Community Organizing and the Detroit Water Struggle: Report from the Front Lines

ABSTRACT

At this moment in history, both the need for macro social work approaches and interest in macro social practice among social workers are growing. One macro approach that is particularly well-suited to confronting current political and economic conditions is grassroots community organizing. Some authors have suggested that most successful efforts at community organizing are those which can link the lived experiences of grassroots community members to larger movements for social justice. The struggle for access to affordable water in Detroit is a prime example of such an effort. In 2014, indignation at the announcement that the city would be shutting off the water of all those who could not afford to pay their water bills, combined with resistance to the imposition of emergency management on the city, galvanized a movement that brought together a wide variety of community members, activists, and organizers. As a participant-observer in this struggle, I conducted videotaped interviews with 15 organizers and activists concerning their views on the successes and challenges they have witnessed and the crucial “next steps” for community activists in Detroit. This article reports on these interviews and examines the lessons for community organizers that emerged from them.

KEYWORDS:

• Community organizing
• economic human rights
• anti-austerity activism
• Radical Social Worker
• water

Notes

1. For fascinating, in-depth public timeline on DWSD history, please see: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HgB5xG-UUDGD3Ge9sfusnwq-kVAFdoNrOoiHi3gPYy8/edit?pli=1.

2. According to data provided to me by the Deputy Director of DWSD, in April-June of 2014, the department only collected $902,000 more than they had during the same 3 months in 2012.

3. For more information on the issue revenue sharing in Michigan, please consult the Michigan Municipal League: http://www.mml.org/advocacy/2014-revenue-sharing-factsheet.html.

4. According to Food and Water Watch, “Veolia Water North America is the largest private operator of municipal water and sewer systems in the United States, serving an estimated 10.5 million people in 32 states. Veolia Water North America is a fully owned subsidiary of Veolia Environnement, the world’s largest water corporation, which provides drinking water to more than 101 million people and sewer service to 71 million people worldwide.” For more information, see: http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org/insight/veolia-water-north-america-corporate-profile. Additional information can be obtained from the Stop Veolia Seattle Zine Project: https://stopveoliaseattle.wordpress.com/the-zine/.