The Ruckus Society and WRL’s Not Your Soldier Project recently made a big structural change – transitioning from a project that offered skill building training camps for youth into one that offers ongoing, tailored support to local counter-recruitment groups through a national umbrella campaign.
We wanted to make sure this new campaign structure was heading in the right direction. We convened an advisory board, made up of nine vets, young people organizing in schools and communities, and representatives from national peace and social justice organizations. Over the weekend of October 6-8, we had our first advisory board meeting in New York City.
The board helped us to get clarity on the project’s organizational structure, fine-tune our goals and methods of support for campaign partners, and envision how the Project should look and feel in our materials and presentations. We also took time to assess communities and organizations across the country who we could work with.
It was a great meeting, and we all left with a sense of unity and mutual support for our work. We’re looking forward to a great end of the year.