Winning strategies are an important part of community organizing. The idea that service users should be from the community that are interested in changing is not a new thing. In fact, an example is mentioned in the book-where Germans and British in 1914 (Hardcastle & Powers. 2004. p. 405), sang Silent Night to each other in English and German, taking a break from the fighting in the trenches of WWI A unique way of organizing is to have creative ways of changing, as opposed to the traditional ways of social action and community building and development.
Social action has an emphasis on “internal change through consciousness raising and changing” (Hardcastle & Powers. 2004. p. 357). Community building is “engaging a community to improve itself” (Hardcastle & Powers. 2004. p. 122). In both types of community organizing, one needs goals, constituents, targets, and tactics. The social worker should be able to draw out the pieces which comprise this type of organizing. Often, the people, the ignored, the marginalized, the unwanted, serve as community guides in leading the community endeavor.
But, a newer tradition has established itself in community organizing-creative links to group consciousness. There are three of these creative means: “innovation, narration, and liberation tradition” (Hardcastle & Powers. 2004. p. 410). There are four types of these traditions: “arts and cultural work, popular education, film, video, and radio productions, and public education”
(Hardcastle & Powers. 2004. p. 411). I really appreciate these traditions, especially music and poetry and the life that they play in innovating groups of people to lead the community. Cultural activism in the forms of music, paintings, and poetry is what brings people together in political unity. “Cultural work can transform consciousness, can perform the acts of political education that, combined with community activism , makes social change transformational” (Hardcastle & Powers. 2004. p. 412). Feminist theory also uses cultural activism to unite people. With the use of dreams, stories, journals, art, theatre, myths, etc. women can connect with other women and
make their point known and visible. Women also connect with men sometimes, when men show that the “practice of caring about others is not inherently female; both genders exhibit it when encouraged and socialized to do so” (Hardcastle & Powers. 2004. p. 413). Both women and cultural activism are used to expose injustices and to create unity and social justice for those marginalized, oppressed peoples, who struggle for fairness and rights.
Another person who greatly influenced the learning process, and practiced it with indigenous peoples and functional illiterates was Paulo Freire. He published two books-one of which is called “Pedagogy of the Oppressed” (Hardcastle and Powers. 2004. p. 414), the other being called “Pedagogy of Hope” (Hardcastle & Powers. 2004. p. 414). He was able to immerse himself in the lives of oppressed people, and he engaged people and their worldview in his work with social, “political and critical consciousness” (Hardcastle & Powers. 2004. p. 414).
Narration is another way that liberation and empowerment can be used by people of non-dominant influence to face the dominant culture and to write positive narratives for themselves. As people write their own narratives, they will discover a wealth of tales previously untold, which have strength and power. It connects people, making them a united voice in the struggle for freedom.

REFERENCES:

Hardcastle & Powers. (2004). Community practice: Theories and skills for social workers. pp. 391-420. New York: Oxford University Press.