I’ve got health care.

DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) doesn’t affect me.

I’ve got a job.

I’m not an immigrant.

Addressing the question “if it doesn’t affect me directly, why should I care?”, it’s crucial to understand the broader impact of community organizations. Understanding and evaluating community organizations requires a multifaceted approach. By considering their effectiveness, transparency, coalition-building efforts, and legitimacy indicators, you can make informed decisions about which organizations to support and engage with. Remember that while an organization’s impact may not always be immediately apparent to you personally, their work often contributes to broader societal improvements that can benefit everyone in the long term.

For full article We Need Organizations CLICK HERE

Addressing the question “if it doesn’t affect me directly, why should I care?”, it’s crucial to understand the broader impact of community organizations. Understanding and evaluating community organizations requires a multifaceted approach. By considering their effectiveness, transparency, coalition-building efforts, and legitimacy indicators, you can make informed decisions about which organizations to support and engage with. Remember that while an organization’s impact may not always be immediately apparent to you personally, their work often contributes to broader societal improvements that can benefit everyone in the long term.

1. Collective Impact: Community organizations often address issues that affect society as a whole, even if not immediately apparent to individuals. Their work can lead to systemic changes that benefit everyone in the long run.
2. Social Cohesion: These organizations play a vital role in building stronger, more connected communities, which can improve quality of life for all residents.
3. Resource Mobilization: They often mobilize resources and volunteers to address local issues more efficiently than government agencies or individuals could alone.
4. Advocacy: Community organizations can amplify the voices of marginalized groups and advocate for policy changes that benefit the broader community.

The Importance of Transparency in Community Organizations

In an era where organizations may operate virtually or from home offices, developing transparency is crucial:

1. Embrace Digital Tools: Organizations should leverage digital technologies to enhance transparency and accountability. This includes using platforms that allow for real-time data sharing and communication, which can help in making informed decisions and fostering trust among stakeholders [10].
2. Implement Data Transparency Practices: Ensure clear and open handling of data, helping stakeholders understand how their information is collected, used, and shared [11].
3. Utilize Blockchain for Immutable Records: Consider using blockchain technology to create decentralized and immutable records, enhancing transparency and reducing the risk of fraud [12].
4. Balance Transparency with Privacy: While transparency is important, it must be balanced with privacy concerns. Organizations should ensure that sensitive information is protected and that transparency does not lead to unintended data exposure [13].

I Care What You Think

We know that you all cannot support nonviolent revolution in the same way and we are not asking you to. But before we ever start we need to know who will support nonviolent revolution and at what level. Are you an Actor, Ally or Accomplice? Click this link. After you have figured out what it is you are willing to do please fill out and submit the What Will You Do Survey.

We need to build a movement! Not another organization. We need to support active organizations that we already have.

Be aware of the gatekeepers (pimps, preachers and prostitutes), they will want to stop you, slow you down, and turn this movement around. Some earn their income from our plight. Their behavior might get you killed.

There are mobilizers and there are organizers. The demonstrations you have seen and participated in for George Floyd here and across the globe have been successful mobilization events. What is needed now is grassroot organization.

The map on the left are the communities in Spokane where this discussion needs to take place. Suggestions of what you can do in your community are at this link: Mobilizing to Organizing

Sunday June 7, 2020 started off at 10:30 am with meditation and yoga exercises at the Red Wagon. At 2:00 pm the NAACP had one of the largest outside rallies in Spokane’s history. The tone of this rally was set by Kurtis Robinson, Kiantha Duncan, and Le’Taxione. Kurtis Robinson welcomed a large standing crowd at the Lilac Bowl. Kiantha Duncan followed asking everyone to sit down on the grass and center themselves. She had three messages that she wanted to deliver to three groups of people. She thanked all who showed up to nonviolently express their outrage and disappointment with police brutality throughout the country. If there were those who came looking for trouble with signs with hateful speech, she wanted them to take those signs and sit on them. Then she called upon all law enforcement agents to obey the law and treat all demonstrators with respect and human dignity. My observation was that there were no visible signs of law enforcement. Le’Taxione told the audience that he was not speaking to make anybody feel good, he was there to express his strong objections to brutality and the status quo. But he made it quite clear he and the youth he brought would not allow anybody to hijack this peaceful demonstration. If so, they would be escorted out of town. These photographs bear witness to the unified desire that everyone should receive equal justice.

After your demonstrations at the Red Wagon or City Hall you could:

• Ask 5 of your new or trusted friends for their email addresses and mobile phone numbers so you can set up a meeting regularly via Zoom to discuss strategies and planned measurable actions. Assign someone to send information about the measurable actions you plan to info@4comculture.com so they can be shared at the website 4comculture.com. Hopefully when the city opens up and you can have meetings in public places such as coffee shops you will be able to have these discussions face-to-face.
• If you can find 4 people that will accompany you to an arterial in your neighborhood each could stand on a corner displaying their signs for an hour or more
• Walk up and down the block or cul-de-sac where you live with your sign and handout sharing why you march and what others can do to help. This is something you can do alone.
• Stand in front of the house you live in with your sign and have a discussion about why you march with anybody that will join you. Have two socially distant chairs nearby.

