Got a pen? How about now, can I have your pen? I really need a pen. You don’t understand: I need a pen!
Ever get frustrated asking for what you want? Or become resistant when someone asks you for something? It’s the same dynamic when you work for social change: persistence, strategy, patience, flexibility, collaboration, and moxie all play a role in how and when progress happens.
One of the exercises designed to teach participants at HKCC’s March 22nd leadership training aimed to illustrate just that. Called “Nine Pens” and led by FEEST’s Roberto Ascalon, the exercise required participants to keep asking others for a pen. The person with the most pens at the end wins. But the “askers” didn’t know that the “haves” were instructed to give a pen only upon the ninth request.
Another important technique in social change work: telling your story. Yes, YOUR story, your own personal story. As one participant put it, “How can I be fair to you if I don’t know your story?” Your personal story can shatter stereotypes, foster empathy, and enlighten others.
And to reach the people who can make the changes happen for us, staying composed, strategic, and specific can help your cause, as Emijah Smith of Children’s Alliance explained to participants. Emijah is a veteran in the world of helping children, and she encouraged participants to consider appealing to American values like fairness and opportunity.
Nobody said social change was easy. But great things have and will continue to happen. The HKCC is proud to be training people to work for health justice and equity in their very own neighborhoods.