By Jacob Klein
Jemez Principles for Democratic Organizing #1: Be Inclusive
If we hope to achieve just societies that include all people in decision-making and assure that all people have an equitable share of the wealth and the work of this world, then we must work to build that kind of inclusiveness into our own movement in order to develop alternative policies and institutions to the treaties policies under neoliberalism.
This requires more than tokenism, it cannot be achieved without diversity at the planning table, in staffing, and in coordination. It may delay achievement of other important goals, it will require discussion, hard work, patience, and advance planning. It may involve conflict, but through this conflict, we can learn better ways of working together. It’s about building alternative institutions, movement building, and not compromising out in order to be accepted into the anti-globalization club.
Welcome back to Jemez Principles: A Column, where I’ll be diving into environmental justice principles for democratic organizing, a tool and a gift for environmental activists to use when working for climate justice. We’re moving into the first of six principles: Be inclusive.
It seems easy enough, right? Many of us already consider ourselves inclusive: anybody is welcome to join the fight. Oftentimes, however, there’s more at play than we might realize.
It’s so easy to get entrenched in habits, to fall into the structures we were socialized into, to keep our focus narrowed. In many ways, this helps us make sense of the wild world that we live in. But it can also prevent us from including everyone that can and should be involved.
Being inclusive is not as easy as simply inviting someone different than you to the table and expecting everything to change. That’s a lot of work for one person to take on! So how do we do it? I’ll tell you right now, that it’s not the easiest work — but it’s possible and it is rewarding. As the principle above states, it requires inclusion at every level. It requires hard work, patience, and planning. And it takes time.
Conflict will arise, but conflict is an opportunity for growth. I remember a situation in which I was working on a sign-on letter and hoped to get BIPOC-led organizations on board. I circulated the letter asking for feedback and hoping for sign-ons, while also working against a perceived timeline. I did not end up getting the sign-ons I hoped for. Why? Because I didn’t collaborate with these organizations to put this letter together, I simply showed it to them and expected their support.
Since then, I’ve realized that there needs to be discussion and planning with your desired collaborators before asking for something. I’ve worked hard to build and maintain long-term relationships that rely on checking in and opening space for conversations.
It takes more time, which is hard for us when we are keenly feeling the looming threat of climate change. But dedicating that time leads to more generative and more groundbreaking results. At the core of organizing lies people. Imaginative, daring people. You never know what you might be missing, what brilliant solution may exist, if those imaginative daring people aren’t in the room with you.