Proud to be a Community Organizer

There's been a lot of talk in recent days about community organizers - and small town mayors. Now neither of these jobs usually gets a lot of press attention. But they both involve long days, hard work and yes, real responsibility.

So I was particularly disheartened to see the attacks on community organizing at the Republican Convention, equating community organizing with liberal make-work.

In fact, community organizers have built and bettered America, from Paul Revere to Susan B. Anthony to Rev. Martin Luther King. All dedicated public servants, all patriots, and all community organizers.

Like Barack Obama, I spent my early years doing community organizing. Rather than helping South Chicago residents hurt by steel plant closings, I worked in Massachusetts to close unsafe nuclear power plants in residential neighborhoods. And here in New York City, I've helped low-income tenants stay in their homes and won better affordable housing policies.

And I learned a lot -- How to listen to what people say, not just tell them what you think they want to hear. How to empower individuals to change their own lives. How to change and impact government policy in ways that can make an actual difference in real folks lives.

These are lessons I still use every day in my position as New York City Council Speaker. Because whether you're a small town mayor or Speaker in a city of 8 million, we should all be approaching elected service like community organizing.

As an organizer, I believe in using the power of elected office to help empower and engage our constituents, to reform government so it actually works for working folks. We can bring those who, for so long, have been left out, or opted out, to the table, and make sure they have a voice in how their taxes are spent, or the laws that govern them. Effective elected officials, just like good community organizers, help connect people and policy, making sure our government work is on the mark.

Look at West Village Houses. Built in the 1960's in lower Manhattan, these low rise affordable apartment buildings have been home to dozens of middle income families. But a few years ago, the developer put it up for sale. Those families risked losing their homes, and the neighborhood risked becoming an enclave for only the wealthy.

The community, local electeds and government organized. We held meetings with residents and heard what they wanted. Between tenant pressure and government will, the tenant association was able to purchase the complex, allowing residents to stay in their homes and keeping the development affordable for years to come. This wouldn't have happened without government tax breaks, but it also couldn't have happened without the residents organizing themselves.

All over this country, from the West Village Houses to rural Iowa, community organizers are rolling up their sleeves and person by person, empowering America. I'm proud to count myself among their ranks.

Christine C. Quinn is the Speaker of the New York City Council.

Comments

[UltraClassic]

You know, I can respect what you are saying. Folks working in the community do give people a voice who in many instances would not have one. I don't agree at all with the issues you championed, the nuclear power issue was just not smart. Ask yourself this, how many nuke plants is the US Navy running and how many accidents have they had?

[Vajara]

Thanks for your support of Community Organizers and Community Organizations. I still view my experience in the early 60's as a community organizer while organizing and integrating groups in Black neighborhoods in Long Beach, CA for the YMCA. Now, I work with soldiers returning from war with brain injuries and other health issues and know how to help them get the resources they need to help them and their families recover from this catastrophic event in our history.

It seems to me that with economic recovery we will even need more community organizers to help families who have lost their homes and businesses because of this administration and congress who chose war over peace and prosperity. They were wrong then and they are wrong now if they continue to blow our resources to support corporate America and those who do not care about the empoverished and those hard working Americans who keep us going every day.

I think even an agnostic would say--God Help Us our economy and our country is going to Hell!!!

[spoonyluv45]

Krissy:

You're kidding, right?

[jgravelle]

And with the election of Barack Obama, we can all look forward to a time when our entire country will be as organized as the south-side of Chicago is...

-jjg
DailyScoff.com

[corwin]

Well,let's see.If CO's didn't exist,would no one find jobs,or helppeople register.?­A CO is a little like 'Phlogiston" or the 'universal Ether'.The­se were 19th century imaginary substances to fill a gap in science for processes not undestood.­BUt don't let that stop you from gushing.An­d since you've deleted my "When I was A Lad" parody,would you be interested in ,"I Am the Very Model of a Fuzzy Tax and Spend Pol?A sample
" I've taken Women's Studies and I've read the tomes clitorious
From Hilary,to Nancy P, and found them less than glorious"

[Banez]

It is astounding to me that no one in the press or in the Obama campaign, or even Barack Obama for that matter, has had the presence of mind to mention that, in the nearly two years that he's been running for President and consequently undergone every conceivable form of scrutiny, engaged in more than twenty debates, and been attacked not only by detractors from outside the Democratic Party but by almost every contender in his own party primaries, there has never been any disparagement of his work as a community organizer until the orchestrated sneerings of Giuliani and Palin at the Republican Convention.

[lukelea]

Unfortunately, and like it or not, "community organizer" connotes left-wing inner-city organizing back in the day. Doesn't play well with working-class swing voters in Middle America. Play it down, not up -- unless you don't care about winning.

[ladyv]

Possibly with old people. Gen X and younger don't have those referents. Same with attempts to invoke the "old Chicago style politics" thing. Has no meaning for us. Some of us may know what the incident is that lies behind the thought, but we have no connection to it. These are just 60s relics that leave us cold.

