MODULE 2: BASICS OF COMMUNITY ORGANIZING AND IMMERSION

Learning Objectives:
At the end of this chapter, the learners are expected to:
1. Understand and realize the importance of “living and immersing” in a community;
2. Identify fundamental principles for community development;
3. Encourage and help community residents to be actively involved in community
undertakings; and
4. Learn how adapt and situate oneself in the community so that one can exhibit
properly his/her talents.
5. Become catalyst of change by providing service to the underprivileged community
and depressed areas.
Society Distinguished from Community

• A Society is a voluntary association of individuals for common ends.

• A Community is defined as a body of individuals living together and organized into a
unit of a specific territory
• Community Organization refers to social work concentrating upon the organization and
development of community social welfare
• Community Immersion means to “enclose in something; to engage deeply”
Community Immersion
The Taoism founder and philosopher Lao Tzu aptly described “immersion” in these words:
Go to the People
Live with them
Learn from them
Love them.
Start with what they know,
Build with what they have.
But with the best leaders
When the work is done
The task accomplished
The people will say,
“We have done this Ourselves.”
(Lao Tzu. China.700 B.C.)
The Community Structure:

• Local Government refers to the territorial and political subdivisions of a nation or

state, which is constituted by law and has substantial control of its local affairs, with
officials elected or in some cases, locally selected.
Duties of the Barangay Council
1. Enacts Annual and supplemental budgets
2. Provides compensation, reasonable allowances or per diems are well as travel
expenses
 3. Solicits or accepts monies, or properties donated by private agencies
4. Hold fund-raising activities for projects without the need of securing permits from any
national or local office or agency.
Powers of the Barangay
1. Serves as the primary planning and implementing unit
2. Control basic service and facilities
3. Exercise power to generate and apply resources
4. Exercise power of eminent domain for public use
5. Corporate powers
6. Authority to negotiate and secure grants
Functions and Duties of the Barangay Chairman
1. To negotiate, enter into and sign contracts for an in behalf of the barangay.
2. To approve vouchers relating to the disbursement of barangay funds.
3. To carry firearm in the performance of his peace and order functions.
4. To prepare annual executive and supplemental budgets of the barangay in coordination
with barangay development council.
5. To administer the operation of the Katarungan Pambarangay.
Community Organizing
Community Organizing refers to a collective, participatory, transformative, sustained,
systematic, dynamic and liberating process of building people’s organization
Community Organizers
A. Community Organizers help the people in the local community to meet their needs
B. Community Organizers work to unite poor people and other vulnerable individuals in
their area
C. Community organizers are catalysts for social change.
Students who aspire to become community organizers and assist community in their
development process must also possess the following personality and character:

• Flexibility. Humility and Honesty.

• Constructive critic.
• Sincerity.
• Openness and Frankness.
The Tasks and Roles of a Community Organizer maybe classified as:
1. Facilitator – Through his/her leadership, he/she facilitates all group endeavors/projects
to its successful attainment.
2. Motivator/Animator – He/she enlivens the group members by giving them proper
motivation to contribute to the completion of any plan or project.
3. Enabler – He does not only provide enabling suggestions or instructions to group
members but also empowers them to act on their own advocacies.
 4. Catalyst – He/she is an agent that provokes or precipitates catalysis or change in the
community.
Three Major Values in Community Organizing
1. Human Rights
The 1987 Constitutional Provisions on Human Rights
Section 11, Article 11 – The state values the dignity of every human person and guaranteed full
respect for human rights.
Rationale of Human Right
“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason
and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Everyone is
entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind,
such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin,
property, birth or other status.” (Art. 1 and 2)
Nature and Scope of Human Rights

• Human rights have a broader concept as they include

(1) Civil and Political Rights
(2) Social, economic and cultural rights.
• Civil and Political Rights are actionable rights
• Social, economic and cultural rights are claims on society and state and are
enforceable through legislation.
• Basic rights are the rights to life, liberty and property.
• Human rights violations are those acts of State
Social Justice
Justice for All

