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3 Ways Social Justice Organizations can Navigate the Current Political Chaos

Writer's picture: Robin Wright-PierceRobin Wright-Pierce
A vibrant and colorful illustration depicts a diverse group of people actively protesting, with individuals holding megaphones and raising their fists amidst a backdrop of flags and dynamic movement.
A vibrant and colorful illustration depicts a diverse group of people actively protesting, with individuals holding megaphones and raising their fists amidst a backdrop of flags and dynamic movement.

The chaos has begun; don't be consumed by it. 


As social justice organizations, you have taken up the charge of creating a more just and equitable world. This means that there are millions of people who are looking to you for hope, inspiration and guidance on what to do at this moment. The reality is there will be many people, including even those who voted for President Trump, who will begin to experience, and are already experiencing, a tremendous amount of hardship as their lives are dismantled by insidious attacks on  every facet of our democracy, diplomacy and collective functioning.  Friends, now more than ever you must be effective in your endeavors to advance social justice. Now more than ever you must move with wisdom, courage and discernment  that allows you, your organization, and the movements that you are building and are connected to to be the calm in the center of the storm.  The hope of our nation depends on you.  


How can social justice organizations navigate the current chaos?


  1. Get clear about where your power lies. With so much happening so quickly, it is critical for you to stay focused and disciplined in your actions. You must be clear about what your role is in the movement ecosystem. You must also understand your organization’s leverage points for impact and effective resistance. Are you a power building organization? Are you a policy organization? Are you a legal advocacy organization? Depending on the moment and the political leverage points, the roles of each type of advocacy are different. 


    We recently worked with an organization that is being consumed by the chaos.  The leaders and staff are running rampant trying to respond to all of the things happening as a result of the tyranny of our current administration. We are currently helping them clarify what is theirs to do at this moment. We know from experience that if they continue down this path they will quickly burn out, overwhelm their base, and diminish their overall effectiveness. Instead, we are helping them to get clear about where their power and influence lies.  


    We each play a critical role in the movement. We must do what is ours to do well and trust our colleagues across the movement to do the same. 


  1. Play the long game. While we are stuck with Donald Trump and his highly unqualified administration for the next four years, in less than two years we will have the opportunity to elect an entirely new congress, alongside a slew of senators and governors. This presents a critical leverage point for resistance.  The reality is, the strongest impediment to the tyranny of President Trump and his administration is a strong congress or the United States Supreme Court.  In other words the worst thing we can do is to get so caught up in the chaos of each and every decision made by the Trump Administration that we cease to do the power building and infrastructure building work required to ensure that in 2026 the congress that is elected is one that will wield their power in a way that balances the power of the presidency. While we're doing this, we must work over the next 10 years to take back the US Supreme Court and to wrestle our state houses and our governor offices from the hands of extremists who fail to truly work for we the people. 


  2. Be systematic and prioritize sustainability: There's a lot to do.  In the coming years the list of growing concerns, challenges and chaos will increase before reset and re-emergence or new becomes possible. It is important given this reality to be systematic and to prioritize your collective sustainability over urgent and chaotic movement. One of the ways that we are doing this at Transforming Change is that we have biweekly reset meetings focused on assessing capacity, and prioritizing our commitments. During these check-ins we ask ourselves how we are managing the load. Are there places where we need to lean in more? Are there places where we are swimming in over our heads? Are there deadlines that we have created that can and should be moved to alleviate unnecessary stress and capacity constraints? Are there things that we need to move to the forefront in order to leverage a strategic opportunity? Are there things that we should move to the background because they simply are no longer feasible to accomplish in this current political climate. We work alongside our partners and clients to help them do the same. In this way we are ensuring that we are being systematic, intentional and sustainable and our pursuit of a more just and equitable world.


The reality is, there are limits to what we can carry and how we can realistically operate. We must be wise warriors, each grounded in our purpose, clear about where our power lies, anchored in the long-game, and moving forward sustainably. The hope of our nation lies with us.

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