
The tradition of People’s Action’s Movement Builders’ Conference dates back to our earliest days in Chicago fifty years ago, when every December organizers from across the network would gather in a church basement to compare notes about what did and didn’t work, to start the next year off on a firm footing.
“The recent election requires the network to be stronger than ever,” said Erica Black-Johnson from Communities United for Action (CUFA) in Ohio. “During Movement Builders, I witnessed examples of some great, creative, and successful organizing across the county. I saw firsthand the importance of following tactics and steps in organizing, and believe that when groups are disciplined and do just that, victories will lead to significant change!”

Highlights included groundings form Bonnie Dobson of Down Home North Carolina, who hosted the event for People’s Action, and our executive director, Sulma Arias, musical entertainment by the Grammy-nominated Joe Troup, There was a vigil at the Alamance County Courthouse in Graham, where police pepper-sprayed 200 people who were peacefully marching to the polls to cast their votes in 2020, when Dreama Caldwell, who is now DHNC’s executive director, was running for county commissioner.

Workshops included Building a Movement Governing Bench, Funding our Own Liberation and rapid response planning if the incoming administration targets immigrants, LGBTQ+ people and other communities.
“I have come to greater terms with recognizing that when it comes to activating our base, we need to meet the moment where we are in a Trump America, and also where the people are in their level of interest and experience,” said Isra Allison from DHNC. “Be compassionately curious, and recognize that we do need a ladder of engagement.”

Down Home was one of the many groups that shared inspiring stories about local victories which offer evidence that powerbuilding strategies work, even when the electoral outcomes at the federal level were disheartening. Through an effective and dedicated combination of deep canvassing in rural areas with a statewide coalition strategy, Down Home helped elect many of its members to local office and the state legislature, and helped block a Republican supermajority that protects Democratic Governor Josh Stein’s veto power.
“In North Carolina, statewide, working people won,” said Vicente Cortez from DHNC. “So every time our new governor vetoes bad legislation – the next abortion ban, the next bill to fund a school voucher program, he is doing it with the power of working people under his pen.”

“What did I learn at the Movement Builders Conference? It’s that we never give up!” said Elissa Tierney, who organizes with the Not One More campaign at the New Jersey Organizing Project.
“Just because we’re not going to win every single thing, every single time, doesn’t mean we’re not building power as we do it,” Tierney said. “At the end of the day, we will win – because our stories are powerful and we are passionate, and we know the solutions because we’ve lived through the problem. So we will win!”