By Gema Martínez (Las Gildas)

I believe our decision-making structure, when we sit down together as an assembly, helps us improve and adapt and I think it’s due to the care between all of us. Of course there have been situations in which some people haven’t felt able to participate because it was difficult for them or because, in a particular moment, they have ideas but they didn’t know how to express them clearly or couldn’t find the right time to intervene. So, part of what makes the group unique is being aware of this and saying “well maybe it would be worth talking about this when we get together for a glass of wine in a couple of days”. I came, like the majority of us, from being in groups and doing things collectively by voting, and it was so easy to say “seven said yes and four, no, so the ‘yes’ vote wins.” For us, if there are seven people and three say yes and four say no, it’s a clear “no.” It means that the group is not at its strongest at this moment unless we continue working on the issue at hand, reflecting on it and discussing. I think that if anything makes our organization unique, it is the consideration we have for those who are present.

By Javi Vazquez (Sosterra)

It’s a work in progress. We haven’t been taught how to work in an assembly structure.

By Patricia Manrique (Pasaje Seguro)

We need to do away with the idea of “spontaneous assemblyism.” I’m a loyal believer in assemblyism, but it requires a lot of work. It doesn’t happen spontaneously. We don’t have protocols, but there still is concern and work behind assemblies. I don’t remember having ever arrived at an assembly of Pasaje Seguro and just saying, “let’s see what happens.” There’s always an agenda, someone who’s in charge of facilitating the meeting, someone who takes minutes and various empathetic and caring people in the group who make sure that the assembly functions. So, spontaneous it is not.