Civic Responsibility Project’s Post

For those of us working on organizing or campaigning, understanding the rhythm of our efforts is crucial. One part of that understanding is the concept of the "Movement Window," a period ripe with potential for building momentum, influencing narratives, and establishing foundations for long-term power-building and change. Generally, a "Movement Window" refers to a specific time frame when the socio-political environment is most receptive to advocacy efforts, enabling movements to gain traction, build relationships, and make policy changes or social reforms. This is different from a “Movement Moment,” which is also very important but generally shorter in duration and usually focused on a particular issue, such as the uprising after the murder of George Floyd. Anyone working for change can tap into a Movement Window despite the varying potentials of different actors. We are in one such window now, stretching from the present until July, a phase pivotal for any organization or group striving to make a lasting impact. By harnessing this period, we can shift policy that may be unmovable later and lay a robust foundation for our efforts in the fall and beyond. Let's utilize this Movement Window to its fullest, building real relationships, driving meaningful narratives, and gearing up for a future that aligns with our vision for transformative change.

🇺🇸 Happy 4th of July! A Call to Civic Engagement As we celebrate our nation’s independence today, let’s also remember the importance of being civically engaged. The 4th of July is not just about fireworks and barbecues—it’s a reminder of the values our country was founded upon and the ongoing responsibility we all share in shaping its future. Why Civic Engagement Matters: 1. Strengthens Democracy: Our democracy thrives when every voice is heard. Voting, participating in community meetings, and staying informed are crucial to ensuring our government represents us all. 2. Builds Community: Civic engagement fosters a sense of community and connection. Volunteering, supporting local initiatives, and engaging in dialogue with neighbors help build stronger, more resilient communities. 3. Promotes Accountability: Holding our leaders accountable through active participation ensures transparency and integrity in our government. 4. Drives Change: Grassroots movements and civic actions have historically driven significant social and political change. Your involvement can make a difference on issues you care about. How to Get Involved: • Vote: Make your voice heard in local, state, and national elections. • Volunteer: Find opportunities to give back to your community. • Stay Informed: Follow credible news sources and engage in discussions about current events. • Advocate: Support causes and policies that align with your values by contacting your representatives and joining advocacy groups. Let’s Celebrate Our Freedom by Taking Action: Today, as we commemorate the birth of our nation, let’s also recommit to being active, engaged citizens. Together, we can build a stronger, more inclusive, and vibrant democracy. Happy Independence Day! 🇺🇸 #FourthOfJuly #CivicEngagement #Democracy #Community #Volunteer #Vote #IndependenceDay #USA #Citizenship

Last week as part of this year’s annual convening organized by the Funders' Committee For Civic Participation, our President and founder Wilnelia Rivera was a panelist at American Requiem: The Fight for the Soul of America, a breakfast session on the present and the future of 501(c)(4) funding. Alongside movement organizations and other consulting firms that work both across the US and locally in Arizona, Rivera Consulting joined the conversation on the impacts and opportunities of multi-entity funding for c4 organizing. Our firm channeled its contributions to this discussion through the presentation of our revamped Deep Democracy methodology: a framework that de-centers the power of partisan elections in favor of building a more inclusive, democracy and social change. We partner with our clients to harness people, places and platforms to inform the future of their work. Through this approach we have identified over 287 counties clustered primarily in the South and the Southwest of the United States with characteristics that hold the potential to have a greater impact on fueling broad-scale social movements capable of reshaping the balance of power on a regional and national level.  The call to action is clear: we must strategically shift our attention toward leaders, activists, and organizations that are in these communities often overlooked by the conventional fifty-plus-one electoral system. Deep Democracy is an invitation and a tool to build legitimate and independent power of representation for BIPOC communities, immigrants, young people, TGNC and LGBTQIA. Join the conversation, partner with us and learn more about our approach to lasting social change: https://lnkd.in/ezKfz-h5

I read everything Danielle Allen writes, and you should too. This article highlights the Healthy Democracy Ecosystem Map - a tool which helps connect civically-engaged neighbors. Sometimes we speak as though the pinnacle of citizenship is voting once every 4 years in national elections. Although voting is critically important, our national political discourse is as toxic as it is, in part, because we have begun to treat voting as sufficient - when, in reality, healthy democracies require a steady drumbeat of grassroots, relationally-grounded, non-partisan civic participation. Or, put another way: Don't boo - serve! "The survival of constitutional democracy depends on people learning to practice democracy at the grassroots level. This entails committing to the rule of law, to constitutionalism, to nonviolence, to inclusion and to taking responsibility for the health of our communities. Hopefully this new map will make it easier to join this cause. Because despite the current political chaos of our country, this much is clear: America is a-buildin’ again."

