A Shared Future

Book excerpt: “A hopeful testimony to how racial injustice can begin to be addressed constructively within one form of democratic practice.” —Sociology of Religion Faith-based community organizers have spent decades working for greater equality in American society, and more recently have become significant players in shaping at the highest levels of government. In A Shared Future, Richard L. Wood and Brad R. Fulton draw on a national study of community organizing coalitions and in-depth interviews of key leaders to show how faith-based organizing is creatively navigating the competing aspirations of America’s universalist and multiculturalist democratic ideals, even as it confronts three demons bedeviling American politics: economic inequality, federal policy paralysis, and racial inequity. With a broad view of the entire field and a distinct empirical focus on the PICO National Network, Wood and Fulton’s analysis illuminates the tensions, struggles, and deep rewards that come with pursuing racial equity within a social change organization and in society. Ultimately, A Shared Future offers a vision for how we might build a future that embodies the ethical democracy of the best American dreams. “A critically important book.” —Mark R. Warren—author of A Match on Dry Grass: Community Organizing as a Catalyst for School Reform “Loaded with firsthand accounts, accessible critical analyses, and spirited conviction, this book exemplifies religious witness and political participation.” —Christian Century “Unabashedly promoting a liberal agenda to address issues of growing inequality, poverty, educational disparities, racial injustice, voter suppression, and policy paralysis at the national level. Highly recommended.” —Choice “A remarkable achievement. . . . Timely and relevant.” —American Journal of Sociology