A Report on Increasing Grassroots Organizing Efforts in Latino Communities in Fort Worth, Texas

*In 2016, the SOL program pivoted for the year to focus on political engagement in what was then called the “Political Engagement Pilot Project,” or PEPP. This was an alternative version of SOL that laid the groundwork for the development of the PEP program as it currently exists.

Government is often not representative of the area that it serves. Fort Worth is about a third Latino but this is not reflected in the local government.. It is important to also allow this community to strengthen and realize their own power. In order for the community to be more represented, they need to be willing to run for positions. This involves creating a trust in the government that may not exist. Local government can be responsive to inquiry and elected officials should create relationships in the community. If residents feel that they are a part of the city then they are more likely to participate and turn out to vote. If they vote, then they will feel a connection to the people they elect. They are more likely to hold elected officials accountable to promises they made or remove ineffective leaders from office.

The effort to mobilize a community begins at the bottom through a grassroots collective. It starts by creating communities that care about what happens to them. There is an apathy that exists among minority community that translates into low civic and political engagement. This apathy is not particular to the North Side of Fort Worth Latinos. It is a pattern that we see all over the nation, but it so happens that the North Side of Fort Worth is at a position to change the apathy. In this Latino community, where a great portion of the population is low- income, and there is low voter turn out to select elected officials representative of them, grassroots efforts are imperative to political mobilization.