Conversations That Connect
Deep Canvassing in Pierce County
This summer, we are undertaking an ambitious community outreach effort to engage people using “deep canvassing” which is having two-way conversations with our neighbors to better understand their experiences, challenges, and hopes for the future. Each conversation is an opportunity to build trust, identify shared values, and expand our base of support. Our hope is for this effort to engage more people in future organizing projects to help make Pierce County a place where all people can thrive.
“We need an organizing revival that starts with a mass listening campaign, and then organizes to win on the exact issues that are most widely and deeply felt in the community.”
– George Goehl
How will this work?
The change can happen one conversation at a time. But, to be impactful, we need to have more than one conversation. We need to have many conversations. To do this, we are investing in an organized program to train a team of volunteer deep canvassers who can have these conversations at a scale large enough to reach many people across the county.
Our approach will be to invite anyone who opens the door into a conversation anchored in three basic questions:
What issues concern you and your family on a regular basis?
Who do you feel is responsible for causing these problems?
What solutions would help make things better for you and your town?
Through these series of questions, and by using active listening strategies, canvassers will uncover how a person thinks about power, identity, and resources within the context of their own community in Pierce County.
Why is this important?
Polarization has contributed to a communication breakdown in communities The divide between citizens has become more acute, creating a situation where most policy conversations are broken. Rural Wisconsin is saturated with messages that reinforce narratives villainizing other working people along racial, geographic, and partisan lines. We recognize the best way to push back on these narratives and repair divisions is to have authentic conversations about how our communities can move forward together.
Want to learn more?
Reach out to us using the form below and we will put you in contact with Bill Hogseth who can answer any questions you might have and help you understand if this is a good opportunity for you!
Reach out now!
“For a democratic society to function, we need to be able to consider and reflect upon opposing viewpoints. For that to happen, we need to hear from people who disagree with us, people from different backgrounds. For that to happen, we need to see each other as family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, and human beings, not as political enemies or moral opponents. It all starts with a conversation.”
– Bill Hogseth, PCGRO Organizing Director
Project News
