Old Story, New Setting

Your inspiration for the week... or maybe just mine.

Joseph y Maria, Art by Everett Patterson.

Look closely for details of the bible story.  The need we have for hope that oppression, greed and violence can be overcome has been shared by most of humanity through most of history.  We are not alone.  

The Power of Story

Your inspiration for the week...

I spent all of Saturday December 9 in a tent with nearly 200 progressive organizers. In Newport Beach, California: who knew?  I was attending the largest session yet of the Western Organizing Workshop.

We walked through a process of crafting personal stories.  We were to describe a moment of challenge, and a choice we made that changed an outcome, that shows our values and our commitment for our democracy.  The purpose of the story is to inspire the listener to take action– that's what organizers do.

The leaders told us their stories: so inspirational!  As a table facilitator, my challenge was that nobody at my table thought they had a story worth sharing.   I refused to believe them.  "Start with a lousy story.  We'll help you make it better," I urged.  I had been given the tools in advance.  With some coaching and practice, they made it through round one.  They each had some kind of story.  We continued to refine: take a snapshot of a moment in time.  Express what you were feeling.  Then what happened?

By the end of the day we had a "cocktail party," with people mingling around the tent exchanging some pretty compelling stories.  Many of the them started, "On election night..." and moved through despair to "and here I am!"  The next challenge my table crew faces is to overcome their shyness about phone banking and door knocking.  Because talking to people is what gets them to take action.  The story continues...  

We don’t have to engage in grand, heroic actions to participate in the process of change. Small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can quietly become a power no government can suppress, a power that can transform the world. 

— Howard Zinn, Historian

Making Lemonade

Apologies for going AWOL for a few weeks!  Here is your weekly inspiration for action...

On September 1, 2015, five UC Irvine police officers drew guns on a 20-year old Black man on the steps of his own home in university faculty housing. They did not allow him to produce ID.  They stood down when a neighbor from across the street vouched for the young man.  They had been called by another neighbor who thought the man was breaking into his own home.  The UCI newspaper describes the incident and what followed in depth here.

In response, concerned community members formed a "Community, Safety and Diversity working Group."  Among many activities, this group came up with the above flowchart (on a kitchen magnet) to invite neighbors to act responsibly.  I continue to benefit from their activities, and hopefully my young neighbors of color are a little safer in their own neighborhood.