Community Organizing

M8: Choosing an Ethical Framework

The modern paradigm that came about in the twentieth century is the main framework in traditional community organizing groups. This is the main idea that new groups would come about to replace old ones. As long as an organization can be automated and services will be held, if it fails This framework usually uses hierarchies as the structural framework and is part of the reason that the organization would later become akin to a business with the strict regulations and lack of an ethical understanding how a group with good intentions can later negatively affect other groups. For example, spreading of nuclear industries has led to more industries but also to more of a likelihood of nuclear disasters as more will increase the chance of a factory breaking down (McKnight & Plummer, 2015, p. 239). The meltdown in a factory will cause the environment to become inhospitable for people and it would have to be evacuated.

Then there is Quality of Life paradigm, which is the ideal ethical framework. This framework takes into account the surrounding areas and effect of expanding. This is the response to the modern paradigm. There are not that many that go with this ideal since an industry has to grow or else they face extinction. This framework is meant to be used by the local communities but is meant to be self-contained to make the best impact. This would be local community organizations that represent only their community. The problem with this framework is that there are other communities that could benefit from such a group but they would have to rely on their community members and hope for someone to start a similar group. There are people who hope that these type of groups would expand to other communities but not every town’s problem is the same. It takes the people from a community to see the problems that need to be solved.

Reference

McKnight, J. S., & Plummer, J. M. (2015). Community organizing: Theory and practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

M8: Reflection on Cultural Competency

Identify the major cultural and economic groups in your target community or focal area.

The majority of the Dreamers are actually of Hispanic Descent, which means that most political groups that are supporting the Dreamers are also in support of other Hispanic groups such as Nicaragua’s TPS status has been revoked and they will have to leave the United States.

Think about your own cultural history. Identify areas where your own cultural history will be an advantage to you.

Many of my family members came through the United States illegally and some may have to go back because the Trump administration has already removed the TPS status for Nicaragua and gave a short renewal of six months for Honduras. My family are from El Salvador, one of the areas with the most TPS holders. However, I am a U.S. citizen and will probably face the harsh reality like the Dreamers, but I do know how they will feel when I say that I had family members that were deported and some that may be deported soon. I use my family history to show that I am on their side.

Identify places where you may be disadvantaged by your own ethnicity, class, skin color, political views or language.

Some people may feel that I am siding with the Dreamers because I identify too much with them and the Dreamers may not trust me because I may know people who were deported but I myself will not will be deported.

How will you practice cultural competence?

Culture competence is present when a person understands how their culture affects their values, thoughts and behavior (McKnight & Plummer, 2015, p. 249). I am showing cultural competence by comparing my background to the Dreamers but actively listening to them to understand their culture to better help their cause.

How will you bridge gaps among different groups?

It is understandable that the Dreamers’ issue may become a race issue. This may cause others to feel excluded and this group would have to show inclusiveness to other groups that may be a part of the Dreamers. There will be open discussions to make sure that no voices will be silenced, there should be an understanding in the group that this affects others that may have the same background but they all suffer the same fate.

What (if anything) scares you about working with different groups? What excites you?

I am excited to work with other groups to help them stay in this country. Several of the Dreamers are coworkers, neighbors and friends. Many have been going to college and working, basically being model citizens through paying taxes and avoiding trouble with the law. I have met several in my life and I believe in this cause. I may be afraid to get out of my comfort zone but I did receive positive feedback from my local representative so I hope for the best in the future.

What do you wish you knew more about?

I wish there was more I can do to get people on this issue. It seems now people are distracted by several issues now, especially since the repeal of net neutrality had just happened recently. There is only so much I can do to retain a person’s attention. There is not much I can do besides that.

Reference

McKnight, J. S., & Plummer, J. M. (2015). Community organizing: Theory and practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

M7: Policies and Politics

Discuss the regime policy of the current US administration (or the administration of your own country) and how it may affect your initiative.

