The Role of a Community Organizer S.Rengasamy, Madurai Institute of Social Sciences, Madurai, Tamilnadu, India (http://cdmissmdu.blogspot.com/ http://cdmiss.wordpress.com/ http://rengasamy.onsugar.com/)
Let us be proud of what we are doing
The soul of community An organizer might be paid or The group could start as part of a smoke filled room or out of a community reaction to a crisis Community Organizers might house by house meetings or conspirators. The ultimate goal collective aspirations. strategy, tactics, even on what However, all organizers believe in people, in the ability of regular
organizing is people. work as a volunteer. a master plan hatched in 'spontaneous' like a toxic waste dump. base their work on cells of clandestine could achieve their Organizers can differ on seem to be base values. folks to guide their lives,
Role – Meaning & Definitions Prescribed or expected behavior associated with a particular position or status in a group or organization. normal or customary activity of a person in a particular social setting A role (sometimes spelled rôle as in French) or a social role is a set of connected behaviors, rights and
obligations as conceptualized by actors in a social situation. It is an expected behavior in a given individual social status and social position. It is vital to both functionalist and interactionist understandings of society. • role - the actions and activities assigned to or required or expected of a person or group; • duty - work that you are obliged to perform for moral or legal reasons; • capacity - a specified function; • hat - an informal term for a person's role; • portfolio - the role of the head of a government department; • second fiddle - a secondary role or function; A position, or status, within a social structure that is shaped by relatively precise behavioural expectations (norms). A role has been described as the active component of status. .
to speak for themselves, to learn the world and how to make it better. - Dave Beckwith and Randy Stoeker
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S.Rengasamy - Role of a Community Organizer Just what organizers do can sound like any standard job description - "administration, planning, policy decision-making, program and leadership development and action implementation, public relations activities, and service activities." But CO work takes form within the dynamics of community and struggle, requiring organizers to have an extraordinary range of competencies. The organizer must thoroughly understand the characteristics and the power patterns of the community through extensive interviews and discussions with community members. The organizer is a listener. The organizer identifies and trains potential leaders. These potential leaders are not necessarily the titular heads of organizations. Through an extensive listening process issues or problems of concern to the people are identified. People must be •
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Community Organizers build organizations that maximize the power and participation of the people. Community Organizers listen to the people Community Organizers are responsible for sharing information and raising questions, options, alternatives and problems that affect the community. Community Organizers identify identify and develop diverse group of members who agree to serve as the organization’s public voice in a variety of issues. Community Organizers are attuned to the power relationships and political agendas surrounding an issue , Community Organizers develop sound organizing strategies strategies based on his power analysis. Community organizer’s role is to build public relationships, Community organizer is to work with people to define problems and issues, and help them think through the strategies and tactics necessary to act with confidence and win. Community Organizers recruit members, members, assist with fundraising, and integrate fundraising into every aspect of their organizing work. Community Organizers ensure that their members receive a consistently high standard of appropriate and effective training. Community Organizers enable the members members to hold meetings that are productive and focused. Community Organizers facilitate training and strategy sessions when needed Community Organizers build evaluations into all aspects of their work. Community Organizers strive to be accountable and hold others accountable in every aspect of their job . Community Organizers always make time for follow-up. Community Organizers strive to eflect on and improve their skills on an ongoing basis, and develop an annual self-development self-development plan Community Organizers challenge challenge people to act on behalf of their common interests. Community Organizers develop new relationships relationships out of old ones Community Organizers work through campaigns.
encouraged to talk about their views of the community and it is important that they realize that the organizer does not come with a preconceived program. An organizer must also be able to agitate people to act. "Until the people recognize that it is they who must do something about their own problems, and that it is only THEY who can be trusted to do the right thing - and until they realize that only if they organize enough power in their community that something can be done about these things, nothing will get done."
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S.Rengasamy - Role of a Community Organizer
Sarah Palin, Vice Presidential candidate of USA made some comments on the experiences of Barack Obama, Presidential candidate as a community organizer in Chicago, during the election campaign. She said her stint as a small-town mayor was "sort of like a 'community organizer,' except that she had some actual responsibilities."Communit responsibilities."Community y organizers throughout USA united together and torn Sarah Palin into bits and pieces. Their reactions were truly inspiring, revealing the great role played by the community organizers.
