What does Latin America have to teach us about community transformation?

Latin America leads the world in transformative community organizing. I was first introduced to Paulo Freire’s work in 1997 (when I studied in Northeast Brazil with School for International Training), and have been viewing the world through a Freireian lens ever since.

I continue to be challenged and inspired by activists from Latin America and the Caribbean.

The recent issue of the Community Development Journal has some fascinating articles on the significance of the community work being done all over the Latin America region, and how these examples can contribute to a dynamic, ever-growing body of knowledge about grassroots social change.

What does community transformation look like in the US?

One of the most impressive local organizations I know of is IMPACT Silver Spring. This organization is mobilizing the power of diverse community members to build a more inclusive Silver Spring, Maryland. A specific example of IMPACT’s work can be seen in the way a team at IMPACT facilitated major changes at Piney Branch Elementary School.

Beyond their work on school transformation, IMPACT is also investing in building neighborhood networks in a way that rejects a charity-based model of nonprofit work. It also does not engage in historical community organizing traditions, which view power as a scarce resource to be attained through confrontation and struggle. IMPACT takes a different approach – one that is based in the belief that relationships across lines of difference and collaborative action are critical steps in the journey towards positive social change.

This grassroots network-building approach is relatively nascent for IMPACT, but it has been sprouting up in slightly different forms all over the US. I believe this movement, in its diverse and decentralized manifestations, is actively redefining the concept of “community” and “citizenship” in the US. In the longer term, it has the potential to restore our nation’s democracy by bringing in voices and stories that have been systematically excluded.

Let's talk about community transformation and social justice

It’s been three years, one job and two babies later, but now I have a few things to add to this blog after my extended absence. I have a new perspective on development and social change. Not another moment of my time or energy will go towards criticizing the “development industry.” I’m done complaining.

I’m halfway through an excellent book called Community: The Structure of Belonging by Peter Block (2008) that a friend recommended to me. I feel very grateful for this recommendation because the book helped reinforce a new way of thinking about social change. The book has also helped me recognize that I should not have been working somewhere that required me to apologize for, disguise or compromise on my values.

I’ve learned a great deal about social change in the last three years. I’ve had the privilege, through my current job as Program Officer at The Global Fund for Children (GFC), of conducting over 50 site visits to community-based organizations in 10 countries and seeing amazing grassroots leaders and community organizers in action. As a result, I’m less interested in criticism and more in possibility (a word Peter Block uses frequently in his book) and co-creation. So, even though this blog was conceived to essentially complain about my disillusionment with the development industry, I’m over that now and ready for a different conversation.

I still like the name “ex-development” because when something is eliminated (exed out) there is space for something new to emerge. If we can agree to move beyond the international development industry and stop engaging in that conversation, then that frees us up to invest our time and energy in real, live, inspiring, authentic alternatives.

I’ve had the privilege of debating with many inspiring people, including brilliant colleagues at GFC and friends at other nonprofit organizations such as Grassroots International, the Movement Strategy Center, the Jewish FundS for Justice and the Interaction Institute for Social Change. This new conversation focuses on community transformation and the importance of acting locally. For many activists and organizers, what I’m about to say is obvious, but I’ll say it anyway: Anyone who wants to contribute towards lasting, progressive social change must engage in her or his community and keep it up for a long time. Other work can be done in other places, but it’s the work in one’s own community where the “rubber hits the road” and where relationships are forged and change happens. As our world gets increasingly globalized, there is even more importance in restoring a sense of community and trust in our neighborhoods.

In addition to taking part in a new conversation, another commitment I’m making is to reexamine my role in my own community and hold myself accountable for contributing what I can to transform it into a more equitable, just and inclusive place.

I look forward to sharing more on what this looks like in my next post.

Disclaimer: Views expressed by the author do not necessarily represent those of GFC.