UC Berkeley’s Othering & Belonging Institute, or the OBI, worked with an Orange County community organization to experiment with a new canvassing strategy to engage residents across the political spectrum.
The approach, known as long bridging, is part of the institute’s Bridging for Democracy initiative. Long bridging prioritizes human conversation over gathering support for a particular political purpose.
“It is a long-term endeavor,” said Olivia Araiza, director of the Network for Transformative Change at the OBI. “The primary goal is to see if we can experiment, innovate and introduce ways to tackle head-on toxic polarization and fragmentation that’s eroding our path towards a multiracial democracy.”
The pilot began in Anaheim last fall in partnership with the Orange County Congregational Community Organization, or OCCCO, a faith-based community organization. Canvassers went door-to-door in neighborhoods across Anaheim Hills, which the OBI claimed is an area starkly different in both demographic and income level from where their work usually takes place in West Anaheim.
OCCCO’s Anaheim canvassing effort was not limited by individuals’ religion, political party or income level.
According to Araiza, canvassers encountered initial hesitation from residents, but data collected from canvassers showed an increase in disposition as conversations progressed. Sixty-six percent of participants were willing to speak to canvassers again after the initial conversation.
The impact of this initiative has extended beyond individual interactions, according to Araiza, who said some participating organizations have altered how they organize and communicate with communities.
OCCCO’s Executive Director Miguel Hernandez, who has been involved in faith-based organizing in Orange County since the 1990s, noted that divisions within the county are apparent across cities. Particularly, he pointed to similar patterns in cities such as Fullerton and La Habra, where Hernandez said neighborhoods differ sharply in income and demographics.
“I think that the spirit of it (long bridging) is that we can’t be hardened,” Araiza said. “That we have to look across lines of difference and intentionally push ourselves to do that work right now, at a time when our communities are strategically and intentionally being divided.”