Lessons on Social Change from Mayor Cory Booker of Newark, New Jersey

Last night I had the opportunity to attend a talk hosted by Dean Ellen Schall of NYU Wagner and Newark Mayor Corey Booker about the challenges—both cultural and systemic—in bringing about reform.  While he was speaking primarily about government, his words are of great use to organizations and individuals working for  social change.

Organizations:

• Coordinate the systems: Mayor Booker used a great example to point out how the real challenge is in making sure whatever systems are in place are on the same page: gather a group of people, ask them close their eyes and point north.  When they open their eyes, they’ll see that everyone is pointing in a different direction. Many of us have good intentions and good ideas but we don’t communicate or work together to make sure we reach our common goals.

• Use philanthropy wisely: He noted how often times the public sector will create and lead program while philanthropists will fund it.  Gathering the two together allows us to move from “islands of excellence to hemispheres of hope”; in other words, break out of the tendency to work in little corners on small issues when there are bigger issues to address.  However, when leading a new initiative, gathering money is easy, but becoming sustainable without it is tough.  Your plan should always include a way to move beyond donations.

• Create a powerful system of accountability: One thing that struck me about Mayor Booker was his dedication to research.  He needed to have all of the information before making a move—hence his unorthodox commitment to prisoner re-entry since he realized that that was the city’s biggest problem, which is a much harder issue to sell. Yet change only begins with research.  After doing research to know what the challenges are, be sure to set standards, create a method of meeting those standards, and establish consequences for failing to meet those standards.  The research and the consequences are where people struggle, yet they are most critical as they show you where you need to go and what to change.

Individuals:

• Make it personal: Dean Schall was taken aback by how personal Mayor Booker made his work.  He spoke as though he was personally responsible for every single person in the city.  That’s because he feels as if he is.  He challenged us to go beyond finding who is to blame and start asking ourselves, “what can I do to make this situation better?”

• Forget positions and find your purpose: When someone asked him about what his life will be like in 30 years, he joked about marriage but noted that often people rattle off job titles and responsibilities, not purpose and values.  His goal is to live a life that is true to his commitment to equality and justice.  Who you are goes beyond what job you have.  Jobs come and go but what you stand for will always remain.

Both:

• Empower people to take care of themselves: One of my favorite stories that Paul Light told some time ago is of a volunteer at a soup kitchen who looked forward to seeing a guy every week.  Paul Light was shocked by this—if you are seeing the same person every week, they aren’t getting the help they need.  It may feel endearing but it is actually tragic. We must work for the day where these kinds of services are no longer needed.  Mayor Booker has a similar approach with his Fatherhood Program—it’s about addressing root problems and gradually eradicating them.

While I have always respected Mayor Booker, listening to him last night left me inspired and reaffirmed.  No one says the public service is easy but at times the challenges can be overwhelming.  His input and success show that these obstacles can be overcome.