Hi friends,

I just posted this question within the ABCD Organizing Group, but figured I'd share it here as well. I know there's a lot of great experience and wisdom out there I can benefit from!




I am hoping other practitioners can help me with acurrent dilemma I'm facing at this stage of my community organizingwork.

My main question is, How does a community 'organizer'define their role in a way that makes sense to community members?

[Context:I work for a non-profit, I'm in a semi-staff, semi-organizerrole. We're working to find a team of people who believe in an
asset-based approach and want to use it to rebuild the community. Right
now I'm seeking those folks and holding learning conversations with
community members in general to learn the skills, talents, resources and
what people care about. I'm working in a historically segregated AfricanAmerican neighborhood that is seen by many both inside and outside thecommunity as not having the resources it needs to rebuild itself.]

Seemslike a 'duh' question and something I should have figured out long ago.And, in many instances I've been successful during face-to-facesit-down conversations at explaining who I am/what my org is and ouraim. I usually start with my OWN personal reasons for doing my work andbuilding from there.

But recently I've been having encounterswhere my explanation of my role as helping the community come together /discover and activate its own resources to realize its goals seems tobe falling flat. I've even had one woman say, "we know what our giftsare.Now we need FUNDING" and went so far as to characterize my org astrying to keep the community in slavery by keeping them from gettingwhat's 'owed to them' by outside institutions.

Just today avery active engaged and productive community member asked me, so how canyou help us? For example--there's a lot of kids in this community whoplay Chess. How can SCOPE help us get chess boards?

I completelyfailed in both conversations to offer a compelling, clear answer to howI can help that these peoplefelt satisfied with.

I know situations are different for everyorganizer. But--any advice? Similar experiences?


I lookforward to hearing from you!

-April
Sarasota, FL

updated by @april-doner: 10/24/16 04:45:18PM

I totally get it! For me at least how I talk about my role and what LOV (my organization) does has been evolving over time. And I think I am getting progressivly better at putting words to it. Early on we had no clue as to where we were headed not to mention what I was supposed to do to get us there. Its getting better, I promise!My current "rap" with many variations of course:LOV Dane is a grassroots group where people work together to create good lives for them selves and their community. We are different from a lot of groups in that we are not a program so we dont offer "services" although those are really important too. I am lucky enough to be a Community Organizer for LOV which means that I support people to work collectively on things that are important to them. I help bring people together and help them move forward together.I have also noticed that talking about gifts directly can be a turn off. Maybe because it seems like talking down or maybe because people are conceptualizing themselves/communities as gifted. More and more I am thinking it is something else too. I was working with an immigrant community the other week and realized that I was trying to push them to talk about gifts when what they needed to talk about first was problems. This was my experience too with organizing families and individuals with disabilities. Until they could feel heard and find their common worries, they were not at all ready to talk about assets. But it made sense when I talked about "using what you have to get what you don't have". Really it is the problems that are uniting people and really motivating them to act. The re framing comes in the solutions....I guess I knew that, but have been relearning it lately.Don't know if that helps....and I dont know if I will think the same things tomorrow. I love processing by typing.:)Amanda

Amanda -- That's great and very helpful! Thank you. That's a good point about people needing to talk about problems first.At one large ABCD event I attended years ago, noticed that there was space made for people to talk about, 'this is what we can do alone'; 'this is what we need to partner with outside folks to do'; 'this is what only outside folks can do' (my wording here). I found this helpful and more and more am realizing I've got to be less dogmatically 'either-or.' The trick, I think , and my remaining puzzle, is how to become discerning and skillful enough an organizer to help people realize that many of the things they would put in the second category ('need outsiders working with us to accomplish') are actually in the first.I'm still also trying to figure out a way to explain the 'chess' example in a way that this particular fellow I know (who, for me, represents many others who are in his place of thinking and experience) will find convincing and compelling. 'I can help you find people and resources within your own community to get those chess sets...?' / 'i can help you bring together people in you community who also want to get those chess sets and help you find others within the community who also want to support these kids to play chess'...BUT I can't guarantee what will come of that. And this fellow in particular explained he is tired of 'talk', meetings, etc. I know that meetings designed to blame and to just focus on holding outsiders accountable usually don't produce much. I know that people getting together who are willing to think about their and their neighbors' assets as the starting point for solving a problem is more effective... but again, I have no guarantees. I have stories, and I can explain this whole idea to him. There is so much distrust and disillusion built up now in this community, both towards outsiders promising things or coming to 'help', and among community members themselves, I keep thinking there's something I might be missing that would bring it all together.I'm processing here too... forgive the length! If anyone has any more advice / experiences, again--greatly appreciated.~ April

I really like what Amanda replied. Makes me think... Problems aren't the problem, but the problem is when considering problems don't lead somewhere. People need to talk about their reality... problems and all. I like the organizing principle "Start where people are; not where you wish they were." So start with problems and then speak the words that show the picture of the future possibility, and then find assets to get there, connect them, and go down the road. Makes me think of the classic community organizing exercise that Michelle Obama referred to in her election night speech... "What is the world as it is?" versus "What is the world we want?" Organizing is the journey through relationships to power for collective action from "What is" to realizing "What we want". Thank you April for a great question and Amanda.Amanda Bell said:

Thank you Mike -- this is very helpful. I think sometimes when we as organizers/community workers (for lack of a better term) get excited about the theoretical value of focusing on assets we forget this important truth. I want to learn how to move well in that space of moving the conversation from the talk of problems and needs to one of goals, action, and "what can we use that we already have."Practice, practice, practice...!