Our Work
Fighting for economic and social justice for working class Detroiters
We are building a powerful movement that will transform the city through issue and electoral organizing, legislative advocacy, and grassroots mobilization.
Deep Community Organizing
Elections aren’t the end for civic engagement; they are only the beginning. We believe that in order to create political power for our members and our communities, our organizing must engage with the state, against the state and within the state. That means building and supporting the necessary political bench of candidates and elected officials that reflect our values, creating the necessary structural changes that make civic engagement easier in Michigan while pushing our government to reflect our values in policy that is created.
Detroit Action has a long-term commitment to building a base of activist leaders that continue to engage the political process long after the election. We believe in developing the power of working class Detroiters and marginalized communities to reshape our political process. To do so, we incorporate these leaders into organizing committees that remain active on issue campaigns and local politics after the election.
Our year-round membership canvass engages Detroiters on the issues that matter most to them. We hold monthly political and voter education sessions that provide our communities with a framework for making change in our neighborhoods together.
Cultural & Relational Organizing
Elections, politics and organizing don’t have to be boring. By definition, community organizing exist in order to build relational power with community. We can set the terms of our discussion with elected officials and our community by engaging them with our culture. Through both technological innovations, cultural and traditional organizing, our organization aims to build community and engage members on issues by meeting them where they are.
We utilize the social relationships of our staff and membership to engage them on what we are fighting for as well as to mobilize our community into action.
Leadership Development & Training
We provide periodic training our members on leadership, specific organizing and activist skillsets, and political education training to help members understand the issues of the day well enough to educate others throughout our community.
Detroit Action driven campaigns provide opportunities for our members to step up and take on leadership through the course of a campaign. When members are engaged in decision-making, strategizing, and action planning, the collective capacity of the membership builds for the next fight.
In order to build and center the experiences of people of color, we rely on using a number of trainings that emphasize storytelling. It is through those lived experiences that we shape our policy, power-mapping and cultural organizing.
Yearly, we partner with our friends at We The People Michigan to send our members and staff to their Detroit Community Organizer Workshop.
We also hold trainings every other week at our Soup Kitchen chapters on Monday, Tuesdays and Fridays.
Services
We provide direct services as an opportunity to challenge the inequality that is seen in our community while creating an opportunity to organize those who are in need to become victors instead of victims against the system.
We utilize the social relationships of our staff and membership to engage them on what we are fighting for as well as to mobilize our community into action.
Youth Organizing
Detroit Action’s Youth Organizing is a committee made up 14-19 year olds from across Metro Detroit working to build a better community for young people. We believe in the potential of our generation to use organizing and advocacy to change politics as usual. We utilize these tools to develop the next generation of young leaders in Detroit.
What we do
A survey by the Black Youth Project 100 found that in late 2012, the most-common reason young Americans gave for not voting was that they were not registered. Young people who are registered to vote turn out in high numbers, very close to the rate of older voters. Youth voter registration rates are much lower than older age groups’ rates, and as a result, guiding youth through the registration process is one potential step to closing the age-related voting gap. We not only believe in registering young people, but we want to eliminate structural barriers that prevent youth from having their voices heard – at the ballot box and in the halls of power.
Community Organizing + Youth Development = Youth Organizing. If we are interested in developing the leadership of young adults and students in the public arena, then we must focus our attention on engaging them in issue-based campaigns that allow them to be fully ingrained in the full civic process. We’re committed to educating, training, and empowering the next generation of Detroiters and design our programs to act as a springboard for young leaders to enter the life of political and public service.Through leadership development and political education, our youth leaders develop not only the skills necessary for participation in civic life, but also the motivation and inclination to participate.
Organizing doesn’t have to be boring and political education doesn’t have to be civics class. Young people who are contacted by an organization or a campaign are more likely to vote. Through both technological innovations, cultural and traditional organizing, our organization aims to build community and engage members on issues by meeting them where they are.
Organizing doesn’t have to be boring and political education doesn’t have to be civics class. Young people who are contacted by an organization or a campaign are more likely to vote. Through both technological innovations, cultural and traditional organizing, our organization aims to build community and engage members on issues by meeting them where they are.
Our mission
Our mission is to build the power of individuals and families to challenge the root cause of poverty, advance justice, and promote human development through neighborhood-driven community organizing and civic engagement. We believe in creating a just world where everyone has housing, healthcare, quality education, and a live-able environment.
Our model
To build an organization that serves as our members’ and staff’s political home. We believe in a Detroit Action where we can learn, build relationships and create the type of community that we deserve. Regardless of immigration status, race, or gender identity, all can find safety, support, and solidarity here. Everyone who comes through our doors with an individual story of abuse and exploitation finds that they are not alone – that in collectivizing our experiences and voices, we can build the power to change not just one case, but entire systems.