Community Liason Constructive Action

Introduction

The purpose of this semester was to learn the meaning and skills of becoming a Community Liaison or Community Organizer. Coming into the semester I had what I believed was a clear understanding of what a community liaison was based on the work I had done in the past. I learned however during this semester that what I had done was barely touch the surface of what the role entails. This semester taught me a lot and I now believe that I would be able to do a better job at helping the population I serve work with the community collaboratively.

In learning about the role of community liaison I was required to analyze some literature that was written by Saul Alinsky, Gabriel Thompson and President Obama and give my understanding of what they felt the role of a community liaison was. Although their beliefs were very similar, they each had a unique few that was their own.

In reading the works of Saul Alinsky I soon discovered that his take on the role of a community liaison was to make a radical change. Alinsky felt that a good organizer would need to understand that all revolutions had a difference, although the meaning behind each fight would have the same significance which would be to get fair conditions for the “have not’s”. Alinsky believed that it was necessary for a community organizer to be able to stay affluent with the changing times and in order to do so they would need to be “loose and resilient” which he discussed in his book “Rules for Radicals” (Alinsky, 1971).

In studying Gabriel Thompson I found that his approach to community organizing took on a more traditional approach in the sense that he believed that a neighborhood would be best assisted by being given the tools and skills needed to empower themselves to be able to be what he called change agents. His method for conducting community organizing included what he viewed and believed to be “people working together to get things done” (Thompson, 2007). This approach was more familiar to me because of the way I had worked in the role of community organizer in the past.

Barrack Obama was inspired to become a community organizer by his belief in a need for change. He felt “change will come from mobilized grass roots.” (Obama, 2004). Barack felt that Blacks had not formed their own community. Even though there were the familiar images of protest and sit ins, he believed a community was based on a common belief driven through shared sacrifice. He was also driven by the idea of a larger American community that would be comprised of all races. He called this “a promise for redemption” (Obama, 2004).

I am extremely inspired by the words of all the for mentioned organizers, but more so by President Obama. He is representation of the fact that determination fueled by passion can result in positive change. My beliefs are that with commitment and dedication I can in the role