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Books by James
Boggs and Grace Lee Boggs
Revolution and Evolution in the Twentieth Century
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The
American Revolution: Pages from a Negro Worker's
Notebook
Living for Change: An Autobiography
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Conversations in Maine: Exploring Our Nation's Future
Manifesto for a Black Revolutionary Party
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Racism and the Class Struggle
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Organizing Comes Before Mobilizing
By Grace Lee Boggs
Last week veteran
Detroit activist and TV producer Ron Scott shared his
thoughts on the recent massive demonstrations in support
of the Jena 6. Emphasizing the distinction between
organizing and mobilizing, he reminded us that the
Montgomery Bus Boycott, which began fifty-two years ago
on December 1, 1955 and lasted more than a year, was the
culmination of years of organizing by local activists
like NAACP stalwarts E.D.Nixon and Rosa Parks.
“Had the people of Montgomery merely come out for one
day and gone home, we would have nothing to write about
today.”
This distinction between organizing and mobilizing is
especially important in this period when in Detroit and
other parts of the country and the world, we are in the
very early stages of building a 21st century movement to
rebuild our communities and our cities, while also
addressing the interconnected issues of planetary
emergency, the imperial presidency and the calamity of
the invasion of Iraq.
To help us think about the distinction with the
seriousness it deserves, I recommend reading and
discussing the chapter on “Slow and Respectful Work” in
Charles Payne’s I’ve Got the Light of Freedom: The
Organizing Struggle and the Mississippi Freedom Struggle
(University of California Press, 1995). Many Minds, One
Heart, a recent book by Virginia State University
Professor Wesley C. Hogan, also emphasizes the
importance of patient one-on-one organizing, although,
surprisingly, Ms. Hogan makes no reference to Payne’s
groundbreaking book.
The civil rights movement had such an enormous impact on
this country and the world because prior to mobilizing
huge marches and demonstrations, members of the Student
Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (mostly black, mostly
southern, mostly from working class backgrounds), not
only had a vision of “beloved community” but were ready
to spend a lot of time doing the spadework of building
relationships with people in the black community.
Convinced that there are individuals in every community
whom others look to because they have an unconquerable
faith in their own humanity, refuse to see themselves
only as victims and take pride in thinking for
themselves, the members of SNCC set out to find these
natural leaders.
The method they used was simple. They talked with people
and got to know them by listening patiently, in
conversations at the post office, the market, at
meetings and church services. At the same time they gave
people in the community daily opportunities to get to
know them as individuals who were respectful to women
and the elderly, who kept their word and lived up to
values respected in the community.
It was only after the legitimacy of the “movement” had
been established by this kind of “slow and respectful”
organizing in the community that they began to mobilize
large numbers in marches and demonstrations.
Today few people understand or appreciate the role of
this patient, beneath the radar community organizing
because we know the civil rights movement only in its
later period when it had begun to attract the attention
of the national media, So we think of the movement
mainly as mobilization: as marches, demonstrations,
violent events and personalities or charismatic
leaders.
The Detroit City of Hope campaign is today in the
community organizing stage. In 2007 we hosted two events
to commemorate the 40th anniversary of MLK’s
anti-Vietnam war speech and the 1967 Detroit rebellion.
Through these events, endorsed by 32 very diverse
community organizations, we made the community aware of
our intent to mount a campaign to rebuild, redefine and
respirit Detroit from the ground up.
Now our challenge is to help the individuals and groups
already engaged in this work or eager to embark on it
create ways and means to connect with, learn from and
support one another.
LIVING FOR
CHANGE –If you appreciate receiving these weekly
emails, we hope you’ll send a tax-deductible donation to
the Boggs Center to Nurture Community Leadership.
www.boggscenter.org Thank you. Grace & Shea
Source: Michigan Citizen, Dec. 25, 2007
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* posted 26 December
2007 |