• Commutative justice from the Latin word commutatio or exchange deals with
relationships between individuals.
• Distributive justice refers to the obligations of society, particularly the State, to share
out the people’s benefits and offices according to merit, and tasks according to
capabilities.
Constitutional Provisions on Filipino’s Right to Equality:
The Congress shall give priority to the enactment of measures that protect and enhance
the right of all people to human dignity, reduce social, economic inequalities, remove
cultural inequalities by equitably diffusing wealth and political power for the common
good. (Section 1; Article 13)
Social Responsibility
John F. Kennedy: “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your
country.. You can be socially responsible by:
1. Exercise your night and duty to vote. Vote wisely
 2. Pay your taxes regularly
3. Report crimes and other wrongdoings to the authorities
4. Be vigilant and report, expose, corruption and venalities in the government bureaucracy
5. To obey traffic laws or rules;
6. Maintaining sanitation and cleanliness of surroundings;
7. Contributing toward peace and order;
8. Be environment friendly.
Philippine Constitution (Art. IV, Sec. 5)
1. To be loyal to the Republic;
2. To defend the State;
3. To contribute to the development and welfare of the State;
4. To uphold the Constitution and obey the laws;
5. To cooperate with duly constituted authorities
6. To exercise rights responsibly and with due regard for the rights of others;
7. To engage in gainful work.
Character Traits/Personal Qualities of a Community Organizer
1. Integrity
2. Objectivity
3. Flexibility
4. Courage and Initiative
5. Sensitivity and Adaptability
6. Self-control and Discipline
7. Wit and Sense of Humor
8. Vision and Imagination
Community Organizing Continuous and Dynamic Process of:

• Building the awareness of people

• Empowering people to organize themselves and collectively work together
• Community organizing is not a technique for problem solving
• Community organizing is not a merely process that is good for its own sake
Steps in Organizing

1. Integration This can be done by living with families for couple of days,
interviewing and conversing with people.

2. Social Investigation Live with the people to determine the issues and real situation of the
or Community Study people

3. Issues Identification The main problem of the community is defined and analyzed whether
and Analysis this problem is the common need of the local community

4. Core Group Identify local leaders who can be formed as core group
Formation

5. Ground Work and Done by conducting one to one meeting with individual members of
Community Meeting the community that will lead later to group discussions
 6. Role Playing Local leaders practiced how they will conduct dialogue

7. Mobilization and Actual implementation of planned action by the community

Action

8. Evaluation or This is where members of the community sit together to discuss what
Reflection are the lessons learned, weaknesses

9. Building Community A strategic action in empowering the community

Based Organization

10. Phase Out This shows signs of empowerment and success

Some Ways of Initiating Community Organizing

• Conducting house to house visits

• Conversing with people where they usually gather together
• Participating in social activities
• Helping in household or community chores
• Participating in direct production activities
Basic Facts/Data to Know in Organizing

• Bio-Geography
• History
• Population
• Political or governance structure
• Housing and Planning
• Economic Basis of community life
• Educational, health, recreational, social welfare, religious and other resources
• Community attitudes and relationships, and lifestyles
The Principles of Community Organizing

1. Community organizing is set when people in a community are organized to work together in
pursuing a shared interest and common solutions to their problem and facilities

2. People are motivated by their self-interest

3. Community organizing is a dynamic process

4. Conflict and confrontation

5. Common definition or stand on an issue

Action/Strategy
Effective community organizing is an educational process of action and reflection that
puts participants as active players
Ten Steps/Planning and Strategy
1. Integration
2. Social Investigation
3. Tentative Program
4. Groundwork
5. Meeting
6. Role Play
7. Mobilization or Action
8. Evaluation
9. Reflection
10. Organization
Evaluating your Project Effort
1. Is our strategy achieving the targeted results – are we closer to desired
objectives?
2. What’s working, what isn’t?
3. Are our tasks (actions) working – are they helping our group’s effort to gain
support?
Samples of Short Term Community Projects
a. Medical/dental missions
b. Tree Planting
c. Sports/Game Festivals
d. Feeding Program
e. Community Clean Up Drive
Long Term Community Projects
a. Community Livelihood Project
b. Building cooperative in the community
c. Continuous Training on Waste Management
d. Lobbying for Community Relocation Site
e. Building Facilities in the Community
f. Community Gardening
g. Campaign to Raise Damayan Funds
ACTIVITY 2: COMMUNITY ORGANIZING
Name: ______________________________ Yr. and Course: _________
Instructor: ___________________________
Explain:
1. Community Organization
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
2. Community Immersion
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
3. The community organizer as catalyst
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
4. The community organizer as enabler
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________