At a February demonstration by activists with Northampton's living wage campaign, RAY set up its own table, handing out information about the group and suggesting to passersby that perhaps the ultimate goal should be to do away with the entire capitalist structure. And while the cops eventually chased RAY off for failing to get a permit for its table, Northampton police have, for the most part, been tolerant. RAY members even consider a few to be friends. Parents, too, have mixed responses to their children's often new-found radical leanings. They hear about it and make it their own.
Parents see that and respect it.
RAY is also still carving out its place in Northampton's activist scene. It's not as easy a fit as one might imagine. Northampton activists labor under a lot of stereotypes, not all of them undeserved. In part, that's because while RAY and the more mainstream groups share many common enemies, they have very different tactics, and very different goals. They don't believe we can make a permanent change in the community.