Political capital is not gunpowder, you can't hoard it and then mass bombard on a specific target. It's a muscle you have to exercise over and over again through usage.
Such an important point Laura. My own origins as a local YIMBY organizer happened because of a splashy project in my hometown that other YIMBYs supported loudly. Abstract policy campaigns can be good for mobilizing true believers, but they’re hard to build membership around. Normal human beings rarely connect emotionally to housing issues unless they see a real project (and the ridiculous opposition it generates), and people will only dedicate their free time to an issue if they feel emotional about it
This is such a great piece. I'm temperamentally a city-wide/statewide policy person. But project-by-project advocy is absolutely valuable and complimentary. Yes, and.
100% agree with you. One of the most important principles of organizing is that you need to have concrete things that people can do to become engaged, with visible results. Doing fun things together is also crucial to effective organizing, and YIMBY is good at this!
Regarding the Safeway project: I am constantly in shock over the assumption by the Chronicle that this is bad for San Francisco. Can someone please explain to the Chronicle how their beloved City is going to die if developments like this are not built?
I also think it's a great way to develop evidence for the apathetic or agnostic. If I try tell my parents about how insane NIMBYs are, they're not going to care much without concrete examples of NIMBYs shriekingly opposing the most mundane developments.
Political capital is not gunpowder, you can't hoard it and then mass bombard on a specific target. It's a muscle you have to exercise over and over again through usage.
Such an important point Laura. My own origins as a local YIMBY organizer happened because of a splashy project in my hometown that other YIMBYs supported loudly. Abstract policy campaigns can be good for mobilizing true believers, but they’re hard to build membership around. Normal human beings rarely connect emotionally to housing issues unless they see a real project (and the ridiculous opposition it generates), and people will only dedicate their free time to an issue if they feel emotional about it
This is such a great piece. I'm temperamentally a city-wide/statewide policy person. But project-by-project advocy is absolutely valuable and complimentary. Yes, and.
Properly applied to the right cases, you produce evidence and experience contra NIMBY nightmares: “Oh, that wasn't so bad”
100% agree with you. One of the most important principles of organizing is that you need to have concrete things that people can do to become engaged, with visible results. Doing fun things together is also crucial to effective organizing, and YIMBY is good at this!
Regarding the Safeway project: I am constantly in shock over the assumption by the Chronicle that this is bad for San Francisco. Can someone please explain to the Chronicle how their beloved City is going to die if developments like this are not built?
I also think it's a great way to develop evidence for the apathetic or agnostic. If I try tell my parents about how insane NIMBYs are, they're not going to care much without concrete examples of NIMBYs shriekingly opposing the most mundane developments.
Brilliantly said, Laura.