East Wind is a member of the Federation of Egalitarian Communities and is modeled after its parent community of Twin Oaks, in Virginia. In 1996, I visited Twin Oaks and learned a bit about its structure, which successfully prevents hierarchy, as far as I could tell in a short visit. In stark contrast to a community that I had visited a few days earlier that was quite cultish in its obedience to the group's matriarch, Twin Oaks appeared to be a community in which there was no hierarchy, despite an abundance of "managerial" positions (almost as many as there are members). I was utterly unable to pick out a central clique while I was there. Those who were "running the show" hadn't been in their position for long, and didn't seem to have any power over anyone. None of the residents contradicted this impression.
Managers generally quit after a couple of years, when they are ready for new challenges. Replacements are chosen by a group of related managers (called a council) and are subject to the approval of the community: If more than 20% of the community membership opposes a manager, the appointment is blocked, and a new person is chosen.
Twin Oaks also has three "Planners" who serve eighteen-month staggered terms. A new Planner is nominated by those already seated, and is subject to veto by 20% of the community. These make long term decisions affecting the community as a whole. While this setup has a lot in common with representative democracy, the decisions are made only after extensive consultation with the community, and are subject to appeal by anyone (in which case there would be a majority vote on the issue).
While Twin Oaks and East Wind may have a level of formal structure that some find excessive, the system creates an atmosphere of equality and respect. The founders' goal never was to create a direct democracy, so I don't intend to hold this system up as a model of such, but its results seem quite healthy; this sort of system should be kept in mind by any co-ops that are struggling with growth issues. It should also be considered that in addition to working together to manufacture hammocks and tofu, these people live together all the time and do not have the release that is possible in a worker-cooperative in which members spend a relatively small portion of their lives together. That this community has spent more than a quarter century together without developing an elite is an impressive feat even though they don't have a purely democratic system.
For further information, on East Wind or Twin Oaks, contact the Federation of Egalitarian Communities at Box FF Tecumseh MO 65760.
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