Inclusive politics is a framework that makes space and creates structures for the leadership, needs, and victories of who we have identified as our communities: primarily people of color, and specifically, women of color. It means that those lived experiences, perspectives, and ideas are represented in our government and power structures.
During our brand transition process last year, a large part of the discussion around the inclusive politics framework was about how and why we give specific people credit and space in our collective imaginations. We talk a lot about unseen labor, forgotten actors, and unwritten histories — what if we had the chance to start uncovering some of that? To start taking up space that we know we deserve, and that is rightfully ours?
We know that communities of color and specifically gender non conforming folks, queer folks, and women of color are often left out of conversations and not invited into the “room where it happens.” We know that having these conversations and staking your claim can be super uncomfortable and awkward because of power, gender, race, class, and other social dynamics. We also know that when we challenge these norms and build our own kingdoms, people come through.
So we decided to start practicing what we preach and tell the story of how one of our premier trainings, Digital Organizer School, came to be:
In 2016, I was excited and thrilled to work with this org to help create and run the very first Digital Organizer School. The organization had recently acquired the great and expansive tech work formerly housed in the New Organizing Institute, and hired a technical and organizing leader in Aliya Rahman. So I met with Aliya and talked about what it would look like to create a digital training that centered race, class, gender, and social justice. So I called my friends Amber Philips and Sabrina Hersi Issa to join me, and asked them to help me think about who else we could convince to do this. A few phone calls, texts, and many emails and meetings later, the first training team for Digital Organizer School was born.
In 2017, Jane Booth-Tobin took leadership of the program. In her role as Director of Digital Organizing and Trainer Development, she’s cultivated relationships with that original training team, brought in new folks, and has spent the last three years growing and building and making it even more inclusive and expansive and relevant to the current political moment. It’s exactly what we said we wanted to do. And we did it.
So, as we pack our bags to get ready to head to the seventh ever Digital Organizer School (going four years strong!), we thought it was time to record some history and start a practice of giving props to the people who breathed the life into the work we do. Over the week, the class will learn more about:
- Writing compelling emails
- Building strong digital relationships with supporters
- Challenging dominant narratives & incorporating stories into online campaigns
- Introduction to HTML/CSS & Intermediate Javascript/GitHub
- Analytics & Testing
- Online advertising
- Mobile Campaigning
- Digital Security
- Online Fundraising
- Design for the Movement
We’re also super proud of the class we’re going to meet:
A more inclusive politics means that we put our values in action — by building on the work of our ancestors, our communities, and expanding the space that we take up in our public imagination, we can win.