Being Black I am always visible! I am asking you to shed your invisibility.

History Lesson On Organizing

Kwame Ture: Converting the Unconscious to Conscious

Make masks for Blue voters / Let Red go to church / Blue pray at home

Sometimes we can’t wait on the cavalry!
Let’s put the wagons in a circle.
The battle has begun!
We are under attack, we must do the best we can with what we have.
The creative will have the best chance for survival.
It’s good to be prepared and independent but in times like this we need to be inter-dependent.

If we are brothas we need to support each other in this war at both levels. We need to support each other in measurable ways, not just throw around cultural symbols. We need to start by asking little things of each other.

• If you are a friend you will wear a mask because it protects you from me and me from you.
• We need to believe in and support the idea of one justice indivisible. If you don’t know what I am talking about a starting point would be The 14 Principles listed at 4comculture.com.
• The Spokane School District Board of Education wants to name several new school buildings. It would be nice if two of those schools were named after people of color. You can nominate someone: Nomination Link. I have nominated Frances Scott and Ruben Trejo.
• It would be good to let us know your personal level of commitment: Ally, Actor or Accomplice. See page at 4comculture.com.
• You need to have an online presence. You need to let your other brothas know what it is you stand for. One simple way to do this is to participate in online posting and messaging at Facebook.
• Let’s become civic activists. Participate in local social justice organizations or engage in new methods of non-violent action that include physical, virtual and hybrid actions.
• We each need to develop a social justice budget. It would be nice if you would donate on a regular basis to the things that you believe in. Let me suggest that you make a donation to anybody or any group that you choose, but do it in the name of Spokane Brothas. The reason I suggest doing that is to build a power base that would be respected. I would suggest a budget that would express your volunteer time as well as your cash contributions. For example a budget of $100 a month could include:
  • Volunteering: 7 hours a month at the national minimum wage of $7.25 per hour would be about a $50 in-kind contribution. What if you showed up to volunteer in a Brothas T-shirt?
  • Send a check to the Black Lens. About $4.00 a month buys a subscription.
  • Contribute to an informational issue campaign. For example about $16 pays for a MailChimp service that will send your message to a mailing list of thousands that you have built. In times of quarantine and isolation you have to find ways other than community meetings to deliver information about your issues. You could buy a yard sign with your message or issue or candidate.
  • Give $20 to local and/or regional progressive organizations or blue political parties – to the same organization/s every month so they can feel your presence.
  • Give $10 to national progressive organizations or blue political parties – to the same organization/s every month so they can feel your presence.

If we only had 14 brothas contributing at this level this would be $1400 per month or $16,800 per year. Imagine what would happen if we had 100 brothas.

Your comments are welcome. If I haven’t heard from you by June 12, I will assume you are not interested.

Bob L. info@4comculture.com

This year we gathered as usual Sunday January 19 at Holy Temple Church of God in Christ for the Commemorative Celebration. Monday January 20 we gathered at the Spokane Convention Center for a video presentation about the MLK East Central Community Center, inspirational speeches, Max Daniels of House of Soul gave his rendition of A Change Is Gonna Come with a slide presentation that illustrated previous MLK rallies and CLICK: Those Who Showed Up during the year to speak to power, marched around several blocks downtown, and returned to the Exhibit Hall where Michael Moon Bear youth drummers entertained.

But there were only two action steps suggested.

One was that we spread the love and brotherhood of Dr. King’s teachings and the other was that we show up February 3 at City Hall to ask the City Council to rename the East Central Community Center as the Martin Luther King Community Center.

People leave these rallies without knowing what they can do. What will you do between now and when we gather again in January 2021 for the MLK rally and march? In the next few weeks there are the impeachment proceedings followed by the campaigns for the presidential and other elections in November. We need to get busy.

100 Discussion to Action Groups

If you believe in CLICK: These Principles we need you to go to your local coffee house and form a discussion group with five to ten individuals to discuss issues, plan strategies and take actions. Begin building the community you want to live in. We want to build 100 of these discussion groups. If we have 100 discussion groups we will be able to turn out 500 to a 1000 people to demonstrate, to knock on doors, to participate in social justice activities. Regardless of whomever is elected we will have built the movement we need to support the human rights and social justice changes that Sam Cooke wrote about in one of the greatest songs of all time A Change is Gonna Come.

If you want to join us TEXT (509) 934-3933 with your name, email address and zip code. We will let you know about discussion groups in your area.

Here are some things that you can do immediately:

Read 198 Methods of Nonviolent Action. Click: https://4comculture.com/archives/14129

Read about the 12 things needed for a movement. Click: Where Do You Want to Start?

Listen to Shaun King’s podcast and take his action steps. Click: The Breakdown

Coffee and Discussion Groups

Make phone calls or knock on doors to share your support.

Invite your friends and relatives to a Fill Out Your Ballot Party.

Get a sign for your yard, a t-shirt or button to show your support.

This message is the unsolicited opinion of the editors of 4comculture.com.