Declaration of Interdependence

When a community chooses to move beyond dependence on outside charity or authority, it must speak clearly about why that step matters. Grays Landing stands at that moment now. We have learned that real stability and dignity come from care shared among neighbors, not from systems that define us as clients or recipients.

We hold these truths to be self-evident: every person has worth, every voice has value, and our collective strength is greater than our individual struggles. The practice of mutual aid, giving freely and receiving with trust, is essential to human survival and flourishing. To secure these rights, communities must be able to organize and care for themselves, guided by fairness and equality rather than profit or control.

Our experience with REACH, property management, and charitable institutions has shown both the importance and the limits of external support. These systems often help us survive, yet they also keep decisions about our lives at a distance. They can turn care into management and need into dependency. We honor their contributions while recognizing that self-determination begins here, among the residents who live and care for one another every day.

We, the residents of Grays Landing, united through Grayslist, commit to building a community based on solidarity, shared responsibility, and mutual respect. This declaration is not a rejection of partnership with REACH or other supportive organizations. It is an affirmation that we know our needs best, that we can define them together, and that we will take part in shaping the future of our community.

Capitalism has reduced human worth to economic value, taking from our labor while denying our voice. Charity often repeats this pattern by offering help without power. Real change begins when people organize as equals and meet their needs together. Grayslist exists so that this vision can take form in daily life, turning dependency into interdependence and isolation into cooperation.

We pledge to share our skills, our resources, and our care. We will strengthen the ties that hold us together and create systems of support that no institution can match. Through this work, we claim our right to self-determination and our right to build a community where all can thrive.

This declaration marks a beginning. It is our promise to one another that we will care, share, and decide together. In doing so, we create a living model of mutual aid and justice at Grays Landing and a foundation for a better world beyond.