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Crossing Borders is a product of CASA de Maryland, the Center for Community Change and the Fair Immigration Reform Movement (FIRM). It is for organizers and leaders who want to build power and community among people who don't look alike, talk alike and haven't lived alike. Its particular focus is the relationship between African Americans and immigrants.
"Crossing Borders" isn't just about immigration. Immigration is our entry point to deeper conversations about the demographic changes taking place within communities and how we disorganize or reorganize relationships and power in response to that. Do we build permanent or temporary coalitions out of existing organizations? Do we build new multi-racial, multi-ethnic organizations from scratch? Do we begin to diversify single-constituency organizations?
Borders aren't just lines on a map - they're about race, ethnicity, language, class, power and economics that prevent people from developing meaningful and healthy relationships with one another.
Sometimes we cross borders with permission from others – a smile, a hello or other words of welcome or invite. Most times, we take risks and cross borders without permission. We do so for the sake of building new power configurations that bring diverse people into relationship with one another in order to win on issues of common interest. At its core, this is what Crossing Borders is about.
Crossing Borders has four main modules:
1) Demographic Shifts Among African Americans and Immigrants
The country has changed and is changing because of shifting demographics. Monolithic communities have become mixed-race and mixed-ethnic and the question is: Will diverse communities compete or cooperate? Using immigration as an entry point for deeper conversations about how communities are changing and how we reorganize power and relationships. This section is meant to provoke and guide conversations about how our communities are changing and how we respond.
2) History of Domination and Pursuit of Work and Opportunity
Looking at history, you find that all people two things in common: domination and pursuit of work and opportunity. This module is meant to provoke and guide discussion about contemporary forms of domination and opportunity that we share, and to explore and deepen understanding regarding different types of power.
3) Five Dimensions of the African American and Immigrant Tension
These tensions have nothing to do with immigration per se; you don't hear most African Americans debating the nuance of work permits and visa allocation quotas. When you peel back the layers, there's a subtext that has to do with race, power, language, economics and bias and stereotypes; section meant to provoke and guide conversation that gets at the root of real and imagined tensions between African Americans and immigrants.
4) Jobs, Race and IimmigrationThe workplace is currently a place of tension but can be a place of opportunity. Using the concept of the job ladder and job niches, this module explains what's happening in the labor market with respect to African Americans and immigrants. It is meant to provoke conversation about ways both constituencies can build power in order to climb the job ladder out of bad jobs and into good jobs.
Each module can be used as a stand-alone 90 to 120 minute workshop session. Or can be stitched together as part of a day-long series. Each can also be used within one organization or among the leaders and staff of multiple organizations.
We hope the publication will make a difference in the work you do.
Onward!
This spring, there will be trainings in Maryland and Virginia on using the Crossing Borders toolkit. Contact Dushaw Hocket: (202) 339-9306 or dhockett@communitychange.org to learn about this opportunity.
