Why are you called “Small Axe”?

The term Small Axe comes from an African proverb (below) popularized in Jamaica by Bob Marley and the Wailers’ 1970 song of the same name. The lyrics in this song, “If you are the big tree / We are the small axe,” describe the dynamic between a marginalized community and a country not set up to nurture it. 

We see aspects of the firmly rooted systemic injustices of the “big tree” around us every day - violently racist law enforcement, incessant moral coding, condescending educators - and want to make tangible change. Our weapon of choice is the axe, which is no blunt instrument, but a reliable tool that can make a great impact with swift, deliberate strikes. The sharpness of the blade mirrors that of the cutting impact the law can have on someone. The handle of the axe is forged by community relationships, righteous indignation, critical thinking, and cooperativism, which we believe are essential to standing up against an oppressive system. 

At Small Axe, we know the law can be used as a weapon or a tool. We show our clients and the public how to wield this power in order to protect their communities, themselves, and build lasting structures.

Retelling of Aesop’s Fable #173 

A man came into the forest and said to the trees, “Will one of you please give me a handle for my axe? I want the hardest wood.”

The old oak trees and the great cedar trees agreed to help the man, even though they said they had no branches to spare. From their height, almost touching the clouds, these trees pointed to a little ash tree. “Take that one,” the oak and cedar said to the man, “It probably won’t amount to much, anyway.”

The man was grateful. He fitted his axe with a new handle and went to work. In a short while, he chopped down oak trees, cedar trees, and the biggest giants in the forest.

“Look at what the ash tree did to us!” a cedar tree said. It still had its trunk, but had lost a lot of its branches.

“No,” an oak tree said. “We did this to ourselves.”

“Are you saying we cut ourselves down?” the cedar tree said. “That’s ridiculous!”

“The man cut us down,” the oak said. “But we gave him the handle for his axe.”

“And your point is?” the cedar tree said.

“Well,” the oak tree said, “If we did not give up the rights of the little ash, all of us might still be standing.”

… 

We make a big mistake if we assume that what is little has no power. We make an even bigger mistake if we think we are safe when we give away someone else’s rights because we think that person is little and therefore of no great importance. We need to remember that all our rights are connected. If we allow something bad to happen to someone else today, the same thing can happen to us tomorrow.

How did small axe form?

The idea for Small Axe began as a response to the lack of access to quality and responsive legal services for organizations and people most in need of critical support. As a lifelong resident, activist, and community organizer in Madison, Small Axe Lawyer Damon Etwalyah knows the aforementioned needs and gaps in Madison well. He has experience working in both nonprofit and cooperative sectors, and during his time in the Community and Nonprofit Leadership (CNPL) program at UW-Madison, Damon met now fellow Small Axe Lawyer Marin Smith. Marin was working at a nonprofit immigration firm and getting certified as a restorative justice practitioner. Both Marin and Damon graduated from the CNPL program in 2020 and immediately proceeded to attend University of Wisconsin Law School. Throughout law school, both Marin and Damon continued to cultivate and refine their skills in other organizations and environments and later brought them together. The result of these meaningful experiences became the essential infrastructure of Small Axe, such as the decision making procedures, bylaws, and program areas. With the foundation established, they brought on Damon’s younger sister Kennedy Allison when she was a law student. Now Kennedy has also graduated law school and is the third practicing attorney of the cooperative.

WHO IS SMALL AXE?

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