People will no longer be able to reapply for Temporary Protected Status through DACA because President Donald Trump removed DACA since executive orders can be removed without intervention by the next president in line (Lester, 2016). The Department of Homeland Security has been ordered to phase out the program and anyone with DACA will keep their benefits until they expire (U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services, 2017). Once their papers expire, they won’t be able to work or go to school legally anymore and they could be deported at any time. Congress must decide on their behalf in six months to see if they will retain their status. Currently, Congress is still sitting on the decision for the Dreamers. There is a constant back and forth that even Trump allowed for an extension of the final decision when the deadline was approaching. It is still not clear if there will be a decision at all.

Discuss the regime policy of your state or provincial government and how it may affect your initiative.

New York has been proactive in their policies for immigrants. The Attorney General for New York has also even gone on the record to show that he would protect the New Yorkers’ rights even if it goes against federal regulations (Eberhart, 2017). Governor Cuomo also promised that there would be a lawsuit if DACA was removed (Vielkind, 2017). This state has been very welcoming to immigrants and that can be shown with New York City being a sanctuary city. There is also the fact that there are several immigrants coming to New York specifically because it is welcoming to immigrants.

Identify any other regimes (i.e. county or local government), their policies, and how these policies may affect your initiative.

The only sanctuary area in this state is New York City, which means that there are still instances where business owners would call local agents from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to detain any illegal immigrants working in competitor businesses. There are also cases where a local supermarket in Long Island regularly calls ICE to clear out any illegal taxi drivers. Now, there are plenty of support for the Dreamers especially now, but there are not many ways they can protect themselves once their papers expire.

Analyze congruencies and discrepancies among the policies of the various regimes that impact your project. What challenges will you face because of them? Note: Even projects that at first glance would seem to have nothing to do with political regimes can be impacted by them. For instance, religious-based projects can be influenced by underlying government attitudes and policies toward faith-based initiatives and/or the status of minority religions. Self-help groups can be impacted by the kind and amount of services available to their members. We all are impacted by tax laws, economic policies, and military decisions.

The Dreamers will most likely lose their legal status before Congress even makes a final decision for them. It is more likely to see no solution. Chances are many will go into hiding, as they did before they had these issues. There is no clear solution other than to convince others that they need to talk to their congressmen that there must be a decision soon to help the Dreamers to remain here. The Republicans still have a majority in Congress and that usually means that they must listen to their party lines. This would mean that they would have to refuse to compromise in a deal that allows the Dreamers to stay especially since several Dreamers came here illegally. The political climate and indecision in the air will kill their legal status either way and there is nothing they can do.

Sectoral Policy. As society has changed over time, there has been a tendency for social institutions to divide into smaller and smaller functional areas. In government, these functional areas are usually delegated to separate areas of authority such as departments, projects, programs, etc. that are linked in the familiar “pyramid” structure of typical bureaucracies. Identify the social sector of your target initiative and the sectoral policies that may affect it at all governmental levels (federal, state, county, local, etc.).

I have considered various local grassroots organizations and one that caught my eye was Long Island Dream Act Coalition who have protested the DACA repeal recently. It would be their job to convince voters to persuade their congressmen to pass some sort of legislation before the Dreamers lose their legal status. Before their fight was their path to U.S. citizenship, but now the fight is to remain in the United States. The social sector that the Dreamers have used and still use is immigration organizations or coalitions that advocate for their safety in the United States. People will go back to hiding and there will be a difficult time where people will feel safe enough to go to a local immigration organization to find help in their case.

References

Eberhart, C. J. (2017, September 15). Schneiderman vows to protect NY from ‘volcano of bad ideas’ coming from nation’s capital. Retrieved from http://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/westchester/2017/09/15/schneiderman-vows-protect-ny-volcano-bad-ideas-coming-nations-capital/668383001/

Lester, M. (2016, March 2). Lester Law – Preparing for the Trumpocalypse: What Happens to DACA? Retrieved from http://lesterlaw.org/preparing-for-the-trumpocalypse-what-happens-to-daca/

U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services. (2017). Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals 2017 Announcement. Retrieved from Department of Homeland Security website: https://www.uscis.gov/daca2017

Vielkind, J. (2017, September 4). Cuomo, A.G. promise lawsuit if DACA ends. Retrieved from https://www.politico.com/states/new-york/city-hall/story/2017/09/04/ny-leaders-promise-lawsuit-if-daca-ends-114268

M7: Policies Applied to Your Project

Analyze the demands and supports for change that impact your target project.

