A Social Fabric Strategy for Neighborhood Organizing

Abstract

During the past four years I have done extensive case studies of neighborhood organizations in twelve cities, as part of a project of the National Association of Neighborhoods. It was no great shock to find that all the organizations studied follow one of the three traditional strategies: Pressure strategy: the political approach, also known as the social action or protest strategy. It involves a neighborhood organization pressing other organizations, usually governments, to take or halt certain actions in order to advance the goal of the neighborhood. Services strategy: the self-help approach, sometimes labeled community development, aimed at improving morale and well being. The neighborhood organization supplies services directly to individuals; may involve housing development and various economic ventures. Funds come principally from outside the neighborhood. Hybrid strategy: a mixture of pressure and services. Over time most neighborhood organizations seem to move toward this mixed strategy.