Building Solidarity Through Difference: A Practice Model for Critical Multicultural Organizing

ABSTRACT

Building solidarity is perhaps the most crucial, yet under-theorized, process in organizing for social change. Traditional models of union and neighborhood-based organizing associate solidarity with commonality, as opposed to difference. However, this traditional organizing model is being forced to adapt to an increasingly multicultural context, presenting a need for rethinking past practices and creating new frameworks for multicultural organizing. Theoretical work on the topic has been relatively detached from action on the ground, with few efforts to translate it into community organizing practice. This article develops a practice model for critical multicultural organizing drawing on a five-year qualitative, participatory evaluation of youth participation in grassroots community organizations. As well as offering insight into the efforts of young people to organize around neighborhood issues in largely low-income and racially diverse communities of color, the cases highlight inclusive practices that will help any organization become more sustainable and effective.

KEYWORDS:

• Multicultural practice
• community organizing
• critical theory
• youth
• organizational change

The information for this article draws from the participatory evaluation of Lifting New Voices, a 5-year pilot project of the Center for Community Change, funded by the W. K. Kellogg and Ford Foundations. Richards-Schuster was the national evaluation coordinator, and Dobbie, a research assistant to the project. We are particularly thankful to Barry Checkoway, the national evaluation director of Lifting New Voices, for his guidance and support of this article. We are also thankful to the community organizations that participated in Lifting New Voices and provided much of the information for this article. Among the many who have helped develop the ideas in this article, we also would like to thank Maggie Aragon, Shakira Abdullah, Barry Checkoway, Lisa Figueroa, Amy Hammock, Sara Mersha, Robby Rodriguez, Sarah Phillips, and Michael Reisch, along with two anonymous reviewers.