3 “You Can’t Do It if You’re Mad, You Can Do It if You’re Organized” Leadership Development and the New Communities Program

Abstract

Chapter 3 looks at complementary aspects of trust and mistrust in community development. Using a framework of development from above versus development from below, the author analyzes the tactics, strategies, and programming practices implemented by two distinct types of community groups: nonprofit lead agencies and grassroots organizations. Whereas the lead agencies focused on the goals of the New Communities Program, including social service provision and relationship building, the grassroots organizations combined community development practices with community organizing to expand local development and increase the leadership skills of residents. Grassroots actions included expanding public transportation, holding aldermanic summits, and transforming negative perceptions of their communities. These processes highlight the growing divide between formal development policies, which aimed to transform the individual, and local responses, which aimed to transform structural inequities while also developing local leadership potential.