The mission of everyone trying to help this community is for citizenship or a path to citizenship for the Dreamers. These people are here and have lived in this country as Americans but at any moment, they could be taken away and sent to a country that they can’t call theirs. This shaky ground where they have lived alongside citizens of this country but the only difference is where someone happens to be born. It is the fact that they lack legal status that they can’t go to college or find a well-paying job like other people.

Analyze groups, forces, and policies that may oppose your target project.

The Trump administration and the constituents that support the Trump administration are the main opponents of the Dreamers. President Donald Trump removed DACA since executive orders can be removed without intervention by the next president in line (Lester, 2016). The Department of Homeland Security has been ordered to phase out the program and anyone with DACA will keep their benefits until they expire (U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services, 2017). Once their papers expire, they won’t be able to work or go to school legally anymore and they could be deported at any time. Congress has to make a decision on their behalf in six months to see if they will retain their status.

News organizations such as Fox News has established a fear for illegal immigration to their viewers as well by excessively going out of their way to air news of an illegal immigrant committing crimes. The Trump administration and the news have pushed a narrative that drives constituents away from our cause.

Discuss ways that you might increase demands and supports for your project.

The group will be focusing on sharing on social media the struggle of the Dreamers. Sharing the possible ways to talk to their congressmen and raising awareness on the possible consequences that may happen to the Dreamers if we don’t act now.

One of the approaches discussed before was interviewing the people affected and creating a journey narrative. This narrative is an easier way for the public to digest the information that shows the experiences of the people affected (McKnight & Plummer, 2015, p. 301). This way, the Dreamers’ issue can be seen as a human issue. There would also be surveys on the updated demographic of the dreamers.

The plan would be to gather interviews with Dreamers. Then there would have to be an ad campaign that would show sound bites of the interviews or brief summaries. There would also be ad campaigns would also include some information from the surveys showing how the Dreamers contribute to society.

Identify key stakeholders for your project and strategies that will be needed to gain their support.

The key stakeholder is the congressmen. Currently, the only way to solve this situation would be Congress to pass legislation that would give Dreamers a more permanent status. The Dreamers are also a key stakeholder, they are the main ones affected by legislation since their immigration status is still questionable.

Identify any gatekeepers that can either open doors to make your project possible or can keep you from receiving the support you need.

Constituents are the most important to convince since they are the ones who can convince the congressmen to vote in favor of DACA. Our main priority is to convince the constituents that the struggles of the Dreamers and how their lives will be affected once their Temporary Protected Status expires.

Discuss any political or community processes that will be needed to enable your project to take place as well as the support and opposition you are likely to encounter there.

The only way to allow the Dreamers to have any way to become U.S. citizens in the future is through Congress passing legislation. The Executive branch can not legally use the executive orders, which means the DACA that was placed by the Obama administration had no staying power.

Identify various outputs of the process including the ideal outcome, compromise outcomes, and undesirable outcomes and your likely next steps for each.

The ideal outcome is a pathway to U.S. citizenship since they have lived their lives in the United States but were not able to obtain the benefits of a citizen. The compromise would be Permanent Residence since there would not be a threat of deportation and they are able to obtain some of the benefits of U.S. citizenship.

The worst-case scenario that may happen in the current status of DACA, then their papers will expire. Then they will most likely go into hiding to avoid deportation, which means they will lose their employment, education, and even the place they live in if they have a lease or mortgage. It is also legal in Arizona to stop cars and ask for the person’s papers to see if they are legal so they could get caught faster.

Discuss the feedback (i.e. evaluation) process, how you will demonstrate success, and how you will maintain support for your project.

Since most of the campaign will be based on social media campaigns, the success will be measured by the amount of sharing per post. This will be a great measure to see how many people the posts are reaching. Maintaining support will prove to be difficult because this has been an ongoing battle for decades and the end has never seemed brighter before. There can be a sense of apathy that could be present as we go along our campaign. The people who will most likely stay are the people who stand to lose the most, Dreamers and their family members. Maintaining support will be done by organizing meetings and get-togethers to regain our focus, in a sense, and to update the participants.

