After you’ve weighed the pros and cons and made the vital decision about whether to find an activism-based community, enhance an existing community, or create a community from scratch, it’s time to take the next steps. That’s fairly simple if you’ve found a community: contact them and go through their intake process if they have one. But if you’re enhancing a community or building one of your own, it’s a bit more complicated. Never fear! The How Part 2 is here!

This post focuses on how to enhance existing communities. Organizations vary in both their structure and member makeup, so these steps aren’t meant to be taken as a precise guide. Instead, think of them as vague directions coming from someone with a visual learning disability who still needs Google maps to go to the grocery store down the street. That’s, in fact, what they are. 

How to enhance an existing political community to include more community building

• Approach the leadership of your organization, unless of course you are a leader in your organization and have already approached yourself. Make the argument to them that your org would benefit from some community building. Send them my blog posts. Or, better yet, point our specific instances within your particular organization which would have had better consequences if folks were closer to one another. Data is useful. Stories are more effective. 
• Plan social events with some sort of structure. Although unstructured events can be fun and build relationships, there’s a strong risk that the discussions will turn political if there is no clear alternative. So, run a game of Among Us or Blood on the ClockTower or a group workout. That way, community members will have to discuss something other than the upcoming protest or last night’s newstory.
• Once COVID is over, provide drinks, alcoholic or caffeinated. People like to have something to sip during awkward silences. 
• Encourage others to plan their own social events. People are invested in the things they create. Hopefully, this creates a positive feedback loop leading to more and more events. 

How to enhance an existing community to participate in more activism

• Have an honest conversation with yourself before you act. How unified are your community’s political values? To be clear, they don’t have to be perfectly aligned. You might believe that the downfall of capitalism is necessary to curb the climate crisis whereas another member of your community believes that government restrictions will suffice. Both of you would be comfortable attending a climate change protest. However, if your community is extremely politically diverse, incorporating political activism may not be the best move. Instead, you could focus on charity work like raising money for Child’s Play. 
• Pull out the tea and finger pb&j sandwiches (I hate all other sandwiches) and host a book club that reads books about political issues. Activism begins with education. And if the members of your org aren’t a particularly politically charged bunch, start simple. No communist manifesto necessary. If You Come Softly by Jacqueline Woodson is a YA book that is political and also leads to everyone balling their eyes out. I highly recommend it. 
• Invite your fellow members to volunteer for a political organization. This is logistically easier than attempting to organize your own event and shows the members of your organization what activism looks like and how rewarding it is. 
• Remember that protesting isn’t the only option. Protestors need to be fed. Voters need to be called. Activist organizations need fundraisers. Choose activities that fit your organization’s needs and capabilities. 
• Don’t make it miserable or overly time-consuming. One or two events a month is enough. If people aren’t invested and the work is too difficult, they’ll stop. Be more patient than persistent. 

None of this is easy. Humans are strange and unpredictable creatures. Unforeseen problems arise. Go slowly. Breathe frequently. Incremental progress is still progress.

Next week, I will discuss the preliminary steps involved in starting your own activism-based organization and embrace the opportunity to brag about my accomplishments.