I am a Community Organizer @ The Role of a Community Organizer Community Community organizers have been at the root of any social change. While it can take many forms such as protests, petitioning, advocating, celebrations, canvassing, educating, registering voters, vigils, fundraising, marching, church meetings, neighborhood watches, government funded organizations, non-profits who rely solely on donations and volunteers, letter writing campaigns, feeding those without food, speaking for those who are not heard, listening to someone share her/his story, and many other ways, it always is done by working with people in the community. Community organizers are the first to respond to injustices that unfairly target certain groups of people. They are often from the community they are advocating for, providing an authentic voice in an everincreasing world of meaningless quips and political banter. While politicians talk about their "real responsibility", it is the community organizers who suffer with the community when policies fail and promises are broken. It was community organizers who first questioned the rule of England in what would become the United States. It was community organizers that developed the Underground Railroad and demanded that all be free in this country. It was community organizers who insisted that people of color and women have the right to vote. It was community organizers who advocated against child labor and for adequate public education. It was community organizers who saw a need to support the disadvantaged in our country and created social services. It was community organizers who fought for civil rights throughout history for countless groups. It was community While politicians talk about their "real organizers who demanded that women have a choice responsibility", it is the community organizers about their bodies and when they have children. It who suffer with the community when policies was community organizers who spoke out about the fail and romises are broken. violence perpetrated on targeted groups. It was community organizers who protested war after war, and it was community organizers that advocated for veterens who were forgotten by the country who asked them to sacrifice all. It was community organizers who believed that everyone has the right to practice the faith of their Community organizing is how ordinary people respond to out-of-touch choice and called upon our politicians and their failed policies. It is no surprise that, after eight years government to create a of failed policies, millions of people have found that by coming together in separation of church and their local communities, they can change the course of history. state. It was community organizers who protected and supported when all others turned a blind eye. It was community organizers that fought for every right you have.
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S.Rengasamy - Role of a Community Organizer It will be community organizers that make sure you have your needs met should you not be financially able to. It will be community organizers that help you raise your voice high so that you are not forgotten about in our society and Social role posits the following about social behavior: government. It will be community 1. People spend much of their lives in groups. organizers that work to protect you should 2. Within these groups, people often take distinct you be violently targeted for your identity. positions. It will be community organizers who 3. Each of these positions can be called a role, with a demand that your vote count. It will be whole set of functions that are molded by the community organizers who fight for your expectations of others. right to equal and adequate resources. It 4. Formalized expectations become norms when will be community organizers who demand enough people feel comfortable in providing that you have healthcare regardless of punishments and rewards for the expected behavior. whether you can pay or not. It will be 5. Individuals are generally conformists, and insofar as community organizers that insist on your that is true, they conform to roles. right to age with dignity and proper 6. The anticipation of rewards and punishments inspire support. It will be community organizers this conformity. who work to ensure that you always have a Determinants and characteristics of social role choice. It will be community organizers who Roles may be achieved or ascribed. An achieved role is a protect you from government corruption. It position that a person assumes voluntarily which will be community organizers who will reflects personal skills, abilities, and efforts. Roles are demand access to healthy and non-toxic not forced upon the individual; a choice is involved. An foods and products for you. It will be ascribed role is a position assigned to individuals or community organizers who will fight for you groups without regard for merit but because of certain when you cannot. It will be community organizers who stand by you when others traits beyond their control (Stark 2007). Roles are walk away. forced upon the individual. Roles can be semi-permanent ("doctor", "mother", "child"), or they can be transitory. A well-known example is the sick role as formulated by Talcott Parsons in the late 1940s. In the transitory "sick role", a person is exempted from his usual roles, but expected to conform to transitory behavioral standards, such as following doctors' orders and trying to recover.
It would be easy for me to launch into a diatribe against the Republicans and promote the agenda of the Democratic party, but that's not what I want to do today. I want to take a moment to reflect on the deep saddness I felt when hearing government leaders mock the hard work and history of so many in this country. I think of all those people, both past and present, who never had a convention in their honor or even heard so much as a thank you from these leaders for doing the work that should have already been done by the A community organizer should have: have: an understa understanding nding of developm development ent theories and concepts and processes of community organizing good social social and and community community relation relation skills to promote social integration in the community an ability ability to work work with other teams of professionals the knowledg knowledge e and skills skills to enable communities to access specialized technical assistance in instances when this is needed sensitivity sensitivity to the local culture gender gender-se -sensi nsitivi tivity. ty.
government tasked with protecting us all. It frightens me that current leaders are so out of touch with the people in this nation that they would revel in their privileged status on television while many
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S.Rengasamy - Role of a Community Organizer that night went to bed worrying about when they will get a job, where tomorrow's meals will come from, what to do if they get sick, or how to go on another day in a society that systematically denies them protection and equal rights. The remarks that night prove to me that there is still so much work to be done. No matter who wins the election in November, we must all continue to fight for what is rightfully ours and hold our government to the standards of nothing but excellence. Although we were mocked and disparaged that night, I know I am a small part of a great history of people who cared enough to do something when injustice occurred. I am proud to be a community organizer.
