Join Me
Encyclopedia
Join Me is the name given to a movement started in London
by British
writer
Danny Wallace
in 2002, and to a book by him which documents the movement's formation.
Members of the movement are called Joinees. Collectively they have sometimes been referred to as the Karma Army.
, Wallace put a classified advertisement in Loot, a London classified advertising magazine, asking readers to "Join me. Send one passport-sized photograph to..." (followed by Wallace's address, later he created a Post Office Box Address for Joinees to send their photos to). The advertisement contained no other details nor any reason. Wallace claims he had no plans as to what he would do when people sent their photos. He originally hoped he could reach and improve upon the number of people who had joined his relative — three (of a desired one hundred). According to Wallace:
s. Over time it has become accepted that the day of the week is not important, and that random acts of kindness may be performed whenever the opportunity presents itself.
television comedy series, How to Start Your Own Country
, in which he founded the micronation
of Lovely.
On 6th December 2003, Joinees gathered for their biggest meeting up to then: Karmageddon. It began at London's Tottenham Court Road tube station
. The several hundred participants then travelled along Oxford Street
, distributing leaflets and gifts. At the end of the day they retired to a pub. Subsequently many Joinees have organised smaller meetings in their own areas, and several large, annual meets have become traditions; in December 2010 Joinees gathered for Karmageddon 8, at which over £2400 was raised for charity, and random acts of kindness were performed on and for central London Christmas shoppers. The tenth (they messed up the numbering) of these largest of Join MEets is planned for 2011.
A regular social meet-up has taken place upstairs at The Cock public house, Great Portland Street
, London, every Thursday evening for several years, and continues as of 2010.
A short follow-up was later published, titled Random Acts of Kindness: 365 Ways To Make the World A Better Place.
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
by British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
Danny Wallace
Danny Wallace (writer)
Daniel Frederick Wallace is a British filmmaker, comedian, writer, actor, and presenter of radio and television. His notable works include the books Join Me, Yes Man, and the TV series How to Start Your Own Country.He lives in London, with his wife, an Australian publicist...
in 2002, and to a book by him which documents the movement's formation.
Members of the movement are called Joinees. Collectively they have sometimes been referred to as the Karma Army.
Origin
Inspired by a recently deceased relative who had once unsuccessfully attempted to build a pacifistic community on his farm in SwitzerlandSwitzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Wallace put a classified advertisement in Loot, a London classified advertising magazine, asking readers to "Join me. Send one passport-sized photograph to..." (followed by Wallace's address, later he created a Post Office Box Address for Joinees to send their photos to). The advertisement contained no other details nor any reason. Wallace claims he had no plans as to what he would do when people sent their photos. He originally hoped he could reach and improve upon the number of people who had joined his relative — three (of a desired one hundred). According to Wallace:
"Good Fridays"
Somewhat to Wallace's surprise, the advertisement attracted a large number of people. As the group grew in number Wallace was put under pressure by its members to explain its purpose. Having (he claims) had no reason in mind when he first asked people to join, Wallace sought a purpose for his Joinees. Ultimately he presented the idea of performing random acts of kindness ("RAoK"s), preferably to a stranger, every Friday. Fridays thus came to be called Good FridayGood Friday
Good Friday , is a religious holiday observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary. The holiday is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday, and may coincide with the Jewish observance of...
s. Over time it has become accepted that the day of the week is not important, and that random acts of kindness may be performed whenever the opportunity presents itself.
Growth
Subsequent publicity and word-of-mouth has brought his "collective" over 12,000 members. Join Me enjoyed a resurgence in 2005 thanks to Wallace's BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television comedy series, How to Start Your Own Country
How to Start Your Own Country (TV series)
How To Start Your Own Country was a six-part BBC Television documentary comedy series aired between August and September 2005. The show was presented by British writer/comedian Danny Wallace and followed his quest to start his own country in his flat in Bow, London...
, in which he founded the micronation
Micronation
Micronations, sometimes also referred to as model countries and new country projects, are entities that claim to be independent nations or states but which are not recognized by world governments or major international organizations...
of Lovely.
Gatherings
Joinees regularly meet at "Join MEets" (sic), which provide an environment for performing random acts of kindness with other people, and where the Joinees can perform acts of kindness which might be less well received if performed by a lone individual. The meetings are also an important social aspect of the collective.On 6th December 2003, Joinees gathered for their biggest meeting up to then: Karmageddon. It began at London's Tottenham Court Road tube station
Tottenham Court Road tube station
Tottenham Court Road is a London Underground station in central London. It is an interchange between the Central line and the branch of the Northern line.On the Central line it is between and , and on the Northern line it is between and...
. The several hundred participants then travelled along Oxford Street
Oxford Street
Oxford Street is a major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, United Kingdom. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, as well as its most dense, and currently has approximately 300 shops. The street was formerly part of the London-Oxford road which began at Newgate,...
, distributing leaflets and gifts. At the end of the day they retired to a pub. Subsequently many Joinees have organised smaller meetings in their own areas, and several large, annual meets have become traditions; in December 2010 Joinees gathered for Karmageddon 8, at which over £2400 was raised for charity, and random acts of kindness were performed on and for central London Christmas shoppers. The tenth (they messed up the numbering) of these largest of Join MEets is planned for 2011.
A regular social meet-up has taken place upstairs at The Cock public house, Great Portland Street
Great Portland Street
Great Portland Street is a street in the West End of London. Linking Oxford Street with Albany Street and the busy A501 Marylebone Road and Euston Road, the road forms the boundary between Fitzrovia to the east and Marylebone to the west...
, London, every Thursday evening for several years, and continues as of 2010.
Book
In 2003, Wallace wrote the book Join Me about how he started the movement. A quote on the cover of some editions is "It's not a cult; it's a collective" — because Wallace didn't want to associate Join Me with the negative connotations of the word cult. Nevertheless, as his book's sub-title is, "The true story of a man who started a cult by accident" it would seem he has grudgingly admitted that it has distinct similarities to one.A short follow-up was later published, titled Random Acts of Kindness: 365 Ways To Make the World A Better Place.
External links
- Join Me — the official Join Me site
- Join Me Wiki
- An extract from the book, Join Me
- Joinee Forum — a discussion forum for Joinees and prospective Joinees
- Join me and be good on Friday — an article in MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
's The Age - Loot newspaper — where the original advertisement was placed