In the 10 years that have elapsed since Si Kahn published the first edition of Organizing,
the world has changed dramatically. Political leaders have come and gone, international
barriers have fallen, and wars have been won and lost. Some people have prospered.
However, large numbers of people have not fared well. In fact, many of the problems that
confront people in nations all over the world have worsened in the last 10 years. Far
too many people are bearing the brunt of a growing number of serious social problems. In
the United States, for example, homelessness, violence, drug abuse, and poverty have
increased dramatically in recent years. An increasing portion of the population is living
in persistent poverty, and millions of men, women, and children must go without adequate
medical care. A growing sense of powerlessness and disenfranchisement is being experienced
in varying degrees by people all over the world.
Social problems and their concomitant human distress have been escalating, but U.S.
government agencies have too often failed to be of much help. In fact, it can be argued
that government has actually contributed to the worsening of many social problems during
the past 10 years. Tax policies have concentrated more wealth in the hands of fewer
people, and more people are finding themselves increasingly economically disadvantaged.
To get a sense of the growing concentration of wealth, one has only to consider the
fact that between 1977 and 1990, the top 1 percent of Americans' after-tax share of U.S.
income rose from 7 percent to 11 percent (Phillips, 1990). In 1986, so-called tax reform
reduced top individual tax rates for millionaires from 70 percent to 28 percent, while
establishing a higher special rate of between 28 percent and 33 percent for the one-fifth
of American taxpayers who fell into the middle-income category.
Politics in the United States and other countries centers on the question of
power—who is in control, what policies they pursue, and on behalf of which
constituencies (Phillips, 1990). For more than a decade, Americans have lived in a
Dickensian period that has been the best of times and the worst of times: Those who were
already prosperous became more so, whereas those whom prosperity had eluded lost ground.
Phillips described a new political economics characterized by "intensifying
inequality and pain for the poor, the unprecedented growth of upper-bracket wealth, the
surprisingly related growth of the federal debt, global economic realignment" (p.
xxii).
The social and economic problems confronting people today are debilitating. They sap
energy and destroy morale. Yet, problems can be solved if people learn to act
collectively. People joined together to tear down the Berlin Wall and to overthrow
repressive governments in Eastern Europe. But to become empowered to bring about positive
and lasting change, people need to be organized. Fortunately, organizing skills can be
learned.
Social workers deal with the human misery that accompanies social problems caused by
the new political economics. Thus, it is fitting that this revised edition of Organizing
be published by the NASW Press. The social work profession has long been committed to
empowerment, and that is really the ultimate goal of any grassroots organizing effort.
Early social workers like Jane Addams and others in the settlement house movement
advocated that people should be perceived not only as individuals, but also as members of
social grottos and cultures affected by the social, economic, and political conditions in
which they lived. To this intellectual position they added the moral imperative of calling
for changes in conditions they identified as unjust. The early settlement house pioneers
also believed that people affected by unjust conditions should themselves be involved in
efforts to change these conditions, and they facilitated this involvement (Breton, 1990).
Historically, social workers have been concerned about those who suffer from any form
of oppression and have espoused the values of self-determination, group autonomy, mutual
aid, and concern for the "common good" (Middleman & Wood, 1990). The social
work profession has also been committed to social reform, recognizing "that
institutional change was a prerequisite to actual relief of suffering" (Wilson, 1976,
p. 11). Social workers like Bertha Capen Reynolds were advocates for the working class and
oppressed groups, as well as advocates for social workers and others to become unionized
to better their working conditions and the lives of their clients (Reynolds, 1991). Small
groups can be powerful change agents and vehicles for mutual aid. Early social group work
agencies were organized around what Wilson (1976) termed "the problems of people,
rather than people with problems" (p. 7).
However, early social workers who were organizing and working with groups were careful
to define their role as enabling individuals to come together and develop their own
leadership and decision-making structure. In this enabler role, they recognized the
importance of starting where the group was and becoming less central as the group
developed over time.
Those who become involved in organizing activity today share a knowledge and skill base
with those early social workers, regardless of the cause or issue they focus on. The
organizer—professional or lay—needs to identify individuals and organizations
who will provide financial and other types of support to enable the organizing effort to
be started and carried out. A concern or issue must be identified, goals must be selected,
and a plan of action developed (Gilbert & Specht, 1987).
Grassroots organizations may be created for various purposes, but these purposes
generally focus on bringing about change. Some grassroots organizations are formed for
express purposes such as improving relationships between community members from different
racial or ethnic groups. Other grassroots organizations may seek to educate members and
provide them with enriching emotional and cultural experiences. Still other grassroots
organizations may have the goal of changing conditions that affect community members,
including securing certain rights, improving the educational system, developing low-cost
housing, or getting improved police protection for a neighborhood. Regardless of the
particular purpose of a grassroots organization, all successful organizations share
certain characteristics.
Successful organizations involve people who are willing to take risks to bring about a
more participative democracy. They find the results well worth the effort, because
"when people unite, fight for—and win—improvements that they care about,
they become self-assured and self-reliant, and become more in control of their personal
lives" (Industrial Areas Foundation, 1990, p. 8). Grassroots organizing is
people-oriented work that involves holding meetings, talking with a wide range of
individuals and groups, and operating in collective settings with multiple agendas while
maintaining a commitment to the democratic process. Grassroots organizers must develop
skills in creating and working with coalitions, understand the political process and how
to affect power structures, be able to confront sexism and racism, and develop skills in
fundraising (Burghardt, 1987).
In this book, Si Kahn identifies the knowledge and skills needed to become a successful
grassroots organizer. He presents this material in a manner that is equally useful to both
professional and lay people, and he writes with the wisdom of one who has been successful
in doing that about which he writes.
Richard L. Edwards, Past President, NASW
Dean, Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences
Case Western Reserve University
References
Breton, M. (1990). Learning from social group work traditions. Social
Work with Groups, 13, 21-34.
Burghardt, S. (1987). Community-based social action. In A. Minahan
(Ed.-in-Chief), Encyclopedia of social work (18th ed., pp. 292-299). Silver Spring,
MD: NASW Press.
Gilbert, N., & Specht, H. (1987). Social planning and community
organization. In A. Minahan (Ed.-in-Chief), Encyclopedia of social work (18th ed.,
pp. 602-619). Silver Spring, MD: NASW Press.
Industrial Areas Foundation. (1990). IAF 50 years: Organizing for change.
Franklin Square, NY: Author.
Middleman, R. R., & Wood, G. G. (1990). From social group work to social
work with groups. Social Work with Groups, 13, 3-20.
Phillips, K. (1990). The politics of rich and poor. New York: Random
House.
Reynolds, B. C. (1991). An uncharted journey: Fifty years of social work
by one of its great teachers. Silver Spring, MD: NASW Press.
Wilson, G. (1976). From practice to theory: A personalized history. In R.
Roberts & H. Northen (Eds.), Theories of social work with groups. New York:
Columbia University Press.
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