I'd like to take some time to explain why United Way of Southwest Colorado is hosting a poetry slam competition called, "be heard." We work with several non-profits in the community and bring together many different organizations. One such non-profit is Axis Health System whose jail-based program we support. The jail-based program helps re-integrate people back into society after their return to the community. Another program we support is La Plata Youth Services' truancy reduction program which helps our youth stay in schools. "Truancy is not just a school issue, it's a community issue," said Jacqueline Oros, Executive Director of Student Support Services at Durango School District 9-R. We help fund programs in many other local non-profits from SOS Outreach to Sexual Assault Services Organization.
We are moving towards some really great community work called Collective Impact. We have been holding conversations in our community and with partners about what our exact community issues are; this conversation will continue throughout the year. The non-profit sector most frequently operates using an approach that we call Isolated Impact. The Stanford Review (2011) states that it is an approach oriented toward finding and funding a solution embodied within a single organization, combined with the hope that the most effective organizations will grow or replicate to extend their impact more widely. While isolated impact is appropriate for certain community issues, expecting a single organization to be responsible for any major social problem is probably not the best approach. Collective Impact brings together communities from the citizens to non-profit sector, government, and private sector. If we are all chasing after the same social problem, I see us winning and crossing the finish line at the same time.
This is where the poetry slam takes place. I write poetry, and I enjoy sharing this medium with other people so when I thought about starting an event - I knew my passion would keep me motivated. It's more than that, because poetry is power. Poetry is our thoughts, voices, and solutions to how we feel, think, and act in the world. Even if you do not write poetry or perform, listening holds just as much power. When we listen we validate our fellow friends and community members; we feel heard.
I work with Lynn Urban, a talented and thoughtful individual with a PhD in Social Psychology - I'm about to finish up with a Master's in Social Work; we have a mutual understanding of people and systems. I come to her frequently with ideas and, while sometimes they need tweaking, she is letting me run with this poetry slam competition. If there is enough interest I am hoping we can start a larger project as a collective around expressing our thoughts about our community issues through art, poetry, and other avenues. This is an opportunity. Currently, we do not have competitions for poetry in the Southwest region. The closest to this would be the poetry slam held at Durango High School in April, but if we can leverage enough interest - how cool would it be to have this be a part of our community?! I am interested in working in a team of people where we hold community conversations and poetry slams about the topics we want to bring awareness to. How about homelessness in Durango, for example…this has been a hot topic - there's even a Homeless Coalition. Is the topic race? Maybe it's early childhood education? I know from living in this region and studying social systems that we hide a lot of these topics because we are a "happy little mountain town." And I do believe overall we are a happy little mountain town because people care here. But let's not hide anymore. Healing comes from doing the emotional work, too - not just running or climbing up a mountain (which is a strength we have). We are so good at physical work here. There's a balance to be found. So I ask, what are you passionate about, what do you want to change, and how do you see yourself as a community member start to be a process of Collective Impact? It does not just involve United Way of Southwest Colorado in our corner - it's all of you. We are just here to start and keep the conversation going.
I invite you to be a part of the conversation - to be heard.
Here is a link to the poetry slam competition to enter or attend. https://www.facebook.com/events/1534247133548598/permalink/1536921036614541/
Check out our website page, too http://www.unitedway-swco.org/poetry-slam-june-18
I hope to see you there! :)
