There've been a few responses that take this as "marginalized people should suck it up and stay in a dangerous situation to make it better for others" and that's not what this is about.
This is about one major thing:
Is it the college student that's literally a couple of months away from never stepping foot in this town again? The traveling nurse that stays a couple weeks before they go to another coast and another hospital?
Folks with one foot already out the door are more likely going to be more concerned with immediate needs and actions, not the long term campaigns that can take months to years to accomplish, IF you accomplish them at all.
So you talk to them about the short-term, the flash actions, and the things that affect them directly.
Or are you talking with the family fighting for the elementary school to treat their dyslexic child well? The retired immigrant couple that plan on dying in that house and are struggling with the bank? The newly married queer couple that just bought that house and have brand new jobs, and want to build their lives in this place?
These folks are often 1) not in a financial position to leave, 2) don't want to leave because that's their community, their friends and families, and they lack that support network anywhere else they go, and 3) are more willing to get involved with (put their hands in!) slower moving projects because they intend to be here for the process and end result. It will affect them, even if it's five years down the road.
You're simply not going to talk to these people the same way about the same things.
"Meet people where they're at" is an oft-repeated statement among organizers because it's infuriatingly true.
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blakekathryn
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