And before you say it, yes, I know we have these ward committee organizations, but I’m not particularly interested (especially given my experience with some of them during the Patrick campaign) in simply going to ward committee meetings, although I understand that’s part of it. Instead, I want to get to know and organize in my particular neighborhood. So far, I’ve found nothing that will help me do this. I’ve e-mailed the Mass Dems and gotten no response. I have no idea how to get my precinct voter list, and certainly haven’t been able to find it on line. I haven’t been able to find a precinct map, although I was finally able to figure out what ward and precinct I now live in (I recently moved)through MassVote’s website, but have no idea what the boundaries are.
So I’m looking for ideas on (a) getting the basic tools; (b) how to do this in a way that will be useful to the Democratic Party; and (c) what to do/say/offer to people as I go around the neighborhood. Does DFA do this? Progressive Dems of Mass.? Any other progressive organization? Shouldn’t there be a one-stop shopping way to do this?
the answers to many of your questions, but do these help?
You can certainly get a precinct listing from the Elections Dept. Here’s the racial breakdown by precinct thanks to MassVote:
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http://www.massvote….
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Maps should be available from the Boston Redevelopment Authority.
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Some Ward Committees are more active than others. Wards 19 and 11 hosted a Health Care Forum tonight, for example. Most of the ten wards of the Second Suffolk have active committees, which now work together on occasion, mostly forums and “best practice” sharing.
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If you want to e-mail me via Ward19dems@aol.com, happy to try to put you in touch with the right people.
was for their MassVictory06 oganization last fall. Also, the Patrick campaign had precinct captains all over the city as well (including me in Ward 5 Precinct 10). Honestly, I would recomend getting in touch with whoever the leader is of the Democratic Ward commitee for the Ward that you live in. If you live in Ward 5, let me know and I get can you some names and emails.
What tools did he have? A clipboard, a list of registered voters [updated by himself to remove folks who no longer live in the neighborhood, etc] and a network of people who were willing to help.
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There’s no one-stop-shop because each neighborhood has different needs, interests, and social networks, and each neighborhood organizer has different skills, interests, and connections.
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I recommend you pick a local problem, something small. Maybe some repairs to a park or ball field, fixing some potholes & signs & crosswalks on a road, planting some street trees. Something manageable. Then, find some neighbors who are interested in fixing the same problem, and work together to get it fixed. That means getting neighbors to sign a letter, call a department, come to a meeting. Then, it all builds, and quite naturally.
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Do that for 30 years, have some business cards made up, and you too will be like that guy in South Philly.
Thanks for everyone’s suggestions. I’ll contact my Ward Committee chair, find a local issue, start canvassing. I’m also thinking of hooking up with a progressive City Council candidate and organizing here as a way to get to know the lay of the land. I’ll let you all know how I do, and whether I qualify for a T-Shirt.
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I’m still disappointed that there’s nowhere on the Mass Dems web site that says: “So, You Want to Be a Precinct Captain!” That’s a hint Mr. Walsh.