References

Lester, M. (2016, March 2). Lester Law – Preparing for the Trumpocalypse: What Happens to DACA? Retrieved from http://lesterlaw.org/preparing-for-the-trumpocalypse-what-happens-to-daca/

McKnight, J. S., & Plummer, J. M. (2015). Community Organizing: Theory and practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services. (2017). Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals 2017 Announcement. Retrieved from Department of Homeland Security website: https://www.uscis.gov/daca2017

M7: Identifying Your Personal Power

Threat and Destructive Power

Currently, polarizing our base is the most damaging to the cause. Bashing politicians such as President Donald Trump. The campaigns and advocacy for the Dreamers would have to convince people that this is a bipartisan issue where both parties should be concerned with the decision. This would prove difficult if the group is attacking politicians, political parties or even ideologies.

Productive Power and Exchange Behavior

Generally, the work towards spreading the group’s message would be the top priority. Time and skills in social media should show results in the number of shares depending on the website used. The plan would be to gather interviews with Dreamers. Then there would have to be videos of these interviews shared on social media such as Facebook and Twitter. Soundbites will be put into the shorter Twitter Videos and Facebook will have the more moving interviews being shared. Members will be encouraged to share their stores on the main Facebook page for the group.

Relationship Power and Integrative Behavior

This power involves keeping our group together, to not lose hope since this has been a long uphill battle. The group will be listening to the voices of the Dreamers and will be sharing the voices so that others will know and understand their struggles.

Knowledge Power and Informative Behavior

Abilities with social media will be highly depended on, especially for sharing the campaigns. There will be people who can access the data from the studies put them out as usable soundbites for the campaigns. There is also the people who will be in charge of gathering the information for the posts.

Position Power

The hierarchy will be based on the skill set and the leadership will be led by a board of members. The people who will post the final products on social media will have the most power on what will be allowed and what will not. Their job will be editing and finalizing the post comprised of the writers. The lowest rank would be the information gatherers since they only bring the information and not changing it to help the narrative. Then there will be writers and people to interpret data in the middle of the hierarchy. However, the positions are not permanent, people can do other side projects and bring it in to be evaluated by the final editors. This way everyone will have a chance to contribute but not feel trapped in a position.

The power dynamics of the group can be utilized to better the content that will be used to promote the narrative that constituents need to contact their congressmen for action to be shown. As an individual, I am powerless but as a group gets larger, the message will reach more people much faster.

M6 Connectivity and the Internet

Ms. Seelinger has pointed out how the only solution can be made by Congress and this all depends on them. The voters are the only one to convince their congressmen (Seelinger, 2017). The main issue is that this making a decision is considered to be a partisan issue because the law has to go through in a Republican-majority Congress and their stance on immigration is very strict (Adams, 2017). The campaigns and advocacy for the Dreamers would have to convince people that this is a bipartisan issue where both parties should be concerned with the decision.

The connection to the congressmen is the main way to establish change for the Dreamers. Now, connecting with your congressmen has never been easier. The Resistbot.io allows for people to send a letter to your congressmen. All you have to do is text RESIST to 50409 or message RESIST to Resistbot.io on Facebook messenger. Their instructions will be shared and you can send a message that will be emailed to your congressmen. We will promote this way and other ways to contact congressmen on social media. There will also be campaigns shared on our Twitter and Facebook pages that will tag congressmen.

The plan would be to gather interviews with Dreamers. Then there would have to be videos of these interviews shared on social media such as Facebook and Twitter. Soundbites will be put into the shorter Twitter Videos and Facebook will have the more moving interviews being shared. Members will be encouraged to share their stores on the main Facebook page for the group. The Thunderclap feature to spread our cause faster. This works by creating a short message that will be shared and a link. Then there will be a deadline established on when the message will be shared. We would share the link to our Thunderclap on our social media pages to have people join the Thunderclap. The day the message will be shared will have everyone who signed up will have the post on their social media. The goal here is to have the message reach as a trending topic.

There are several ways the group intends on motivating change.

