The Struggle for Narrative Power in the Time of Audacious Racism
Narratives matter. Narrative IS power. The stories and messages we repeat over time shape policies, outcomes, and material conditions
“Cultural change precedes social change. Narrative drives policy. This is why we must be as strategic and rigorous in building narrative power as we are in building all other forms of power. Narrative is the space in which energies are activated to preserve a destructive system or build a better world for us all.” - From Race Forward’s Butterfly Lab Report
I’ve been reflecting on this idea a lot as I think about how we can fight back, survive, and even thrive in these days of political turmoil. To be candid, narrative strategy is underused and undervalued in equity and racial justice spaces. I get it. In the face of violence, chaos, and destruction, narratives and stories seem powerless. And yet.
Narratives matter. Narrative IS power. The stories and messages we repeat over time shape policies, outcomes, and material conditions. Narratives shape election outcomes. Narratives shape our understanding of problems and solutions. Narratives resonate with people because they are rooted in our collective values. Narratives also deepen and solidify these values. Thus a self-sustaining cycle is born.
When you think about successful movements in history, it becomes clear that narratives and stories are tools that have been wielded in small and big battles for power and that have won many of our freedoms. The seed of an idea that harmful systems can be abolished begin in whispered stories told in small community spaces and churches that then travel as cries for justice across cities, that reach the halls where laws and policies are debated, that then spread across masses of people that form a movement demanding justice.
The right has wielded narrative power skillfully which is why we are here. Even the hundreds of Executive Orders coming out of this government reinforce harmful dominant narratives about immigrants, trans people, the role of government in advancing racial justice, etc.
We need to fight back and build our own narrative power. Below are some of the ways we can fight back with a narrative strategy that advances racial justice and brings people into solidarity with each other:
Keep telling OUR stories. I know we are all tired and afraid. But if you have the energy, resources, and space - continue to tell stories about our communities, about the reality of systemic oppression and how genuine solidarity has many times over dismantled these systems. Keep telling stories of how we build movement power through authentic relationships and community building. Keep affirming the visibility and thriving of black and brown, queer, and trans folks. Keep posting messages affirming our commitment to racial justice, trans justice, immigration justice, and the belief in the inherent dignity of each person. Keep telling our stories through different medium - through visual art, music, poetry, short stories, articles, organizational messages, dance, and other cultural and artistic mediums. These Executive Orders and the narratives of the right seek to erase our very existence. Let our collective stories across every medium of art and culture rise above and cover these narratives of erasure and oppression. Let each of our story pierce through the dark clouds of these oppressive narratives until only the light of our peoples’ thriving remain.
Grow the narrative ecosystem - Race Forward defines a narrative ecosystem “as a network of connected individuals and organizations that can share knowledge, expertise, skills, ideas, capacities, and work to advance a narrative system across a diversity of fronts along different timelines.” We need to scale the impact of our movement’s narrative strategy, and that requires building an ecosystem of practitioners from across fields and issue areas working on a shared narrative strategy for equity, justice, and solidarity. We need philanthropy, nonprofits, government, and even corporations to invest in building the infrastructure of this ecosystem. Everybody has a role to play in advancing and building a just narrative strategy. In fact, we NEED everybody to play a role in this work. But that requires giving people and organizations the time, resources, and capacity to build their skill, connect with other practitioners, and focus on their art and storytelling.
Stop reinforcing harmful dominant narratives. In trying to understand our current political reality we tend to repeat the harmful racist and transphobic narratives of the right in service of analysis and strategizing. We need to stop doing that. The problem is that we get so focused on retelling these narratives that we never have enough energy left to actually build narratives that build justice, power, and solidarity. Oppressive and harmful narratives are already all around us. That’s why they’re dominant. We need to articulate an alternative vision for a just, multiracial, democratic society and the narratives and stories needed to make this vision a reality for black and brown folks, for transfolks, for immigrants. For everybody.
There are many other recommendations out there. But truly, narrative work is long-term work. It requires boundless creativity, courage to experiment with new ways of telling powerful stories of equity and justice, and solidarity, resources and investments in growing the narrative infrastructure, and ecosystem. It requires hope and deep belief in our ability to win and bring about justice and joy in a world that seeks to erase our existence.
If we were to begin today, let us begin with the seed of a vision for a world where black, brown, queer, and immigrant communities are thriving. Let each of our imaginations be the soil from which this seed grows into reality.