Organizing During Crisis

People power has the potential to create monumental change — and this has never been more evident than now. Understanding how to organize safely during the recent crises has resulted in some of the most creative and collaborative movement building we’ve seen in recent times.

Take it from Sarmishta Govindhan, RAN’s NY Organizer. She’s been hard at work developing safe in-person activities, informative and inspiring webinars, and large, impactful online actions, while also cultivating partnerships to support Black and Indigenous voices through the Movement to Defend Black Lives and the Fire Week of Action. As she highlights,

“We are making an intentional shift to more international and global solidarity-based campaigns.”

Today’s pressing issues are driving movements to the streets amidst the worldwide pandemic. With a focus on making change together, we also have to stay safe. This is pushing us to try new tactics — like ending a letter writing campaign with a live stream of masked activists delivering 50,000+ petitions to the house of David Long, CEO of Liberty Mutual, the primary funder of the TransMountain Pipeline.

Grassroots power and movement building remain central to the way RAN creates change. We are constantly seeking creative and accessible ways offline and digitally for our supporters to engage, ensuring our movements continue to have energy and impact.

Here’s our advice if you want to get involved:

• Follow all of the precautions set out by your county/city and the CDC
• Always prioritize your health and mask up when you are going out
• Scope the action area beforehand so that you know how busy it will be
• Focus on actions that don’t require you to stay out in public for long, extended periods

Plug in to the work by emailing us at organizinghelp@ran.org.

 

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