On our bookshelf: Make Change by Shaun King

“What the world lacks is highly energized, deeply organized, sufficiently strategized people and movements that interrupt the way things are…We have to imagine and build [the future we dream of] ourselves.”

-Shaun King in Make Change, p. 213. See more, purchase, or borrow.

For the skeptics

This book is for the skeptics who don’t want to go down without fight. For those with a nagging feeling they want to do something about a problem in the world, but aren’t sure how to go about it. This is for when challenges seem too big and we feel too small. Shaun King gets it. He has experienced numerous failures (and successes) in his efforts to make change in the world. He has learned from those and sees a path forward if we're willing to take on the challenge. His storytelling brings to life valuable lessons, as do his metaphors.

What would we do if a pipe burst above our bed? We’d address it with ferocity, we’d try catching the water, turning off the flow to the pipe, we’d call a plumber to address the root causes, and we’d address the damage already caused. What issue might we each tackle like that?

Be strategic

Once we identify our issue, Make Change takes us through the next steps to understand the historical moment we are in, let go of excuses holding us back, and plan strategically.

Have you ever built a campfire? A match provides energy, but you can throw a lit match at a pile of wood over and over and over again and it will rarely catch fire. You have to set the logs up just right. You have to collect brush and twigs and kindling and position them perfectly underneath. And then, and only then, if all of these factors line up, you can start a campfire with a single match. So it goes with organizing. (King, 2020, p. 136)

Throughout Make Change, King provides fuel for our fire and concrete suggestions. For example, King points out that most of us work all day, then try to squeeze efforts for change into the cracks in our schedule, when we're tired and not at our best. While there may be some things you can't change about your schedule, what can you change?

I took this challenge to heart as I engaged a new commitment to organizing. Two years after first reading this book, I still prioritize some of my best time each week for the cause I care about most. Not only do I do better work, but I enjoy it more too.

Fail, rebound, and take care

Sometimes we underestimate a problem we're tackling or our resources and find ourselves with a stack of wet wood unable to spark change.

"The forces that we are up against aren’t just fierce; they are complicated, well fortified, and deeply entrenched" (p. 151). Even if we take in all the lessons King learned the hard way, even if we are energized, organized, and strategic, we are going to fail at times. Knowing this, we can set ourselves up to be able to rebound from failures. This involves a mindset and actions we can take to not waste the failure, but to learn from it.

Admittedly new to preventing burnout through self care, King points to Audrey Lorde for lessons in revolutionary self care. He shares what has been working for him, including therapy and quality (cell phone free!) time with loved ones.

It's on us.

King's conclusion is essentially one we've heard before - be the change - but it bears repeating. We can't sit back waiting for someone else to make the change we want to see. For King, "it's on us" is a mantra among friends, an acknowledgement that if they want something done, they're going to have to make it happen. He takes what could be a simple platitude and turns it into a powerful call to action backed by the practice lessons and strategic planning he lays out in the book. King includes himself in the "us", but also me and you. It's on us.

P.S. Make Change pairs well with Carruthers’ Unapologetic (see our post), which helps us gain clarity on why we are here and how we show up in ways that help or hinder the cause.