Democracy Centers are located in BIPOC communities where more than 55% of eligible voters no longer choose to vote.
A Democracy Center is a local resource that supports ongoing, year-round civic engagement to achieve meaningful progress on issues of importance in underserved communities of color where the ill effects of historic systemic racism are deeply entrenched and oppressive. These communities are often rural and identifiable by certain common characteristics, such as high levels of race-based concentrated poverty, lower social mobility, higher rates of environmental pollution, and restrictive voter suppression laws. The phrase, “My vote doesn’t matter,” reflects frustration with the lack of improvement in community pain points regardless of who is elected.
People want to know what they can do to create the change they want to see in their community, and they want to do it themselves. They need expertise, training, technology, and tools to empower them. Democracy Centers are led by well-established community-based organizations that educate and promote opportunities to take action to support issues important to the community, such as voting rights, energy democracy and resiliency, jobs, and community wealth and power building. This change can’t come from outside; it can only happen from within.
The Center for Common Ground provides needed infrastructure, training, and digital tools to empower communities during times of accelerated change and challenge. Citizens need a place to gather and learn about national, state, and local policy/politics to make educated decisions about their leaders and how to make change at every level.
With the Center for Common Ground, Democracy Centers leverage the on-the-ground expertise, presence, and trusted relationships of community-based organizations with a successful track record of civil rights protection and advocacy, civic engagement, community building and development, election protection, voter registration, and other activities that support the basic tenets of our democracy in underserved communities.
Once the Center for Common Ground has agreed with local community leaders to establish a Democracy Center with them, they'll work together:
Are you currently working in your community and wish to partner with Center for Common Ground and take advantage of our resources and training to establish a Democracy Center?
Learn more about our Democracy Center program, and get in touch with us to start the conversation!
We will have a lot of opportunities for local volunteers to help with our Democracy Centers. Please sign up with us at Center for Common Ground so that we may contact you when opportunities become available!
And of course... your donation to our Democracy Centers is deeply appreciated!
Sign up with Center for Common Ground to be notified about events, action campaigns, and volunteer opportunities.
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Thank you for stepping up with the Center for Common Ground! Please complete this form so we can quickly engage you in taking action!
And look for your Regional Organizer here - please introduce yourself to them to connect to local activities and networks!
We are also supporting our Democracy Centers in key states to help local communities with voting rights, community wealth building, energy democracy and resiliency, and power building.
And we have weekly national training webinar series open to all volunteers. Sign up for events at bit.ly/cfcg-events.
