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FEBRUARY 18, 2011
Its not easy being Greendeaf)
By Keyla Beebe
Staff Writer
While the coffee and couches stay the same, the Greenleaf
Coffee Co-Op is constantly changing.
Located in the basement of Mary Hobbs Hall, the Greenleaf
is a cooperative, volunteer-run coffee shop serving fair-trade
coffee and local baked goods. As a non-hierarchical organi
zation, Greenleaf members promote consensus and transpar
ency within the co-op.
The Greenleaf started in 2005, almost a year after the origi
nal student run co-op. The Underground, was shut down.
"The Greenleaf was only rarely about the coffee," said
former co-op member Diesel Robertson '08 in an e-mail inter
view. "In the early days, only a few of us were very good at
that part ... what kept people coming were the community
and the atmosphere."
Original members had many ideas, such as a cooperative
building, that never made it off the ground.
"In the beginning, some of the staff wanted the Greenleaf
to serve alcohol," said former co-op member Steve Watkins
'06.
Watkins said while not part of the Quaker values, some
hoped it would reduce driving accidents, as students would
not have to drive to a bar off-campus. This proposal was
never passed.
"The Greenleaf was also a hub of activism on campus,"
said Robertson. "You could count on socially conscious con
versation, literature, and people hanging around anytime
you were down there."
Watkins said that when the Greenleaf was first formed,
there was tension as members tried to find a balance between
a welcoming space and a politically active space.
"One year we would be political, but not that bad," said
Robertson. "The next year we were all declaring ourselves
Marxist."
While the Greenleaf is still an area for free speech, the
staff has begun efforts to combat the exclusive stigma it
developed.
"(The Greenleaf) originated from organizing a point of sol
idarity for political campaigns outside Guilford," said senior
and Greenleaf member Zak Wear. "A big change is we've
moved away from that. It's been a passive movement."
In its mission statement, the Greenleaf establishes its
values of anti-oppression, social and economic justice, and
sustainability. One of the ways they attempt to support these
values is through community-building, reads the mission
statement.
"There is a strong sense we have been unsuccessful in cre
ating a positive, well-known space on campus," said senior
and Greenleaf member Alex Knox. "A lot of people are tak
ing initiative to address the issues of lack of integration."
The history, provided in the Greenleaf manual, records
the co-op being "seen by non-members as semi-controversial
and standoffish," as early as the fall of 2005.
Currently, members are aware that outside opinion is one
of the challenges of the co-op's politically active history.
"It's important for people to understand we are very
accepting of everyone's viewpoints," said first-year and
co-op member Billy Millman.
Knox notes the positive changes he's seen over the last
four years, such as more sustainable practices (seen in com
postable cups), higher training standards, and better quality
coffee.
While members hope customer satisfaction will continue
to attract students, some are considering plans such as reor
ganizing the internal structure and adding new non-coffee
based drinks.
A new approach to reach the digital generation includes
the Greenleaf's new Wikia page and Twitter feed.
"At first, I was kind of against them," said senior and
member Meredith Luby. "But it's fun to look and see who's
on shift."
From posting upcoming events and general information
to random pictures and inside jokes, members hope to use
the sites to reach parts of Guilford that would otherwise not
know about the co-op.
Robertson, present at the Greenleaf's founding, says she
supports the web pages if they get more people into buying
the Greenleaf's coffee.
While many senior members leave at the end of this
semester, many feel optimistic that the Greenleaf will con
tinue strong.
"In .the past, a group of people knew how to do things,
and when they left, others had to learn," said Luby. "Now we
are focused on skill sharing, to carry knowledge through."
This transferred knowledge will help to uphold the levels
of professionalism members strive to keep.
"The Greenleaf never fails to achieve customer satisfac
tion," said Knox. "That is the bottom line to achieving good
relations with the community."
Many co-op members are hopeful that the Greenleaf will
continue to reach out in the Guilford community and attract
a greater variety of people.
"I feel the perception from outside the Greenleaf has
changed for the better," said Luby.
If it continues with its current motion, Knox believes the
Greenleaf will become a more diverse, representative space.
The co-op is constantly evolving as people join and leave
each year. The future and success of the Greenleaf depends
on student involvement, both inside and outside the orga
nization.
New club encouriffies art, activism
By Cltassidy Crump
Staff Writer
It's a typical Thursday dinner in the caf
eteria when a group of students dressed all in
black suddenly begin congregating between
the cereal and the silverware. Some are bang
ing on plates with silverware, while others
seem to be performing interpretive dance.
This is Political Activism through Art,
Guilford's newest approved club. They called
their performance in the cafeteria, "The
Happening." The demonstration was designed
to bring awareness to the revolution in Egypt.
"It was an innovative way to bring our
attention to the situation in Egypt," said first-
year Chloe Weiner, spectator of the event that
occurred on Feb 3.
"I think that our first 'Happening' went off
well," said first-year and PAA member Lyes
Bernarbane. "We got the response that we
wanted, but we are still very open to criticism
and are very open to people in the community
approaching us and telling us about the vari
ous problems or improvements that they think
we could make."
Sophmore Tim Leisman said that the con
cept for the group was born at 1 a.m. when he
and his roommate, sophomore Beau Young,
were thinking of ways to address apathy
towards social justice in the Millennium gen
eration. The idea was influenced by Young's
musical involvement with Superteam (a local
rap group) and their mutual interest in art.
"One of our principles is in-your-face place
ment of art, and there is nothing more in-your-
face than going into the cafeteria and banging
on plates in front of people," said Leisman,
co-creator of the group.
"One thing we're really trying to do is reach
out to those artists and see how can we expand
our message of community service, how can
we expand our message of being involved and
being politically and socially active, and work
towards social justice through the means of
artwork," said Leisman.
It seems the artists on campus are respond-
ing: 25 people were present for the first meet
ing, before the group was officially a club,
according to Leisman.
PAA aims to expand to more of the Guilford
campus and beyond Guilford. According to
Leisman, a student from Bennett College and a
student from A&T University have expressed
interest, as well as a contact in Florida who
started his own chapter of PAA.
The club's next event will be centered on the
alleged racial profiling of two A«ScT students.
On Thursday Feb. 24, the students will have
their court date. Leisman and others involved
hope to fill the courthouse with students in
protest of the possible racial profiling.
This event is an example of the group and
idea spreading beyond Guilford. According
to Leisman, there is potential to work with
A&T, Bennett College, UNC-Greensboro, and
socially active drum corps, Cakalak Thunder.
When asked about collaborating with dif
ferent groups and people in the community,
Leisman replied, "I want to do everything."
'V-day' victory for vaginas
(Left) Senior Moiiy Gibbs performs in
"A Memory, a Monologue, a Rant and a
Prayer."
(Above) Hanna Christianson, sopho
more, acts in Guilford's rendition of "The
Vagina Monologues."
The performances took place in Bryan Jr.
Auditorium on the weekend of Feb. 10-13.
Photos by Peach McCarty/Guilfordian