References

Adams, G. (2017, September 6). Opinion | How – and why – to help the ‘dreamers’. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/how–and-why–to-help-the-dreamers/2017/09/06/386d7a8c-929b-11e7-8482-8dc9a7af29f9_story.html?utm_term=.97c61cf8be51#comments

McKnight, J. S., & Plummer, J. M. (2015). Community organizing: Theory and practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

Seelinger, L. (2017, September 11). 7 Ways To Help DREAMers Get The Support They Desperately Need Right Now. Retrieved from https://www.bustle.com/p/7-ways-to-help-dreamers-get-the-support-they-desperately-need-right-now-80799

M6 Planning and Implementation

Your choice of planning strategy (traditional planning, advocacy planning, or participatory planning), your rationale for choosing it, and the steps you will take to implement it.

Advocacy Planning:

Advocacy planning is the strategy being used for this group. Since the group work would be online, there would be no pyramid of positions for the different work that will be done, There also a specific goal that needs to get across and there has to be a constant barrage of campaigning to reach our overall goal for the Dreamers (McKnight & Plummer, 2015, p. 131).

Mission Statement:

We seek to address the obstacles faced by Dreamers with the removal of DACA and believe that by empowering immigrant youth, we can advance the cause of the entire community to create a permanent path to citizenship.

Outcome Goals:

The main goal is to encourage others to contact congressmen and other voters. The overall goal would be to have a path to citizenship for the Dreamers.

Evaluation:

Goals for social media would be the measured by the number of people interacting with our social media pages and how many congressmen contact us.

A description of practical aspects of the project

First, there will the group’s social media pages will be created. Then, there will be scheduled interviews with Dreamers in my current area that I will record. Then, there will be group meetings on what should be included in our video posts.

Then there will be coordinated posts shared to influence the public to contact congressmen.

Implementation strategy

Factors supporting the actualization of the project

There is a need for change now more than ever before. This can be used as an energizing force to motivate our group.

Factors blocking the actualization of the project

Possible infighting occurring since there hasn’t been a solution for the Dreamers since 2001 and allies of the Dreamers may be seen as eventual enemies. As much as I would like to think I can help them, the Dreamers may be intimidated by others who don’t share their struggles. However, this can be combated by having Dreamers’ voices heard and acknowledge that the allies are here to amplify their voice, not stifle it.

Tactics to reach objectives

Interviewing the people affected by the DACA removal and creating a journey narrative. There would also be surveys on the updated demographic of the dreamers. These interviews will be used on our social media page along with information on how to contact congressmen.

Approaches to using to involve others

One of the approaches discussed before was interviewing the people affected and creating a journey narrative. This narrative is an easier way for the public to digest the information that shows the experiences of the people affected (p. 301). This way, the Dreamers’ issue can be seen as a human issue. There would also be surveys on the updated demographic of the dreamers.

Reference

McKnight, J. S., & Plummer, J. M. (2015). Community organizing: Theory and practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

M5: Participatory Research

Collect as much information from various websites as you can using the guidelines in Chapter 7, Appendix One and the readings for this course. Summarize what you learn.

My focal community will be the Dreamers. These are the young men and women who came to the United States as young children and grew up as Americans. The recipients of DACA are between the ages of 15 and 36 (Walters, 2017). They have come to the United States before becoming 16 years old and have lived. The majority of recipients are from Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala, which means most of the recipients are of Hispanic descent. According to a survey, 96% of the recipients who responded are either in college or employed and approximately 56% have had their wages have since increased (Wong, Richter, Rodriguez, & Wolgin, 2015). By location, most recipients live in California, New York, Texas, and Florida, residing mostly in metropolitan areas.

The current political climate is the reason that their status in this country is questionable now. People will no longer be able to reapply for Temporary Protected Status through DACA because President Donald Trump removed DACA since executive orders can be removed without intervention by the next president in line (Lester, 2016). The Department of Homeland Security has been ordered to phase out the program and anyone with DACA will keep their benefits until they expire (U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services, 2017). Once their papers expire, they won’t be able to work or go to school legally anymore and they could be deported at any time. Congress has to make a decision on their behalf to see if they will retain their status.

