Giving Compass' Take:

• LISC explains the importance of establishing strong, local organizations in producing more racially equitable community development.

• The article offers certain approaches to improving local organizations. How can you get involved in providing these establishments the resources they need? Why are they essential in making sure equity issues don't get overlooked?

• Learn more about how to get better involved with your community.

Contemporary community organizations do not always arise from activism. Sometimes they form to advance more equitable local outcomes through programs and services. Still, many of the groups with which LISC works grew directly out of movements for racial justice and community control, and they maintain their commitment to these causes to this day.

Now, during a period of growing national inequality associated with race, income, and wealth, these same organizations – as well as emerging ones – continue play a crucial role in the country’s broader needs for greater “equality of conditions.”

This role is crucial because local organizations can both advance more equitable community development, and also promote policy solutions that are responsive to local needs – preventing “arbitrary rule,” to quote Tocqueville. Or, to use more contemporary terms, community groups can voice demands that advance racial and economic justice.

Precisely because they are so familiar with local need, community organizations have needs of their own. They are often under-resourced. To meet changing local conditions, they must continuously learn new skills and tactics, and raise money to expand their scope and programming. And all this while maintaining their connections to the grassroots and serving as effective advocates.

This report describes strategies that can build the capacity of local organizations to meet the contemporary challenges of inequality. Recognizing that equitable outcomes result from the work of local organizations as well as the influence of broader public policy decisions, the report focuses on capacity building both at the grassroots and at the systemic level. This multi-pronged approach can create powerful organizations and at the same time channel more resources to community residents.

Read the full article about the importance of local organizations in fighting inequality at LISC.