Is your project or organization building a social justice movement

Is your project or organization building a social justice movement?

What We Face Today

The survival of our planet and the prevention of global war or chaos depends to some extent on building lasting and effective organizing alliances at the grassroots between the social justice movements in the USA at the grassroots level.

At the national and state level, it is very difficult for advocacy organizations to give up their addictions to insider lobbying, litigation, media work, and non-specific public education. These things feel good, are easier to get funding for, and often have at least some benefit. But as long as most of the money raised in this country for social justice activity goes to such activities, corporate power and reactionary power will have no fear. They will go unchallenged as they busily mobilize their minority constituency to look like a majority, and will put their narrow interests ahead of the broad common sense requirements of humanity.

What Are You Doing To Build the Movement?

Take a look at this test if you are responsible, as a board or staff member, for the actions of a nonprofit group working for social justice, or opposed to poverty, or seeking to protect the environment, or defending human rights. Would you like to see a progressive grassroots movement in your lifetime? Then check everything that your organization does to see that it scores at least 75 points (out of a possible 200) on this simple test. It seems like any nonprofit advocacy group ought to be able to do at least that much.

Movement-Building Test for National and State Advocacy Groups

1. Does this activity help grassroots leaders to be more effective as all-around leaders, not just on this issue? (20 points)

2. Does this activity build alliances with groups you sometimes work with, but don't often ally with? (7 points)

3. Does this activity build alliances with groups you have never worked with before? (13 points)

4. Does this activity comprehensively educate grassroots people about power relationships in this society? (8 points) Is that education explicit? (5 more points) Does it show how people's power can defeat unjust power? (5 points)

5. Will this activity lead to a visible victory for social justice? (10 points) When this victory is attacked, can you anticipate an effective way to defend it? (5 points)

6. Will this activity mobilize people concerned about social justice in a way that will be visible in local media in key communities you want to reach? (8 points)

7. Can local social justice activists build on this activity by carrying out related activities in the future? (6 points)

8. Does this activity undermine the institutions of racism, sexism or other oppressions? (12 points) Is that fact explicitly stated? (4 points)

9. Has this activity been developed with the participation of grassroots activists? (15 points) Were some of those activists volunteers, with no professional stake in the issue? (7 points)

10. Has this activity been carried out with respect for the environment? (8 points) Did you use more environmentally friendly practices than in the past? (4 points)

11. Was this activity carried out with respect for the practices and traditions of the labor movement, such as use of the union 'bug'? (8 points) Were labor activists or staff asked to be part of the activity? (5 points)

12. Did this activity involve women and people of color as active participants? (12 points)

13. Will this activity be evaluated by grassroots activists? (14 points)

14. Are there grassroots activists who feel a strong ownership of this activity? (12 points)

15. If your organization goes out of business in two months, will this activity help you leave behind a legacy of social justice activism? (12 points)

Social Justice Connections is eager to receive comments and suggestions on the Movement-Building Test for National and State Advocacy Groups, and will change the Test from time to time in response to your comments.

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Social Justice Connections

Larry Yates, proprietor

e-mail: lamaryates@igc.apc.org

URL: http://www.shentel.net/sjc/test.html