Backbone Campaign

"Power's not given to you. You have to take it." --Beyonce

Backbone Campaign is a not-for-profit located on Vashon Island, a short ferry ride south of Seattle.
 
Two concepts KABF often heard from friends and activists, Father Roy Bourgeois, and the late Father Bix, were solidarity and direct action—this is the vision of Backbone Campaign. As Father Roy has said time and again, “People, organizations that are about control, don’t just hand over their power. Alice Paul, Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, all understood the power of direct action. It attracts attention, motivates, educates and creates positive change.”
 
Backbone Campaign grew out of the need to assist any and all activists in how to be their most effective, with a goal as gigantic as the huge corporations that Backbone often helps target:
“Our purpose is to accelerate the growth of a social movement powerful enough to manifest a world where life, community, nature and our obligations to future generations are NOT for sale, but honored as sacred.”
 
Under the “SKILL UP!” section of Backbone’s website, the proverbial question that eventually occurs to anyone seeking positive change is asked:  
“So you wrote a strongly worded letter, now what?!”

The inquirer is then invited to fill out a form to attend a Backbone workshop, which may include a weeklong activism training camp, mentorship, individual workshops or all of the above. Backbone has a network of experienced and skilled trainers that assist with creative solutions that will “keep the news cameras captivated” and encourage others to participate.
 
Backbone Campaign summarizes its vision and purpose in this bold, blunt, strongly worded paragraph that rings true to anyone who’s tried to go beyond the phone call, the appeal letter, the request for the ear of a person in charge of the government office, corporation, or in Father Roy’s case, the Roman Catholic Church:
“In this era of unrepresentative government, democracy for the highest bidder, and a gridlock of injustice, the pace of positive change can be agonizing. As articulate your argument, as brilliant your solution, and as incomprehensible the injustice, our best guess is it’s going to take more. We’ve also got to build power if we’re going to bring forth the brighter future we envision. Those holding the reigns over policies and resources need to know that we’re not going to back down, that we want more than crumbs, hollow words, or to be placated. They need to see more people from a broad spectrum of society being drawn to our cause and compelled to action.”

Learn more about Backbone Campaign here.