The Pocket Democracy group is an experiment in starting, promoting, and managing a nonprofit organization on WiserEarth.  Most organization websites are simply an introduction to the history, mission, and program areas.  Usually, the daily work of the organization is done behind the scenes and remains internal to the organization.  The Pocket Democracy group will strive to move working documents to the larger WiserEarth community, to help other groups with their organizaing efforts.

Introduction:

After more than a century of activism and organizing, the social and environmental movement has been incapable of securing and protecting the most fundamental rights guaranteed to all people.  While the passionate and courageous work of countless people secured rights for some, these efforts never successfully assailed the juggernaut of private interests enshrined in illegitimate public protection.  As social and environmental catastrophes collide in the 21st century, the movement should recognize that they do not suffer from a dearth of ideas, but from adherence to an organizing technique where gains are limited to what is allowed by powerful status quo institutions.  These institutions  shield themselves from true democratic accountability by engendering and hiding behind a received culture that narrowed the spectrum of acceptable political discourse.  Only a fundamentally different method of organizing will challenge this shield and create a new paradigm of democratic imagination.  With this paradigm in place, the implementation of ingenious solutions to social and environmental injustice will ignite across an unprecedented authentic democratic platform. Pocket Democracy provides the historical education that proves the necessity a new organizing model, inspires people to achieve a bold level of democratic expression, represents them as they are inevitability thrust into the judicial system, and connects them with the resources necessary to insulate themselves from reactionary establishment forces.

Our Mission:

Educate
The American narrative of ever increasing democracy and social progress is deeply ingrained in our culture.  As more citizens experience the lost of local sovereignty, they question the relationship between public institutions and private interests. Pocket Democracy provides these citizens with a different narrative of American history that explains how we got to our present situation, and why traditional methods of organizing result in only limited protection at best.

Inspire
Over a century of received culture has narrowed the scope of acceptable political discourse in this country.  The two major parties of the United States operate within this confined space, and any discussion outside its purview, is derided as fanciful and unrealistic.  Pocket Democracy brings an organizing model to citizens that insulates the movement from this received culture and inspires citizens to imagine new levels of sovereign democratic expression.

Represent
The American judicial system is being used illegitimately to protect the interests of an unelected minority over the rights of a democratic majority.  This undemocratic use of our judicial system is now part of the inherited culture, and results in a mountain of irreproachable jurisprudence.  As communities assert their right to a republican form of government, they will inevitability be thrust into the American judicial system without any resources to represent them.  Pocket Democracy provides pro bono or affordable legal services to communities throughout the cycle of their organizing efforts.

Strengthen
The organizing model used by communities to secure their fundamental rights will predictably engender a reactionary response from the establishment.  The form of the response, whether subtle or bold, will depend on unique circumstances and the stage of democratic organizing.   To protect their autonomy, the community must localize, to the extent possible, their economy, election system, and media.  Pocket Democracy connects these communities to the resources necessary to insulate themselves from establishment backlash.


Program Areas


Logging and Forestry

Campaign: Calaveras County

Mining

Dams and Water

Public Health

Energy

Potential Partners

Design Active Collective


Lawrence Goodwyn—Democratic Promise