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S.Rengasamy - Role of a Community Organizer
The Roles of the Community Organization Worker Kenneth L. M. Pray. "En-abler" Murray G. Ross Guide, Enabler, Expert, and added more tentatively- Social Professional roles Therapist Violet Sieder Enabler, Guide, and Expert—but added Educator and Interpreter, Mediator, Arbitrator, and Manipulator. Robert MacRae Enabler, Consultant (close to the conception of guide), Adult Educator, and Promoter. The report on Defining on Defining Enabler, Guide, "Helping groups to take action," and "Initiator Community Organization of action through education, Demonstration, or other similar Practice techniques. Irwin T. Sanders – Analyst, Planner, Organizer for change, and Program Professio- nal roles in administrator. Planned change Roland Warren Enabler or Catalyst, Persuader, and Contestant Purposive change agent Charles F. Grosser Enabler, "Broker," Advocate, and Activist. Working with Urban poor Alan Connor Educator, Adviser, Advocate, Broker, Initiator, and Stimulator Desmond M. Connor "Development worker"- Observer, Diagnostician, Strategist, "Development worker" and Stimulator. Jack Rothman "Guiding" and "Enabling" roles, ranging from "strongly directive" to "non-directive." Roles agreed by different (1) Enabler; (2) Guide, Consultant, or Expert; (3) Educator, authors Interpreter, or Persuader; (4) Initiator, Stimulator, Strategist; and (5) Promoter, Advocate, or Contestant. Enabling means to supply with the means, knowledge, or opportunity; make able; The "broker" role involves putting people in touch with resources.
The roles of community organization workers on various jobs run the whole gamut from enabler, factfinder, analyst, planner, stimulator, broker, catalyst, interpreter, educator, conferee, negotiator, liaison worker, mediator, and consultant to organizer, agent, executive aide, advocate, promoter, strategist, social actionist, militant leader, and occasionally, perhaps, social statesman. statesman . Skills in Community Organizing Development education and training Liberating education and popular education Different phases of the training program Advocacy and networking Techniques of a Community Organizer Structuring Situation analysis Problem analysis Role playing and socio-drama Education and promotion Demonstration Formal study Use of group dynamics and experiential learning in training Use of an expert/consultation Roles of Community Organizer Trainer Facilitator Advocate Researcher Planner Catalyst Enabler Helper Guide Initiator Broker Consultant Intervener
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S.Rengasamy - Role of a Community Organizer Orientation or Vision of a Community Organizer Every organizer must possess an orientation and political line which means a perspective that specifies an analysis of the situation; an assessment of the forces and the classes that are for and against change; the methods for change; and a concept of the alternative to the current system. While these necessarily have ideological underpinnings, an organizer may not have a systematized ideology but may develop The Role of the Community Organizer one in the process of struggle. The Community Organizer is a facilitator, animator, Orientation and political line are not the enabler and catalyst. sole possession of the members of As a Facilitator, Facilitator , the CO "provides" a process political organizations. Every organizer which will help the community discuss their must be clear on his political line and situation, identify and prioritize issues and his orientation to the people. problems, identify solutions and formulate and implement plans to resolve the key issues and problems. The facilitator’s responsibility is to ensure that members of the community communicate and are satisfied with and committed to the decisions taken. As an Animator, Animator , the CO helps the community discover and use all its self-help potential s for creative and constructive team work. The animator stimulates people to think critically when identifying problems and finding new solutions. He/she motivates the people to share their concerns, information and opinions, set goals, make decisions and plan action. As an Enabler, Enabler , the CO helps initiate a process of "liberation of initiatives." The enabler helps release the creative initiatives of the people and ensures that the development agenda evolves as part of the process of change and is not imposed. She/he also ensures that dependency is reduced through cooperative action and social education. Finally, the CO is a Catalyst, who hastens the process of change. The catalyst is successful when the organizing process has been fully internalized by the people. The community organizer also serves as a model, not only in words but also in deeds. A general rule that governs community organizers: If there is a conflict between authority (whatever that authority may be) and the
To further clarify this issue, an organizer’s work is supported by a general orientation which may have different expressions in terms of a distinct political line. He/she can be motivated by religious faith – Hindu, Christian, Islamic or faith in the power and the goodness of the people and their capacity to transform their reality. Tools for analysis which are drawn from Marxism, the social sciences and others are used. He/she is guided by a vision of an attainable future that is basically socialist and conforms, not to stereotyped images or to the mechanical duplication of foreign models, but to the actual needs and conditions of the people.
