What can Deliberative Democracy movement and Community Organizing learn from each other?

What are common values & practices between DD and CO?

• They are forums for action and it is about empowering people.
• They both emphasize that power rests with the participants vs. outsiders
• Each can be a tactic for the other.
• Tension: with D&D, you have to be a neutral convener, but the community organizing field may have an intended outcome.
• Both are about relationships
• Both are change processes
• They both struggle with the issue of power, but in different ways.
• Common values – inclusion
• There is a difference that DD focuses less on issues of social justice and often feels more academic whereas CO feels more “blue collar” and “boots on the ground.”

Highest aspirations for collaboration between DD and CO?

• There are shared tools for determing values. The two can work together to develop evaluating tools.
• We must understand the history or story behind each tactic and when it worked.
• DD can learn more about dealing with the power dynamic. CO can learn collaboration from DD.
• Our messages (language) should reflect our role as OF the community.
• The two approaches are interdependent.
• Both are looking toward something sustainable – the community can carry on without outside influence.
• Deliberation can be useful in unearthing issues and CO can help mobilize people around the issues that are identified in the dialogue.

Strategies that are possible:

• Hold a conference on this theme. Identify key bridging organizations in the field.
• Develop a shared vocabulary.
• Let the community know the benefits of both. But the community does not make the distinction.
• Be more intentional about the relationship. Change the culture of higher education to make the community more infused into the institution. Need a model for how scholars and community members can work together.
• Whether or not it is named as DD and CO, need diagnostic tools for the community.
• Make this work less boring to people – think about how this could be less boring.
• Pick an issue to mobilize energy, particularly among young people.
• Using stories about people doing this exciting work.
• Celebrate success more!

Nugget:

If the practitioners see the difference, then the comunity will see the difference. This is a disservice to the community.

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