Case Study: Warm Cookies of the Revolution
What
“A
civic health club” where, like a gym for your physical health, you can exercise
your civic health
When
2013
to present
Where
Denver,
Colorado
Practitioners
Evan
Weissman
Further Insight:
What is the
best way to get people active and engaged within their community?
Well, at
Denver’s Warm Cookies of the Revolution,
the strategy takes the form of a “civic health club.” Similar to a regular
health club, the organization aims to get people actively participating and
supporting each other – except, with the end being the overall wellness of the
community. Warm Cookies understands
that a big deterrent for people from getting involved is the boring and often
complex format of civic discussions – like city budgets, for example. So, it strives
to make activism fun and bring the issues home in a relatable way. “Want to talk about how government
should be run? Fine, but we’re going to build a LEGO city together while it
happens!” they exclaim.
A key premise
of the organization is grounded in the idea that anyone can – and should – get
involved. When we leave activism up to the “smart people” in society “who care
and who are trained,” we implicitly send the message to everyone else that “you
don’t get it” or “you don’t have the time,” according to creator, Evan
Weissman. But with Warm Cookies, he
says it’s like, “Hey, I see you have a little bit of time and a little bit of
money and it’s all taken and you’re raising kids [. . .] and that little bit
extra you are spending on what is fun” – whether that is shopping, sports, art,
or whatever people are interested in. So, instead of pushing you away, Evan says: “Let’s do it; let’s do what you
like but let’s make the connections.”
In this way, Warm Cookies attracts people who
wouldn’t otherwise be engaged and encourages them to take action. “I want anyone to get more involved. I want
people to recognize that we own the community,” he says, describing a way of
thinking that is revolutionary in its own right.
Equally
significant for Evan is the notion that activism is active, not passive. With
his origins on the stage, “Making Theater” at the Buntport Theater and beyond
in Denver since 2001, much of how Evan frames the work of his organization
recalls the realm of performance art. Active activism seems like an obvious
concept, but Evan underscores its importance, explaining, “I think activism
that rests on its laurels or does something that worked before without thinking
about it or criticizing it to improve it then falls out of the realm of
activism for me. You become a reenactor
and I think reenacting is not – it’s not acting, it’s not activist.”
For Evan,
activism ultimately requires thought and effort – but that doesn’t mean that it
has to be inaccessible; and it is that idea that is clearly reflected in the
organization of Warm Cookies.
“First,” Evan states, “the question is to do what’s right. And that’s the thing
that prevents people from doing anything.” Then, “as soon as you decide that, I
think you have to be as creative as you can and to be effective” – combining
creativity and action. Warm Cookies
achieves this winning combination through its popular game nights,
letter-writing nights, and other events such as their well-known “Civic Stitch
‘N Bitch” nights in which participants listen to guest presenters while they craft.
As for the
effectiveness aspect, Evan sees Warm
Cookies as providing community members with the opportunity to achieve that
first “do something” step – and in a
way that is disarming. In the future, he hopes that Warm Cookies of the Revolution will continue to do hands-on stuff
and push a little bit harder on the active-ness quality. Because, in any case
of activism, Evan reminds us, “You’ve gotta want to win.” But to do that, you
have to, first, start somewhere and build your base by welcoming people in.
Theories
Narrative power analysis (244)
The Tactics of Everyday Life (268)
The social cure (264)
Why It Works
If
you can be think strategically through your Fantasy Football picks, then you
can translate that energy and brainpower to the topics that affect your everyday
life in a community. Sure, they’re different subjects, but are the ways in
which we talk about them that
drastically different?
Tactics Used
Forum Theater (48)
Prefigurative Intervention (82)
Key Principles at Work
Anyone can act (98)
Bring the issue home (106)
Make new folks welcome (150)
Reframe (168)
Team up with experts (184)
New Principles Used
Disarm with charm
For
some people, taking that major step to pick up a protest sign and march in the
streets is no biggie. But for others, getting a start in activism is a little
intimidating. Warm Cookies of the Revolution makes the pathway in a bit
smoother by providing people with the knowledge and skills they need in
settings that feel familiar – or at least disarming. Learning about the
struggles for housing via the game Monopoly is a much more “charming” way to
draw people in than a straight lecture-based format. Adults want to have fun,
too.
We each have a piece of the puzzle
Although
Evan is the leading force behind Warm Cookies of the Revolution, he and his
team never assume the front of having all the answers on all of the issues
pertaining to the Denver community. They certainly pull in the experts with
specific knowledge in various fields, but they recognize that the community
members that come in hold parts of the whole picture, as well. It’s not a
completely hierarchical nor a completely decentralized model, but, rather, one
that recognizes the role that each individual has to contribute.
No comments:
Post a Comment