As we head into an election year, the stakes couldn’t be higher for democracy, and we believe that defending democracy doesn’t start or stop at the ballot box. Our grantees are community builders, voter educators, and grassroots organizers, working year-round to advance racial, gender, and economic justice. Groups like ProGeorgia and the Mississippi Black Women's Roundtable are making strides to ensure that historically underrepresented communities have a voice—not just in this election year, but every year. As funders, we understand that supporting civic engagement during election cycles is crucial—but so is supporting the infrastructure that keeps these movements thriving when the cameras are off. The fight for democracy is ongoing, and investing in community power is key to transformative change. Check out this article on the importance of pro-democracy funding by FJS CEO Nicky McIntyre USSE program officer Paulina Helm-Hernández. https://lnkd.in/gEMWM-Jp

Who is your civic role model? As we approach the upcoming election season, it's worth exploring the critical need for civic role models and how they positively impact our communities and democracy. Read more in TheFulcrum.US👇

#CivicHealth goes beyond voting, and in Georgia, this means there are both some bright spots and some big, important gaps to close. Here’s what a recent Georgia Family Connection Partnership report on the Georgia Civic Health Index uncovered: 📈 Encouraging Signs: Georgia is headed in the right direction on eight indicators. Notably, more Georgians are voting, contacting public officials, and attending public meetings – and I hope these indicators continue to get stronger. 📉 Challenges Revealed: Georgia lags behind national averages in various civic health measures. One that caught my eye, in particular, is that Georgia ranks last across the US in talking or spending time with neighbors. As a child, I always observed my parents investing in deep relationships around us, and I was saddened to hear that this is increasingly rare. 🔄 Strategies for Improvement: The report calls for embedding strategies to enhance civic participation, including education on government and democracy, modifying built environments for face-to-face interactions, and ensuring everyone has the information they need to participate in our democracy. https://lnkd.in/eYpU59QT

📣 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐜𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐫! 📣 A new weekly column by the National Initiative for Civic Education (NICE) in The Nation newspaper, aimed at promoting civic engagement and democratic values. 𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗰𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘆 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿: It's mission is to educate and empower citizens to actively participate in the democratic process and uphold the values of good governance. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁: - Explanations of key democratic principles and institutions. - Profiles of influential democratic leaders and movements. - Discussions on current events and their impact on democracy. - Interviews with experts, activists, and engaged citizens. - Guides on how to register to vote, contact representatives, and make your voice heard. - Spotlights on successful civic engagement initiatives and community projects. 𝗨𝗽𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗰𝘀: - The importance of free and fair elections. - Understanding the role of the media in a democracy. - How to spot and combat misinformation and fake news. - Grassroots organizing and community activism. - Protecting the rights of marginalized groups. - The relationship between democracy and economic development. - Youth empowerment and the future of democracy. We encourage you, our readers, to engage with us and share your thoughts, experiences, and ideas. Together, we can build a more informed, active, and vibrant democracy that works for all. Look for the Democracy Corner every week in their website at www.nice.org for additional resources and updates. Thank you for being a part of this important journey. Let's shape the future of our democracy, one citizen at a time. #DemocracyCorner #CivicEngagement #GoodGovernance #NICE #AfricanPolicyCircle

https://lnkd.in/ezRFHdEV Want to save democracy? Watch less #cable $news; attend more #town meetings A conversation with Harvard #political scientist Daniel Ziblatt about how #democracies die — and how a pro-democracy movement could keep ours alive #ANANDGIRIDHARADAS JAN 11, 2024 ..."you have to get involved with real #organizations, where people are coming together face to face. This can mean #volunteering at your local precinct office of the Democratic Party. It turns out it's a really low bar to get involved. You could very quickly become the leader of the #local precinct office. And then you notice that nobody can meet regularly because they all have kids. So you work to set up a thing where people are sharing childcare duties, and next everyone is thinking about who should be the candidate in the next election. ... they're voting on whether or not to introduce ranked order voting. And some of the defenders of the status quo said, "Well, I understand the national symbolism of this, but what's wrong in Lexington that really needs this reform?" Which I thought was a very good question to ask. And so people tried to make the case, "Well, if you look at who's running for office, it's all the same people over and over. Maybe if we did this, we'd have different people." So, people are engaged at the local level. And they're downloading white papers from Protect Democracy, and understanding the importance of these institutional reforms, and they can then become engaged on that level too. That's my best answer: being engaged through real organizations, whether in local electoral politics, unions, church and religious institutions, that are addressing the real concerns of people's everyday lives. ... There are overwhelming majorities of Americans who do value these institutions and value liberal principles, and value principles of racial equality. I was looking at some survey data on whether or not you think there should be rules, restrictions on where people can live on the basis of race. In the mid-1970s, very high percentages of Americans agreed that there should be. Today, overwhelming percentages of Americans think the opposite, conservative and liberal alike."...

I find it difficult to comprehend why anyone with a functioning understanding of our political landscape wouldn’t support Kamala Harris for President. It’s disheartening to see mainstream media focus on the unfounded claims of two Republicans who don’t deserve a platform, especially in such a critical arena. The over 44 percent of the U.S. population that seems to have relinquished their free-will could have serious implications not just for our country, but for the entire world. We must prioritize informed discussions and support candidates who truly represent our democratic values and a future based on freedoms and not incarceration. https://lnkd.in/eEmFrqR2