From my research, It would seem appropriate to show our support for our group by organizing demonstrations such as protests in local political functions or online campaigns to get as many constitutes noticing the Dreamers. The plan is to get the people who have the power to vote to use their power to help the Dreamers. The Dreamers have Temporary Protected Status, meaning they are merely protected from being deported and they have no say in what legislators do.

All forms of previous immigration reform for Central American countries have only been placed as Temporary Protected Status. Some individuals may be able to apply for refugee status but the conflict in their countries may not be enough for the application to be approved.

Develop a research plan from the descriptions in Chapter 7 and Appendix One. What sorts of research work will you need to do to really determine what is going on? Briefly define the form and content of what you will need to do…At this point I only want an outline of what the team wants or needs to do. Do not actually do any formal research with human subjects such as surveys or formal interviews, that would require that you go to the college’s Institutional Review Board and is beyond the scope of the course. If you decide to follow through after the course, the information will be yours, not ours.

Since this would have to be done by a grassroots group, the research work would take the problem-center approach. This approach is appropriate since this issue cannot be actively worked on by the community this is currently affecting (McKnight & Plummer, 2015, p. 302). The main way to fix this problem is to convince other people to act. The research will be based on what could be done to show that these people deserve to stay here.

One way to show voters that the struggles of the Dreamers are through interviewing the people affected and creating a journey narrative. This narrative is an easier way for the public to digest the information that shows the experiences of the people affected (p. 301). This way, the Dreamers’ issue can be seen as a human issue. There would also be surveys on the updated demographic of the dreamers.

References

Lester, M. (2016, March 2). Lester Law – Preparing for the Trumpocalypse: What Happens to DACA? Retrieved from http://lesterlaw.org/preparing-for-the-trumpocalypse-what-happens-to-daca/

U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services. (2017). Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals 2017 Announcement. Retrieved from Department of Homeland Security website: https://www.uscis.gov/daca2017

Walters, J. (2017, September 14). What is Daca and who are the Dreamers? | US news | The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/sep/04/donald-trump-what-is-daca-dreamers

Wong, T. K., Richter, K. K., Rodriguez, I., & Wolgin, P. E. (2015, July 9). Results from a Nationwide Survey of DACA Recipients Illustrate the Program’s Impact – Center for American Progress. Retrieved from https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/immigration/news/2015/07/09/117054/results-from-a-nationwide-survey-of-daca-recipients-illustrate-the-programs-impact/

M5 Small Group Dynamics

What was the team or small group What was its purpose or mission?

Well, the first leadership group I joined was the National Honor Society chapter in my high school. Most of their activities were volunteer tutoring for the school and community service trips around the community. The purpose of the group is to “recognize those students who have demonstrated excellence in the areas of scholarship, service, leadership, and character” (National Honor Society, 2017).

What was your role in the group?

I was mainly a member who volunteered to tutor Geometry.

Trace the development of the group across time…Think about the form, storm, norm, perform stages…Tell the story of the group as it passed through them.

This group uses contingency-based management since the group’s main actions are volunteering and giving back to the community (McKnight & Plummer, 2015, p. 88).

The chapter was disorganized. There were no volunteering in the school during my first two years in the group. There was a different teacher overseeing the group during the first two years. I never was able to keep up with the updates because meetings would be random. I actually didn’t realize I was a part of this group until halfway into my freshman year. The teacher in charge of the group walked passed me the hallway and handed me a flier for a trip. Apparently, you can become a member automatically when you have the appropriate grades, but I was never informed I was a part of it until later. Initially, there was single leadership with the first teacher being in charge of the group’s activities, which limited communication in the group (p. 76). The students would be invited to trips, even if you never went to a meeting in the first place. Then the new teacher would be placed in charge for my junior and senior years of high school. The new teacher placed a representative democracy. This leadership allowed for students to vote for the trips and opened up conversations (p. 77). There were other students who were voted to be the treasurer, secretary, vice-president, and president of the chapter each year I participated in the group. People were asked to join the group in September for the first meeting. The new leadership allowed for more opportunities for trips to volunteer and the tutoring program also help the school itself.

What were the strengths of the group? Or putting it another way, what did you learn from participation that you would definitely apply in a community organizing leadership group?

