Oct 12, 2008
Who is a community organizer?
Having grown up in a town even smaller than Wasilla, Alaska, I understand, somewhat, the frustration of Palin supporters who mock community organizing. It's not that they're against community organizing, exactly — it's that they think it's nothing special. If disaster befalls your neighbor, OF COURSE you rush to help. But that's just a way of life, evidence that you're a basically decent person. It's not something you'd put on a resume. When they call Obama an elitist in this context they are accusing him of wanting extra credit for something ordinary people consider routine.
The trouble is, picking up litter or helping a sick neighbor or raising money to build a playground — these things are not what Obama's talking about when he says "community organizing." He's never properly defined what he IS talking about, though. In his memoir, Dreams From My Father, he admits that he, too, was confused about his job description when he first moved to Chicago and began doing this work. So it should be no surprise that others are unclear on it as well.
Aaron Schutz, one of the writers at Education Policy Blog, has two excellent posts that help define what community organizing is, and, importantly, what it isn't:
What is Community Organizing? What isn't Community Organizing?
How Do Community Organizers Think? (What is Organizing Part II)
He has more on the resources page of his web site.
