Family Activism Empowering Your Community, Beginning with Family and Friends

by Vargas, Roberto

• ISBN13: 9781576754801
• ISBN10: 1576754804
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-06-08
• Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers

Summary

We tend to focus on trying to solve big societal problems, the big barriers that separate us, but, as Roberto Vargas argues, the most promising path to change is actually the most accessible and the most universal: the family. In our daily family and friendship circles, we experience countless opportunities to empower, inspire, and support positive change in others. What if we could look at those experiences as the seeds of bigger, broader change? In this new guide for change advocates, Vargas explains how fostering familia - the feeling of connection we have with our relatives or with those we choose to call family in all our relationships is the first step toward tackling broader problems in our community, our nation, and the world. When we start working for change at this most local of local levels, the relationships we build, and the respect and love that we show one another within the boundaries of family, becomes a model for all interactions with all people.

Author Biography

Roberto Vargas is principal consultant for New World Associates. His clients have included colleges, corporations, public institutions, Native American reservations, and over 150 agencies and organizations dedicated to community service

Table of Contents

Preface	p. ix
Introduction: Awakening to Activism	p. 1
The Family Perspective	p. 7
Making Family Your Cause	p. 9
Principles to Guide Family Activism	p. 25
The Familia Approach	p. 43
Family Activism and Transformation	p. 59
Tools for Family Power	p. 73
Getting Your Act Together	p. 75
Creating Family Connections	p. 89
Co-powering to Battle EL NO	p. 107
Love the Children	p. 121
Learn, Communicate, and Teach	p. 135
Be the Facilitator	p. 151
Forming Unity Circles	p. 181
Moving from Family to Community Power	p. 197
Creating Powerful Family and Community Gatherings	p. 199
Expanding Family Action into Community Action	p. 213
Conclusion: Praxis and Blessings	p. 231
Acknowledgments	p. 235
Notes	p. 239
Index	p. 247
About the Author	p. 255
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