After a change in leadership, the group was able to participate in the school and the community more efficiently volunteering. I learned that establishing a democracy and allowing for input from other members with voting helped to open new opportunities.

What were the weaknesses of the group? Or, put another way, what did you learn not to do?

I learned not to remove any choice for the volunteer. I also learned there has to a way for the volunteers to gather regularly. The weaknesses created disillusionment in the participants. Participation during the years before the change of leadership was the lowest in years.

What challenges do you anticipate in developing and maintaining a leadership group for your organizing venture?

Gathering members and active participation are the initial challenges I expect to face if I intend on creating a leadership group. Starting the group will be difficult especially since the purpose is a permanent solution for the Dreamers. It would make sense for the group to work online and through phone because the idea is to reach as many voters and congressmen as possible. There would have to be enough participants for Congress to notice and react.

Is there any way your fellow students or I could help you in developing your leadership team?

The most persuasive people that can persuade the political climate are the voters. Calling your state senators and representatives would be the most helpful. The voters are also the most hurtful to this cause because if there are no calls to Congress, then it would look like people don’t care.

References

McKnight, J. S., & Plummer, J. M. (2015). Community organizing: Theory and practice. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

National Honor Society. (2017). About Us. Retrieved from https://www.nhs.us/utility/about-us

M4 Choosing an Organizing Variety

My focal community is the Dreamers. These are the young men and women who came to the United States as young children and grew up as Americans. The currently several of the Dreamers were recipients of DACA, they are between the ages of 15 and 36 (Walters, 2017). They have come to the United States before becoming 16 years old and have lived in this country for most of their life. The majority of recipients are from Mexico, El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala, which means most of the recipients are of Hispanic descent. According to a survey, 96% of the recipients who responded are either in college or employed and approximately 56% have had their wages have since increased (Wong, Richter, Rodriguez, & Wolgin, 2015).

The mission of everyone trying to help this community is for citizenship or a path to citizenship. These people are here and have lived in this country as Americans but at any moment, they could be taken away and sent to a country that they can’t call theirs. This shaky ground where they have lived alongside citizens of this country but the only difference is where someone happens to be born. It is the fact that they lack legal status that they can’t go to college or find a well-paying job like other people.

The only way to have this mission accomplished is legislation by Congress has to be passed. It is for that reason that the most effective way to convince senators and representatives is through grassroots advocacy (Empire State College, 2017). Several coalitions have been formed over the years since the first time the DREAM Act has been introduced in Congress in 2001. The purpose of these coalitions is to convince voters to persuade their congressmen to pass some sort of legislation before the Dreamers. Before their fight was their path to U.S. citizenship, but now the fight is to remain in the United States. Now there has to be immediate action to be done because of the removal of DACA. It is important to talk to your congressmen to pass a more permanent solution for the Dreamers. Actions for several of these organizations also include protest. These protests including sit-ins, marches, and community meetings. All of these actions are shared on social media. One example of the sit-ins happened in 2011, recent high school graduates were doing a sit-n in Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices in Los Angeles (Zimmerman, 2011, p. 14). This was before DACA was put in place and they were protesting the constant deportations that were happening under the Obama administration. They were disheartened by these actions especially considering that Obama promised to bring some amnesty for the Dreamers. Another big part of these organizations is to share their stories to help people see the human side of the lack of legislation can rip apart families.

I will likely join a local coalition, such as the Long Island Immigrant Student Advocates, to see if I can participate in their protests. I can’t go to Washington D.C. and do a sit-in in the offices of the senators, but I will see what they are currently doing. I will also contact the Hispanic Caucus and Senator Orrin Hatch.

References

Empire State College. (2017). M4 Book: Overview of the Varieties of Community Organizing [Content Reading]. Retrieved from https://moodle.esc.edu/mod/book/view.php?id=1689746&chapterid=148136

Walters, J. (2017, September 14). What is Daca and who are the Dreamers? | US news | The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/sep/04/donald-trump-what-is-daca-dreamers

Zimmerman, A. M. (2011). A Dream Detained: Undocumented Latino Youth and the DREAM Movement. NACLA Report on the Americas, 44(6), 14-17. doi:10.1080/10714839.2011.11722133

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