CROWD Academy: Southern Coalition for Social Justice's Redistricting Series

There will be 3 training sessions that you can choose from:

Feb 10-12, 3-6 PM CT - Houston/Gulf Coast Area

Feb 24- 26, 3-6 PM CT - Dallas/Fort Worth Area

Mar 10-12, 3-6 PM CT - Central Texas

Please note that each training will occur over a 3 day period, and these trainings will be nearly identical, so please feel free to attend another session outside of your region if you have scheduling issues.

The CROWD Academy initiative developed by Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ) is designed to expand our capacity to educate citizens about the upcoming redistricting process and equip them with the knowledge and tools they will need to meaningfully engage in the process. This project is necessary to address the enormous potential blow to voting rights for voters of color due to the loss of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. Without the notification element and the extra time afforded by the preclearance process that Section 5 provided, we must equip and support communities across the state to both act as the “eyes and ears” notification system lost after the Shelby decision, and to engage meaningfully in the redistricting process, from demystifying the process to producing, analyzing and advocating for maps. Our goal is to give community leaders the tools they need to lead the engagement around redistricting in their community.

In this training, you will learn about redistricting law, the nuts and bolts of redistricting, how to organize and mobilize around redistricting, how to use map-drawing software, how to communicate to different audiences about redistricting, and how to engage in the legislative redistricting proces. Each CROWD Academy participant will also receive a Handbook, a comprehensive resource for redistricting education and engagement.

The CROWD Academies will serve as a springboard for partners to build and strengthen their base of leaders that are committed to civic engagement and power-building in the redistricting process at every level. To that end, the Academies will offer participants (Scholars) training and tools for engagement after they walk out the door.