“Stay where you are. Find your own Calcutta. Find the sick, the suffering, and the lonely right there where you are — in your own homes and in your own families, in your workplaces and in your schools.” Mother Teresa
As I am writing my monthly letter, I am currently in Florida getting ready to speak at an upcoming DONA Conference about Connecting with Diverse Populations. So my headspace right now is all about building relationships, connection and racial equality in order to bring change into our communities. This work makes me think about a question I receive at least once a week. Chama, what can I do when I don’t have a lot of time? How can I be apart of something that is making a difference? A lot of times, this question comes from new parents who are just coming out of the survival mode of the immediate postpartum time.
There are so many ways to engage based on where you are in your life. And each way is just as important to make up a whole movement. But before you begin your advocacy journey, I encourage you to do an assessment of the following:
Assets: Think outside the box here, it does not need to be financial assets, maybe you have an extra room in your home for someone struggling with housing? A big front porch that you could hold meetings on? The ability to provide someone childcare one afternoon a week? These are just a few examples.
Influence: This is the one I am most passionate about, I love connecting dots within our community. What people do you know, what connections do you have in the community? Do you know someone who has rental property or a realtor that would be an ally in keeping Asheville diverse? A business owner that would like to diversify its work pool? A business that wants to support/ally with your cause by sponsoring an event or making a donation?
Gatekeeper: What do you have power over? Do you control any flow of money to people? Do you have power over who gets hired or who receives the loan and who does not?
I was inspired by a recent Racial Equity Caucus by this wheel of ways to Act and Engage to support uncovering your power to engage in advocacy and connect with a piece of the movement that creates change. Sometimes advocacy can be overwhelming to know where to start, so I thought it would be a wonderful way to break down all the different avenues of action/engagement.
Advocate: Make phone calls, attend rallies, attend city council meetings (especially concerning development)
Educate: Bring up talking points to family members and friends, keep the topic going with anyone you encounter. Speak to different civic organizations let them know what you are learning about share information
Organize: Bring together groups of people to act, host meetings, planning meetings starting neighborhood organizing, community gardens, security etc.
Support: Financial contributions, donations, volunteer, actively purchasing small local business, people of color business
Make Visible: Post on social media, yard signs, bumper stickers
Rebel: go big, take risks, disrupt the flow, withhold money from certain businesses, politicians, boycott, question everybody and everything, create performance and visual art.
The next time you want to engage, pick an area that your feel passionate about, find the avenue of act/engage that matches your capacity and plug in! It might not seem like you are doing much however you are contributing to the larger wheel of advocacy and change!
In the deepest respect to the beautiful and activist people that you are!
Love,
Chama