An organizer should exhaust all open and legal means for the attainment of this vision. However, when the people decide that the existing system can no longer be altered through such means, an organizer must be open to using other means, especially the right of self-defense. Finally, it must be pointed out that behind every ideology, political line and orientation is an act of faith, a belief in an option or stand. The correctness of a position – while it may seem to be the absolute truth at one point in time – can really be judged only after a passage of time. Differences in positions, as well as the shift of an organizer form one position to another, for as long as it is consciously done, must be viewed from the vantage point of mutual respect. After all, time will tell which position was correct. What is necessary is openness to dialogue and an ethical relationship between those who possess different perspectives.
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S.Rengasamy - Role of a Community Organizer Skills Skill implies not only knowledge but the ability to put knowledge to practical use; it connotes competence, ease and precision of execution, dexterity, efficiency and effectiveness and performance. Skill has been called the "ability to do the right thing at the right time". Skill, which primarily involves doing rather Organizers’ Goals in Assisting Communities. Communities. than with either knowing or feeling There are three types of objectives for a community includes: organizer. These are - Interpersonal Skills – skills that 1. Task Goals – goals concerned with the have to do with relationships with identification of objectives and the development of individuals and groups. This includes the means and resources to carry them out or implement them. conflict management. 2. Process Goals – refer to the enhancement and - Analytical skills – skills that have to strengthening of the community members, do with fact-finding or data-gathering competence for participation, self-direction and and interpretation of data or cooperation. information for decision-making, 3. Relationship Goals – focus on changing certain problem-solving and types of social relationships and decision making conflict handling. patterns in the community. - Organization Development Skills – skills that have to do with setting up and sustaining organizations, organizat ions, planning and policymaking, organizing or determining appropriate organizational structure design, political and legislative skills, administrative skills, strategy design and implementation and communication. - Training Skills – skills that have to do with capability building of members of the community organization, training needs and analysis, formulation of curriculum and training design, instruction skills and the use of training t raining methodologies and training monitoring and evaluation. Skill, when highly developed brings about automatic or nearly automatic responses to situations.
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S.Renga amy - Role of a Community Organizer Understanding Disasters to play the role of Community Organizers Organizers duri g Disasters Disa ter
A disaster is the tragedy of a natural or manmad hazard (a hazard is a situation which poses a level of threat to life, health, property, or environment) that negatively affects society or environment. In contemporary academ - ia, disasters are seen as the consequence of inap ropriately man ged risk. These risks are the product of hazards and vuln rability. Hazards that strike in areas with low ulnerability are not considered a disaster, as is th case in unin abited regions. Developing countries suffer the greatest costs whe a disaster hits – mor than 95 percent of all eaths caused by disasters occur in developing countries, and losses due to natural disasters are 20 times greater (as a perc ntage of GDP) in developing countries than in industrialized countries. A disaster can be defined as any tragic event that may involve at l ast one victim of Disaster management has four phases; mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery /reconstruction. Mitigation and preparedness are phases before disasters occur and response and recover /reconstruction are phase after disasters. Mitigation means not causing any damages. Preparedness me ans preparation something for the time when peopl take damages. Response means evacuation or rescue soon after disasters occur. And recovery/reconstruction means rebuilding or improving social and natural environment than states before disasters.
