Civic engagement in Fresno brings power to the people

Fresno DRIVE works to support community members’ efforts to contribute to policy decisions that affect their everyday lives. As a result, Fresno DRIVE’s Civic Infrastructure Initiative promotes civic engagement as an essential component of democracy power-building. The initiative works with several Fresno neighborhood hubs to address urgent issues such as disinvestment, high unemployment and public service accessibility by encouraging, educating and supporting community members in their efforts to participate in the electoral process. Over the past few months, many Civic Infrastructure Initiative partners have facilitated participatory democracy opportunities in their neighborhoods including Every Neighborhood Partnership (ENP), Jackson Community Development Corporation (CDC), Highway City Community Development, Inc. and Familias en Acción.   

ENP believes that civic infrastructure is critical to building strong, connected and thriving communities. Civic infrastructure isn't only about systems and institutions — it's also about relationships, trust, spaces and opportunities for neighbors to engage with each other and determine what they want their city to look like. When community members feel informed, seen and empowered, neighborhoods become more resilient, connected and just.  

ENP contends that democracy is strongest when regular people are engaged, particularly those whose voices and experiences have historically been ignored. Participating in democracy doesn’t just happen at the ballot box. It means showing up to learn about the issues, asking questions, building relationships and playing a role in shaping the policies that affect one’s families and neighborhoods. That’s why ENP views participating in and helping facilitate candidate forums as one way we can uplift democracy in our city. Forums like these allow community members to hear directly from candidates, ask questions that impact issues locally and work together to hold elected officials accountable and ensure transparency.  

Another nonprofit growing in local advocacy is the Jackson CDC. Listening to the community is one of the organization’s primary values. After receiving input from the community, Jackson CDC staff partners with residents towards their specified goals, even if it is a new challenge for the organization. This spring, as the local city council campaigns were underway, various residents in the Jackson neighborhood voiced interest in hosting candidate forums for the two districts that represent the neighborhood: District 5 and District 7.  

Seeing the extraordinary need for civic participation, Jackson CDC Executive Director Rhonda Dueck worked to identify a resident with candidate forum planning experience, who would be an excellent collaborator for this type of event. She then invited some active residents and new voices (including students) to share ideas for questions for the session. The forum, hosted at a local elementary school that hosts their monthly neighborhood meetings, included translation and audio services as well as snacks for attendees. The District 5 forum had 25 residents in attendance, and the District 7 forum had 18 residents in attendance, who gave positive feedback on the successful event. Rhonda is proud of Jackson CDC for hosting these two candidate forums and is optimistic for even greater turnouts for future forums.  

The Jackson CDC neighborhood tagline: “Empowered Residents = Thriving Community” has energized the organization to challenge itself this year. The organization has built its advocacy muscle by addressing a variety of significant local topics, hosting informational meetings, spearheading letter writing campaigns and encouraging attendance at city council and school board meetings. Hosting these city council candidate forums was the next step in vital democracy building for the Jackson neighborhood and gave residents the opportunity to speak directly with candidates, reiterating that community voices matter in decision-making spaces. Jackson CDC is already planning to host another forum if there is a run-off election.  

Highway City Community Development, Inc. also hosted its first candidate forum in its neighborhood. “Too often, communities like ours are talked about but not directly engaged,” said Highway City Community Development Executive Director April Henry. “Hosting the Fresno City Council District 1 candidate forum was about changing that — creating access, building understanding and reminding residents that while we may not change the entire country, we have the power to shape what happens in our own corner of it.” April saw firsthand the tremendous impact the forum made on neighborhood residents.

One attendee, Bernadette, a first-time voter, shared, “Thanks to the questions the candidates answered, I left with a clear decision on what candidate I trust with my district.”  

Civic participation has become increasingly important due to the uncertainty and division faced by the immigrant community. Familias en Acción has also worked to address civic engagement for the residents they serve. “We are living through difficult times — especially for the most vulnerable immigrant families, who put themselves at risk every day to support their households,” said Familias en Acción Founder Lilia Becerril. “It is deeply regrettable that many of these community members fail to return home after being detained while carrying out basic activities, such as commuting to work or grocery shopping.”

The reason Familias en Acción organizes forums is simple: community members have suffered the consequences of not being fully informed and of allowing others to make decisions on their behalf. Familias en Acción is helping the community register to vote and understand that their votes in these primary elections are critical. The organization’s goal is for citizens to exercise their right to vote to influence current government policies. To achieve this goal, information is key. For this reason, Familias en Acción participates in civic engagement to provide a platform where families can voice their concerns and hear how candidates plan to address crucial issues. Their priorities include deportations, detention and eviction prevention; ensuring that local children have unlimited educational opportunities; environmental protection and other matters vital to our community.  

To learn more about DRIVE’s Civic Infrastructure Initiative or get involved, visit https://www.fresnodrive.org/place/civicinfrastructure or email ENP Neighborhood Partnership Development Manager Christian Gonzalez at Christian@everyneighborhood.org.