2) Living in one place for a period of a year or more is the best way to develop kvutza and experience living as a communa. Having spurts of time in different places, never having steady jobs or long-standing communa activities, working on projects temporarily and then moving back to the U.S. -- this is more of a seminar-style program. This program will have a stronger communa-living component.

3) We are close to home and family. Some people will find Israel difficult for security and other reasons. JetBlue flies directly from Austin to NYC for $79 each way (flights elsewhere are cheap as well). We will be active in HHNA throughout the year, host seminars, and start a ken.

4) We are financially independent. Rather than saving up money now, waiting on a long line for hand-outs from the Israeli govt, or potentially compromising the integrity of the program because of funding issues, the Austin Communa is financially independent and will only become more so as the number of members grows. Currently, Bina is a full-time substitute teacher and I am a full-time student while tutoring and teaching piano part-time. We could potentially earn enough next year to pay down serious student loans, etc. (You might also consider transfering to UT or ACC for the year and keep studying.)

5) Austin is the liberal capital of the American South and one of the most liberal cities in NA. It is rife with social opportunities, projects, co-ops, support networks, etc. There is no way to summarize this point briefly, so I will just say that many excellent opportunities are right in front of us both figuratively and physically. We live in Central Austin by everything, in a house in a magical neighborhood with year-round beautiful weather.

Those are some of the benefits of staying in the U.S. I don't propose to abandon the Zionist dream. On the contrary, I believe that by establishing communa, we will have the resources, experience, and tight kvutzot that are the basic elements necessary for meaningful aliya. There are many angles to look at this issue. For example, only this program leaves the option to stay longer than a year. Funds are limited enough for the Israel Shnat program, plus after a year you will be exposed to the military draft. The Austin Communa is a project that can accept new members and continue to grow year after year, creating facts on the ground (tachles)!

The other important element that is unique about this idea is the Hashomer leadership program built in. As a movement, we are starting to adopt the Israeli model of having madrichim for kvutzot at all stages, even when they are in hadracha. However, we don't offer a real hadracha training program. Thus, a program will be developed to train throughout the year. Everyone will be responsible for planning peulot for the communa on a rotating basis. Plus, there will be a rotating position of madrich communa for 1-2 months who will also be responsible for planning a weekly peula in addition, plus plan an educational seminar for the communa and guests, etc. This program will be elaborated in the future.

There are pros and cons with every plan. I am aiming to draw people who want to establish communot now and help them spread in NA. Personally, I'm somewhat disillusioned that after three years of going on Mifgash what we've produced is a new seminar in Israel and one communa (ours). Bina and I are committed to Austin for the next few years for our own reasons and work our asses off, but we're still working towards communa and growing it slowly but steadily every day.

Our feature outreach project at the moment is our weekly Shabbat dinners: http://www.shapotluck.com/ . Soon we should have a website for the communa and we will start organizing our core group of people towards activation in the community.

I will stop now and let the conversation develop (hopefully). It's not all thought out, which is fine because it should be jointly developed by all the people who are interested.

Chazak & Ematz!
Omri