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S.Renga amy - Role of a Community Organizer Understanding Civil Conflicts to play the role of Community Organizers Organizers
uring Conflicts
Civil Conflicts / Wars
James Fearon, a scholar of c vil conflicts / wars at Stanford University, states that "a civil conflicts / war is a violent conflict within a country fought by organized groups that aim to take power at the center or in a region, or to change government policies". Ann Hironaka specifies that n civil conflicts on one side of a civil conflicts is the state. The intensity at which a civil disturbance becomes a civil war is contested by academics. Some political scientists define as civil war as having more than 1000 casualties, while others further specify that at least 100 must come from each side. he Correlates of War, a dataset widely used by scholars of conflict, classifies civil wars as having over 1000 war-relate casualties per year of conflict. This rate is a small fraction o the millions killed in the Second Sudanese Civil War and Ca bodian Civil War, for example, but excludes several highly ublicized conflicts, such as The Troubles of Northern Ireland and the struggle of the African National Congress in Apartheid-era South Africa. Examples of Liveli ood Assets, Conflict Shocks and Potential R esponses Physical
Farm equipment, se ds, tools, sewing machi es, vehicles, livestock, h ouses
Looting or destruction
Natural
Agricultural and gra ing land, water resources, food, timber, fish Labor power within household, educatio n, skills, vocational training Wages, access to cr edit, savings
Burning, displacement, loss of access to grazing land
Human
Financial
Social
Kinship structures, r ligious groups, neighborhoods
Political
Citizenship, access t o political leaders, rec urse to a functioning legal s stem
Increa e security, distrib te seeds/tools/livestock, provid housing support Negotiate access, provide alternative resources, redistribute land
Death, loss of productivity, disability; school &workplace closures
Emergency education, emplo ment schemes
Collapse of banking system, displacement causing unemployment Displacement, fighting between groups
Micro- credit, cash/food for work, eace Markets
Deterioration of state, loss of legal system
Confli t resolution support; suppo t to religious, neighborho d & other groups Consti utional reform,, police/ udicial/human rights trainin , election support
Based on the 1000 casualties er year criterion, there were 213 civil wars rom 1816 to 1997, 104 of which occurred from 1944 to 1997. If one uses the less-stringent 1 00 casualties total criterion, there were over 90 civil wars between 1945 and 2007, with 20 o going civil wars as of 2007.
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S.Rengasamy - Role of a Community Organizer
Understanding health to play the role of Community Organizer Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals." It is concerned with threats to the overall health of a community based on population health analysis. The population in question can be as small as a handful of people or as large as all the inhabitants of several continents. Public health is typically divided into epidemiology, biostatistics and health services. Environmental, social, behavioral, and occupational health are also important subfields.
The focus of public health intervention is to prevent rather than treat a disease through surveillance of cases and the promotion of healthy behaviors. In addition to these activities, in many cases treating a disease may be vital to preventing it in others, such as during an outbreak of an infectious disease. Hand washing, vaccination programs and distribution of condoms are examples of public health measures.The goal of public health is to improve lives through the prevention and treatment of disease. The United Nations' World Health Organization defines health as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Public health functions include: Health surveillance, monitoring and analysis Investigation of disease outbreaks, epidemics and risk to health Establishing, designing and managing health promotion and disease prevention programs Enabling and empowering communities to promote health and reduce inequalities Creating and sustaining cross-Government and intersectoral partnerships to improve health and reduce inequalities Ensuring compliance with regulations and laws to protect and promote health Developing and maintaining a well-educated and trained, multi-disciplinary public health workforce Ensuring the effective performance of NHS services to meet goals in improving health, preventing disease and reducing inequalities Research, development, evaluation and innovation Quality assuring the public health function
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Public health programs Today, most governments recognize the importance of public health programs in reducing the incidence of disease, disability, and the effects of aging, although public health generally receives significantly less government funding compared with medicine. In recent years, public health programs providing vaccinations have made incredible strides in promoting health, including the eradication of smallpox, a disease that plagued humanity for thousands of years.
An important public health issue facing the world currently is HIV/AIDS. Antibiotic resistance is another major concern, leading to the reemergence of diseases such as Tuberculosis.
Another major public health concern is diabetes. In 2006, according to the World Health Organization, at least 171 million people worldwide suffered from diabetes. Its incidence is increasing rapidly, and it is estimated that by the year 2030, this number will double.
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S.Rengasamy - Role of a Community Organizer A controversial aspect of public health is the control of smoking. Many nations have implemented major initiatives to cut smoking, such as increased taxation and bans on smoking in some or all public places. Proponents argue by presenting evidence that smoking Important Historical Figures in Medicine/Public Health and Social Justice • Florence Nightingale • Margaret Sanger • Albert Schweitzer • Charles Dickens • George Orwell • Upton Sinclair • Anton Chekhov • William Carlos Williams
Rudolph Virchow Argued that many diseases result from “the unequal distribution of civilization’s advantages” Advocated public provision of medical care for the indigent Promoted universal education Worked to outlaw child labor Improved water distribution and sewage system Enhanced food inspection process Published study of skull volumes to dispute myth of larger Aryan brains Passed hygiene standards for public schools Set new standards of training for nurses Im rove roved d loca locall hos hos ital ital s stem stem
is one of the major killers in all developed countries, and that therefore governments have a duty to reduce the death rate, both through limiting passive (second-hand) smoking and by providing fewer opportunities for smokers to smoke. Opponents say that this undermines individual freedom and personal responsibility (often using the phrase nanny state in the UK), and worry that the state may be emboldened to remove more and more choice in the name of better population health overall. However, proponents counter that inflicting disease on other people via passive smoking is not a human right, and in fact smokers are still free to smoke in their own homes.
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