Historically, ignoring the role of class has weakened movements for social and economic justice. Successful efforts at creating a fairer and more sustainable society must be broad-based and include people of every race, age, gender, and geographic area – and class. Class segregation remains one of the most persistent, widespread, and under-recognized factors in society today.
Class Action provides trainings and organizational consulting to social change organizations and to community-based nonprofits.
Our program staff takes participants through deep, creative, and engaging explorations of class issues. Through this educational process, activists learn how to address class barriers that hamper their effectiveness. Participants learn about how to identify classist practices or assumptions in their work and workplace; how to create an organizational culture that is fully welcoming and respectful of the full range of class backgrounds; how to design equitable policies and practices; and how to build cross-class alliances.
The Exploring Class workshop is excellent and very pragmatic. It holds space for analysis, emotion, connection and reflection.
As part of our own social change work, we:
- Create spaces for consciousness raising and education about class with workshops, presentations, organizational consulting, etc.;
- Engage the public on issues of socioeconomic class through the media, published materials (books, DVD, pamphlets, etc.), and our website (www.classism.org). Our website provides resources for individuals and organizations alike, receiving an average of 15,000 visits per month;Build cross-class alliances by consulting with organizations and institutions on addressing internal class cultures and biases;
- Build a national, sustainable network of cross-class, anti-classism trainers, and develop the tools and resources to support them; and
- Design and produce multi-year initiatives to bring about deep, systemic change ininstitutions.
An example of our social change work is Women Building Bridges for Economic Development and Justice. With funding from the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts’ Seeking Common Ground initiative, this two-year collaboration with four local congregational churches and the Survival Center (a community-based organization for low-income people) raised awareness of class, facilitated cross-class alliances, and created a women’s economic development project in the local community. Class Action also co-led with United for a Fair Economy a two-day training of trainers and activists in rural Franklin County, Massachusetts, called Building a Local Economy that Works for All.
To explore collaborations with your group or organization, contact Class Action at info@classism.org.
