1. Choose a current issue that affects at-risk communities. Examples include gun violence in neighborhoods or schools, mass incarceration, immigration policy, environmental racism, economic inequality, effects of climate change on poor communities, lack of affordable housing or child care, racial profiling in community policing, discrimination against LGBTQ community members, corporate malfeasance, attacks on voting rights, restrictions on access to reproductive services, gender inequality in the workplace.
2. Choose a community. Remember that you will be most effective if you already identify as a member of the community you wish to help. Describe the community’s demographics and average income, as well as any other significant traits, such as proximity to sources of pollution.
3. Summarize the issue. How are at-risk communities affected? What other social problems are caused by the issue? Use statistics and other evidence from reputable sources.
4.Choose a community organizing model and explain why based on your analysis of how cohesive the community is and the amount of organizations representing the community’s interests. If you are choosing the social networks or coalition-building model, name these organizations and describe their missions.
Analyze power:
Who are the perpetrators who maintain the problem, and who are the decision-makers who can affect the problem?
How important is the issue to decision-makers, how much influence do they have, and how much support or resistance can you expect from them?
Who stands to gain or lose from change? Which people or organizations who have informal power as well?
Choose your community organizing strategies. Which strategies from pages 264 to 271 will you use, and how will these be effective given your power analysis? Describe how you will implement each step.
