RB Coalition is launching a special campaign for the year entitled, “Lift Every Voice: Celebrating the dreams and determination of the Rainier Beach Neighborhood.”
“Lift Every Voice” is a spinoff of the Black National Anthem, and is intended to be a campaign that values every voice in the neighborhood, that serves as a rallying cry and catalyst for resident involvement and leads to a neighborhood demonstrating its passion for revitalizing itself to the benefits of all of its residents.
A few elements of this campaign are:
- Discovering, compiling, and disseminating on an ongoing basis positive reports from across the neighborhood from any and all of the agencies, organizations, gatherings that are already taking place. A product will be a Fact Sheet and a series of Fact Sheets highlighting positive efforts and outcomes; something that folks can have in their back pocket as talking points for immediately responding to cheap shots in any public venue, and we know cheap shots are taken on Rainier Beach.
- Encouraging and supporting the development of media libraries containing photos, videos, etc. of neighborhood activities. We’ve already started some of this, that is, we’ve already got YouTube and Flickr accounts for videos and photos), but other organizations and agencies may also have these resources set up but not yet sufficiently promoted. These resources provide the basis for brochures, Web sites, flyers, etc. as sort of our own “stock” media library of what the neighborhood looks like, how the neighborhood celebrates, particularly through the arts and the environmental projects in play.
- The gathering and compiling of Local Hero stories. RB Coalition already has started this through its annual neighborhood awards. We will document and display these brief testimonials on the RB Web site.
- Rapid Response Team: positioning a group of folks to be recognized as the “trustworthy voices” of Rainier Beach who are prepared to quickly respond to cheap shots and media slights with targeted, positive messaging around RB. This isn’t so much a formal group of folks as it is equipping a broad range of people to have the facts at hand and is prepared to stand up right away before a cheap shot gains any media legs. This is really a key aspect of Lift Every Voice
- Highlight the ways in which people in the neighborhood are already empowered and engaged..On any given night, folks are out participating in a community activity, gathering, performance, celebration, service activity. The Community Center (any of the community centers, including the Rainier Vista Boys and Girls Club) are never empty. There is stuff going on, all the time, across the neighborhood. We will capture, communicate, and celebrate the empowerment and engagement that is already in place
As lyrics in the song say “Let our rejoicing rise, “High as the list’ning skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea.”