[PensiveObserver]

In three years of effort, Obama's main accomplishments were expanding a summer jobs program and removing asbestos from a building in the community. That's it.... Three years, and that's it... Oh, but he found a good church. Here's the troubling thing though. *** The experience defined him. *** So as his life progresses he is continually seeing himself as the fix-it guy, wanting to fix everybody's problems. Guess what? It's not government's job to fix all the problems. Guys who think they can fix all the problems scare me...

[FebM]

Those who create problems - going to war on lies, mission accomplished - lies, Iran has nukes lies - bridge to nowhere, thanks but no thanks but I will keep the money - scare me a lot more!

[proudoldlefty]

Following the mocking insults and attitude spoken and displayed by Giuliani and Palin at the Republican convention, the call to action NOW is for EVERY community organizer to spend some amount of energy organizing votes for Obama. As a community organizer you a) cannot be CONSIDERING voting FOR McCain/Palin; b) should be working to defeat McCain/Palin, as they obviously do not respect you.

www.community-organizer.com
"Tell your story"

[Bitsko]

I agree with your point, but believe it or not there are conservation community organizers.

[Yohomegirl]

btw, your link isn't working. We need additional volunteers in North Carolina. We will put you up, feed you, and put you to work! OBAMA 08!

[INDmind]

Also have heard you patronize NYC dwellers, but that's beside the point. The Obama campaign decided to describe GOVERNOR Palin as not a governor, but a small town mayor. It seems the scoldig should actually be directed at him.

[Dkline]

Read this letter to the editor (and to Sarah Palin) in Cleveland Scene from an Ohio community organizer. Joshua Kanary asks, quite justifiably, why such service to our citizens is ridiculed by the very unqualified Republican candidate for Vice President. http://www.clevescene.com/stories/15/71/letters-09102008

[MatthewPK]

It's very simple, actually. The Obama-Biden ticket, like you, contended that Palin is "very unqualified". She's just returning, "quite justifiably", the favor. The "ridicule" part is just you and Kanary's chosen, biased interpretation.

[proudoldlefty]

No, it's not that simple, actually. Read the text of their speeches. Listen to the words. What Giuliani and Palin did was mock community organizers in general. Had they wanted to return the favor, they could have said, "Mr. Obama, your experience as a community organizer didn't have any real responsibilities" or something equally dull. Sure wouldn't get the Comedy Store laughs both Giuliani and Palin went for, though. But instead, she said, "A small-town mayor is kind of like a community organizer, except you have actual responsibi­lities." A general slam against community organizers. That's not a biased interpretation. Read and listen to the words. Unless your point is, "oh, everyone knew who she was talking about." Why didn't she have the guts to say it? And Giuliani, about the resume which lists "community organizer" - "that's the first problem with the resume" hardy-har-har-hard. He doesn't say WHY. He doesn't follow up to say Obama's community organizer experience doesn't hold water. No, just lets the general smear set in while the belly-laughs resound through the auditorium. Didn't he have the guts to call out Obama himself? No, with the words they spoke, both Giuliani and Palin demeaned the work of community organizers IN GENERAL. If you're a community organizer, you should be insulted. Very insulted. And if you're a conservative community organizer, well...you might want to re-think who you align with, since they don't really respect you.

www.community-organizer.com

[LibertarianVoter1]

I admire the work of community organizers, but Obama is very vague about the extent of his accomplishments as a community organizer. It is well known what Martin Luther King Jr. and others have accomplished as community organizers, but what did Barack do? Get people registered to vote? Help people find jobs? Deliver "Meals on Wheels"? He is so vague about his role as "community organizer," and the media has not subjected him to any scrutiny in this matter. This is where the mystery lies (no pun intended).

[geejai54]

He is not vague. You just have not bothered to read about what he has done. You mentioned MLK but you only know that because of what you have heard in the media over the years. I bet you have not read any of his writings. And by the way what is wrong with helping people find jobs or registering people to vote. Who decides what is noble and valuable work?

[ladyv]

He was director of the Developing Communities Project (DCP), a church-based community organization originally comprising eight Catholic parishes in Greater Roseland (Roseland, West Pullman, and Riverdale) on Chicago's far South Side.[12][­14] During his three years as the DCP's director, its staff grew from 1 to 13 and its annual budget grew from $70,000 to $400,000, with accomplishments including helping set up a job training program, a college preparatory tutoring program, and a tenants' rights organization in Altgeld Gardens.

Obama doesn't build his campaign around his community organizing experience because he's..not building his campaign around his community organizing experience. It was his post-college job, his mid-twenties job. The sort of thing that lays the foundation for the kind of work you want to do and helps you figure out how you can help people, and in his case led into the decision to go to law school. He has certainly never invoked it as some example of "executive experience­.' That was Sarah Palin's comparison. The real comparison she should've made was her mid-twenties job - failing as a sports reporter - to his mid-twenties job helping people.

[TCHa]

Love your last line!