Dialectic of Community and Fragmentation in Organizing for Social Change
ABSTRACT
In this study we examined the dialectic between community and
fragmentation in two settings that attempt to organize the poor for social
change. In the Friday Night Community Suppers there were powerful examples
of community. People who participate in this weekly event care deeply about
one another and attempt to offer a helping hand whenever they can. There are
also instances of fragmentation; however. For example, people experience
both forces of the dialectic in a dynamic tension by feeling connected at the
Supper but feeling disconnected upon realizing they will return home to an
isolated environment. In the soup kitchens we investigated the forces of
fragmentation were most compelling. Inhuman treatment by workers, violence
among the homeless, and the promotion of degradation prevented most
meaningful attempts at community building. Although these forces were
dominant, opportunities for community existed alongside fragmentation
sustaining the dialectic between the two forces. In some instances volunteers
offered consolation and support to the homeless. In other instances the poor
themselves provided confirmation and fellowship to others in need.
Transcending the dialectic of community and fragmentation is a great
challenge and not always possible. However, through the continued building of
community even the most damaged people can be offered hope.
Convention