En breve

Al hacer uso de las prácticas, rituales y símbolos de su comunidad, los organizadores pueden intensificar la implicación de los participantes, desorientar a los oponentes, y cambiar el terreno cultural a su favor.

Beautiful Trouble es una caja de herramientas en constante expansión. Algunos conceptos (¡este, por ejemplo!) sólo están resumidos. ¡Ponte en contacto para ayudarnos a ampliar esta pieza!

Never go outside the experience of your people. . . . Wherever possible go outside the experience of the enemy.

— Saul Alinsky

Ejemplos del mundo real

The Genki Spark: Taiko Projects with Attitude

The Genki Spark is an Asian women's arts and advocacy group that uses Japanese taiko drumming to foster community and leadership.

How Hip Hop Became the Force Behind Gabon’s Political Activism

In Gabon as in other African states, rap has become instrumental in constructing political identity.

Aprende más

Whose Culture Has Capital? A Critical Race Theory Discussion of Community Cultural Wealth

Tara Yosso, Race Ethnicity and Education, 2005

Cultural Organizing: Experiences at the Intersection of Art and Activism

Javiera Benavente with Rebecca Lena Richardson, 2012

Riesgos potenciales

Exclusion: When drawing on culturally specific practices, there is always a risk of alienating not just opponents, but also people you would like to welcome into your effort. Then again, this is true of any cultural practice: protest marches, press conferences, sit-ins, and other organizing staples all energize some folks while making others feel excluded (see: THEORY: Political identity paradox) and (see: PRINCIPLE: Make new folks welcome). If exclusion is an issue, it can be moderated by adapting or combining practices from different cultural communities; educating allies on the meaning of the practices; or carefully selecting practices that are welcoming. For example, the freedom songs of the African-American civil rights movement combined Black spirituals and white folk music as a way to assist in organizing across racial lines.

Appropriation: Organizers must also be aware of the dangers of simplification and appropriation. Cultures are complex and dynamic, with blurry boundaries and lots of internal diversity. They cannot be reduced to a small set of symbols or art forms. Those who are not directly involved in a cultural community may have a particularly difficult time understanding this complexity. Beware of appropriating aspects of a culture you do not fully appreciate or understand, no matter how pure your intentions.

Contribuyente

Paul Kuttner

Paul Kuttner is an educator and researcher who works at the intersection of art, culture, education, and social change. He has taught theater, creative writing, and civic engagement in schools and community organizations, is a co-author of A Match on Dry Grass: Community Organizing as a Catalyst for School Reform, and serves as Minister of Cultural Scholarship for the US Department of Arts and Culture.

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Utilizar los recursos culturales

En breve

Ejemplos del mundo real

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