Night Shift Caucus

[reubenshojin]

One of the comments that came out of me powernapping my way through last night resulted in a suggestion for a Night Shift Caucus. We have quorum, by forum standards, and we had our first official meeting last night.

[flashmob]

I am in favor of this and might join this but is this a night watch working group or a group that discusses issues of the nocturnal society? If the former, I will move this to working groups instead.

[reubenshojin]

Being Safe is the broad all-hours group for Site Safety. This is would be a Caucus, for things the night owls have to contend with that the day side doesn't quite get a chance to see.

[rachael]

Though I think this is a critical group I think it is not a Caucus but rather a working group. Please consider moving it appropriately.

[oehlda2000]

Here's what I think: There is a working group called safety and security, or Public Safety. This should be a sub-group of that group. I have been working with a few people in that group to ensure safety during the night time hours.

[Emma]

Why not a caucus?
There are issues other than safety that are specific to overnighters. A caucus can be a place to discuss these, offer each other support, and move ideas into appropriate working groups.

(Edited to add: I am not an overnighter)

[rana]

Caucuses are self-identified groups that feel the need to get together to discuss and work on experiences they have that they feel others (who don't have those experiences) might not understand. True, you usually hear about Caucuses as being comprised of larger segments of society (POC, queer, women, low-income, immigrant, etc.) but I think in our little Occupation society, this can work as a caucus.

I have never stayed up all night at OA. If this was a working group, I could still join and put in my 2 cents about what the night shift should be doing. Right now, if I have a suggestion like always making sure that someone up all night has a cell phone and flashlight, or something like that I can take it to the Safety group.

As a caucus, people who DO stay up all night will get to meet without me butting in and telling them that from now on they need to spend the night crawling around in ninja masks, making sure that the squirrels aren't carrying spy cameras for cuomo.

The caucus would give them a space to talk about how they deal with exhaustion and drunk assholes, how it feels to take on the "protector" role or whatever else is specific to them. (Just guessing, I don't know what they'll talk about because I haven't shared that experience!)

[Emma]

Just so you know, no one has to give you permission to make a caucus. I think it's good that we are hesitant to be making caucuses for anything and everything, but a group can form a caucus if they want to & nobody (well, I guess except the consensus of a GA) has the authority to stop them.