Throughout the Community Tool Box, our authors talk about different ways to improve our communities, and how to do all of the tasks, small and large, that make an organization work and work well. But broadly speaking how does all of this work? What are the overarching strategies that work to improve our communities? Why do some grassroots organizations fail, while others do great things and flourish? Throughout the Tool Box, we offer many suggestions of what we feel are right ways to approach community work, such as . Our belief in the equality of all people, for instance, or in the importance of individuals efforts to improve their communities are not topics of specific sections, but make up the foundation of what we do. These beliefs and ideas are at the base of all of our work at the Community Tool Box. One such idea is that of community organization the idea that people can and should come together to talk about what matters to them, and then work together to successfully change their communities. As this idea is a common thread woven throughout our work, wed like to use this chapter to make it explicit, and try to explore it more fully. So, then, on the following few screens (and in the next few sections) well do just that. In the remainder of this section, well give a general overview of community organization what it is and how you do it. Well also give brief explanations of different ways of looking at community organization. Although all of the strategies we will discuss have quite a bit in common, it may be helpful to separate out and compare different approaches in order for us to look more clearly at our work. Community organizing is the process by which people come together to identify common problems or goals, mobilize resources, and, in other ways, develop and implement strategies for reaching the objectives they want to accomplish. As you can see, its a big idea its really a way of looking at all of the work that we do. Because of that, it encompasses many of the other ideas discussed in the Tool Box. For example, effective community organization will generally include: An important point to remember is that community organization is fundamentally a grassroots process. Its not about an outside expert telling a community what it should work on. Instead, its about community members getting excited about something, and using that energy to create change. In short, community organization is all about empowering people to improve their lives, however that might be best done. Community organizing, done right, leads to a shift in power: youre building a power base among a broad group of people. Many times, community organization is done among those who have traditionally been denied a voice, or whose needs have been ignored the poor, the homeless, certain minority groups, etc. Organizing members of a community no matter what your goals might be has some general advantages that will occur if the work is well done. These advantages include: There are many different ways for a community to bring about the changes it wants. In the Community Tool Box, those we are most interested in are those in which people come together to improve life in their communities. This occurs in different ways, and for different reasons. Thus, there can be slightly different ways of looking at the process of organization. The four ways that follow will be discussed in more detail in the subsequent sections of this chapter. Also known as community development, locality development focuses on community building by improving the process by which things get done. For example, it emphasizes the ideas of community competencythe ability of the community to solve its own problems by learning skills such as group facilitation and critical thinking that are crucial to community work and through working to build harmonious relationships among people from different racial, ethnic, and social-class groups. A lot of weight is put on how people think and feel about things. The idea of helping people help themselves is key to this concept. Organizations such as the Peace Corps and VISTA offer good examples of what we mean by locality development. Whereas locality development focuses primarily on the process of working together, social planning focuses on getting results. That is, it emphasizes solving specific social problems, such as a lack of adequate housing or a very high crime rate. Delivering goods and services and avoiding the duplication of those services are important ends in this type of organizing. It is often initiated by community officials or planners, or as the result of state or federal programs. Because it is driven primarily by statistics and other types of data, social planning may be seen as more scientific than locality development. For example, an organizer might point out that, Records from the health department show that only about 65% of the children entering kindergarten are fully immunized; we need an initiative to make sure all of our children receive the immunizations that will safeguard their health. The use of experts may be considered a necessary part of this approach because of the importance placed on statistics and other data. This is more true of this type of organizing than for any of the others that we will discuss. . When we think of the civil rights demonstrations in the South in the 1960s, or AIDS activists conducting die-ins in front of the White House in the 1980s, this is what we are talking about. Social action organizing is highly adversarial, and the concept of social justice is a dominant ideal. In social action organizing, members of a certain group often those who are discriminated against or low on the economic ladder, and thus have little voice as individuals come together in order to make demands on the larger community for increased resources or equal treatment. are broad groups that bring together people and organizations from throughout the community, including many groups that may not normally work together. For example, a coalition working to increase AIDS awareness in the community might bring together officials from the health department, representatives from the faith community, young people, business leaders, and members of the GLBT (gay, lesbian,
