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Neighbor Power
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Jim Diers details the blossoming of community empowerment in Seattle with his new book, Neighbor Power: Building Community the Seattle Way (University of Washington Press).
Under three mayors, Diers guided Seattle's innovative Department of Neighborhoods, making it into a national model for other cities wanting to strengthen their core communities. Bringing a community organizer's savvy and vision to the work of municipal governance, he made a big difference in a city that many now look to as a beacon for urban revitalization.
In this excerpt from the first chapter, Diers talks about how getting people engaged in their communities means rediscovering democracy.
Chapter 1: Valuing Community
The Department of Neighborhoods' Origins
Local governments throughout the United States are facing a dual dilemma. Their resources are not keeping pace with increasingly complex social issues, especially when the federal and state governments are devolving more responsibilities than money to them. Voters are reluctant to approve additional resources because they feel a sense of alienation from their government at all levels.
The common response has been to "reinvent government" to be more like a business with a greater emphasis on efficiency and customer service. Although it is true that government needs to improve its business practices, there is a danger inherent in treating citizens as customers. To the extent that government treats citizens only as customers, citizens think of themselves only as taxpayers and feel that much more alienated from their government.
"True democracy requires deeper involvement than going to the voting booth once a year."
This deep sense of alienation is often misdiagnosed as apathy. Statistics showing that fewer and fewer people are voting and are joining community organizations have led some to the conclusion that increasing numbers of citizens no longer care about their community or their government. This analysis, I believe, blames the victim. Citizens don't vote because they have seen little evidence that their votes matter. The 2000 presidential election only confirmed what so many people already suspected: their votes didn't count. Likewise, people hesitate to join community organizations because they are tired of attending meetings that lead to nothing but more meetings. Whether they are participating in a planning workshop or a discussion of bylaws, too many people have a hard time seeing a positive relationship between their civic involvement and the quality of their lives.
I am convinced that people still yearn for a sense of community and want to contribute to the greater good. They also want a voice in their government. What they are looking for has less to do with reinventing government than it does with rediscovering democracy. True democracy requires deeper involvement than going to the voting booth once a year; people need to be engaged in their communities and with their government on an ongoing basis. People will commit to such involvement to the extent that they see results.
Continue reading Chapter 1 of Jim Diers' Neighbor Power.
Neighbor Power is available through our secure online form, or you can order over the phone: (212) 620 5660. We accept MasterCard, Visa, checks and money orders.
