Community Organizing and Development

by Rubin, Herbert J.; Rubin, Irene S.

• ISBN13: 9780205261161
• ISBN10: 0205261167
• Edition: 3rd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2001-01-01
• Publisher: Allyn & Bacon

Summary

This is the long-awaited revision of a well-known and widely used text in community organizing. The text provides a comprehensive introduction to the wide variety of approaches that guide social change, social activism, and community building work. Community Organizing and Development links various theories of organizing to the techniques and tactics of practice. It is vividly illustrated by dozens of real-life practice examples. It balances descriptions of protest actions and visible projects with the behind-the-scenes routines that make such work possible. The text describes and illustrates the skills and organizational techniques needed to undertake successful community projects, such as converting a former crack house into safe, clean, affordable housing.

Table of Contents

Preface	xi
PART ONE Organizing for Empowerment	1	(22)
Organizing for Collective Empowerment	3	(20)
People, Problems and Feelings of Powerlessness	3	(6)
When Organizing and Development Efforts Succeed	9	(4)
Social Change is Accomplished through a Variety of Democratic Organizations	13	(3)
Contrasting Models of Organizing and Development	16	(5)
Our Approach to Organizing and Development	21	(2)
PART TWO Resolving Social Problems through Organizing	23	(52)
Understanding and Combating Social Problems	25	(27)
What Constitutes a Problem is Socially Framed	26	(2)
Social Problems and Contemporary Organizing	28	(1)
Poverty and Economic Inequality	29	(3)
Urban Restructuring and Fights Over Space	32	(3)
Government Policies and Social Problems	35	(12)
Implications for Organizers	47	(5)
A Thumbnail Sketch of the History of Community Organizing	52	(23)
A Brief History of Neighborhood Organizing	53	(11)
Lessons from History	64	(6)
Community Organizing and Social Work Education	70	(2)
Conclusion	72	(3)
PART THREE Empowerment and Community Building	75	(42)
Creating Empowerment for Collective Action	77	(20)
The Multiple Meanings of Empowerment	77	(2)
How People are Kept Disempowered	79	(10)
Building toward Empowerment	89	(6)
Collective Empowerment	95	(2)
Understanding Community	97	(20)
Building Community Within Neighborhoods	99	(9)
Constructing Community Memberships	108	(3)
Network Linkages	111	(1)
How Social Bonds Can Divide	112	(3)
Visualizing Community	115	(2)
PART FOUR Mobilizing and Sustaining Community Activism	117	(118)
Organizers: What They Do and How They Learn To Do It	119	(21)
Sketches of Organizing Work	123	(3)
The Skills and Roles of the Organizer	126	(3)
Framing What Should Be and Can Be Done	129	(3)
Learning to Be an Organizer	132	(3)
Organizing is Both a Calling and a Career	135	(4)
Conclusion	139	(1)
Mobilizing for Collective Action	140	(24)
Mobilization Bootstraps	141	(1)
Theories and Research Findings about Mobilization	142	(6)
Mobilization Models	148	(3)
Mobilization Tactics	151	(13)
Gaining Power through Community Research	164	(25)
What Topics Do Community and Social-Change Organizations Research?	164	(2)
Doing the Research	166	(2)
Data Gathering Techniques	168	(18)
Using the Research Data	186	(3)
Building Capacity in an Empowered Organization	189	(26)
What Organizations Accomplish	189	(2)
Organizational Tensions	191	(7)
A Prelude to Organizational Administration	198	(16)
Building Empowered Organizations	214	(1)
Developing Capacity through Participatory Meetings	215	(20)
Characteristics of Good Meetings	215	(2)
Membership Meetings	217	(1)
Agendas, Bylaws, and Rules of Procedure	218	(3)
Focused Decision-Making Meetings	221	(8)
Training Meetings	229	(4)
The Role of Democratic Leadership	233	(2)
PART FIVE The Social Action Model	235	(23)
An Overview of Action Campaigns	237	(21)
The Overall Purposes of Social Action Campaigns	239	(2)
Understanding Perceptions and Realities of Power	241	(9)
Action Campaigns are Part of a Long Process Built Up of Intermittent Successes and Failures	250	(3)
Values that Guide Social Action Campaigns	253	(5)
Creating a Campaign Using a Variety of Tactics	258