bisexual, and transgender) community groups that sometimes dont see eye-to-eye. The power of coalitions comes from the idea of strength in numbers bringing together many diverse people gives you the power you need to make the changes you want. When looking at these four strategies for community organization, its very clear that these approaches are not completely distinct from one another. A group that is mostly concerned with the processes of locality development will nonetheless have, some results they want achieved, and they may well use the more strident tactics of social action to achieve those results. And certainly, a coalition might choose to use any (or more likely, all) of the other three strategies . However, our hope is that by separating these ideas even if the separation is somewhat academic we can help organizers to think systematically about their desired ends and the means it will take to get there, as well as to organize their work in accordance to their values. Community organization can be done in many ways; how you do it will depend on where you are working and what your specific goals are. More detailed how-tos are found in each of the strategy-specific sections that follow this one. However, some of the basics are pretty much the same, whatever your ultimate goals might be. What follows then, is simply a general overview to get you thinking about the fundamentals. Door-knocking is a classic tactic in community organizing that is still used regularly by community activists. Going door-to-door in the area that interests you with a short script like the following can do a lot to spark original interest. Be careful here. There may be some members of your group not comfortable going door-to-door as a way to get the word out. They may be unsure about the safety of the neighborhoods they are visiting. It may also be illegal for your organization to communicate with community members through door-to-door visits. So, before you begin your campaign, check the comfort level of your members and examine local laws to make sure that a door-to-door campaign is safe and legal! Then, those who want to do something about the problem should reframe it as a goal. That gives people something positive to strive for, and enlists them in building the community, rather than simply eliminating something harmful or annoying. It not only makes working on the current issue more compelling, but prepares people to continue the community-building process in the future. Its important to build your organizations strategy in a logical manner. People like to look upon themselves as being reasonable. Thus, organizers should develop the strategy in such a way that each escalation of activity makes sense, so that neither members of the group nor the larger community see what is being done as overblown or reactionary. Because of this, its important that the group does win something very quickly. Its important for the morale of the group to feel you really are making progress; that your work is not only for a good cause, but youre also going about it in the right way. No one likes to feel that their work is useless, that they are giving up precious free time for a lost cause, or that they are not appreciated for all of their work. So make and the people doing it a regular part of your organizations life. The power of an organized community working together to reach agreed-upon goals is nothing short of spectacular. There is no more important step to take than organization when trying to improve life in our communities. And so, it is crucial for those of us working for our communities to understand how to do so effectively. Martin Luther King, Jr. was a tremendously powerful organizer. In a speech in Memphis in 1968, he rallied listeners with the words, Let us rise up tonight with a greater readiness. Let us stand with a greater determination. And let us move on in these powerful days, these days of challenge, to make America what it ought to be. We have an opportunity to make America a better nation. We at the Community Tool Box ask that you take that opportunity that you work to organize people for a better community, a better nation, and finally, a better world. Windcall Resident Program Windcall c/o Common Counsel Foundation 1221 Preservation Park Way, Suite 101 Oakland, California 94612 telephone: (510) 834-2995 fax: (510) 834-2998 email: If youre working hard to change the world, you know its an endless struggle a struggle that can leave you exhausted even when your work is fulfilling and affirmative. You might need a chance to step back, take a break, catch your breath in a place where you can stretch out and see the far horizon. Thats why we established the Windcall Resident Program. Since 1989, it has been a place of retreat and renewal for people engaged in work for social change. Our principal aim is this: to honor and help conserve the commitment and energy of those who work towards a more just society. If youve been doing this difficult work and need to step back to see whats ahead, we encourage you to apply to Windcall. You may apply to stay at Windcall for two or four weeks during one of its residential sessions. Summer residencies are available during June and July, with a January 15 application deadline. Fall residencies extend from after Labor Day to the end of October, with an April 10 application deadline. Windcall welcomes residents at no cost during their stay. There are only four guests at any one time. We offer a partial travel stipend for those in need, and we encourage residents to drive whenever possible so that once here they can take full advantage of all that southwestern Montana provides. CCC helps the economically disadvantaged improve their communities and change policies and institutions that affect their lives by developing their own strong organizations. The Midwest Academy is one of the nations oldest and best known schools for community organizations, citizen organizations, and individuals committed to progressive social change. Bobo, K., Kendall, J., Max, S. (1996). in the 1990s. Minneapolis, MN: Seven Locks. Fawcett, S. (1999). . In J. Rothman (Ed.), . Itasca, IL: F. E. Peacock Publishers. Rothman, J., Erlich, J. & Tropman, J. (1995). . Itasca, IL: F. E. Peacock Publishers.