Few people now know what civic initiatives are in modern Russia. Information about this is rarely seen in newspapers or on television. And for officials, parties and organizations, they have no meaning. What are civic initiatives and what role do they play in society?
Components
- Leader.
- Kernel (optional component).
- Periphery.
A leader is a person who organizes a group of citizens and takes control of it. It is assumed that there can be several such activists. The core is a few other participants who constantly contribute to the development and activities of this association. Sometimes its functions are performed by the leader himself. The remaining people taking part in the group are called peripherals. It can be lawyers, environmentalists, club members and ordinary residents who are committed to solving a common problem. Their number can vary from a couple of people to several hundred. After the problem disappears, there are two options for the further development of civic initiative. In the first case, the group breaks up. In the second, its activity does not fade. Its members continue to further resolve any issues. But in this case, too, it can exist for a short period of time. Not all civic initiatives cope with the difficulties that have come their way. There are two types of associations under consideration: conflicting and supporting. Let's consider each of them.
Conflict Groups
To better understand what it is, consider the following example. The authorities decided to give free space in the city for development. Residents of this area are against. To resolve this situation, they are going to a civil conflict initiative. That is, its basis is any dispute.
Supporting associations
The education of social groups, the provision of assistance to them, the protection of rights, etc., are supported by civic initiatives. Examples of such organizations: Communication Club in Moscow (created on the basis of the district library where you can listen to lectures and debate on various topics), the Neighbors community (it consists of older people in the community). Separately, one can single out the Nord-Ost initiative, which consists of relatives of people who were held hostage on Dubrovka. Its participants seek to support the victims in psychological and therapeutic terms. And also to punish criminals.
Why did civic initiatives come about?
The first reason is the inability to regulate certain situations. Unfortunately, not all problems are spelled out in our legislation. Sometimes the authorities do not react to the ongoing conflicts. Often, when a difficult situation arises for a certain group of people, they should contact the local authorities. However, they do not justify their name. Higher authorities give them too little budget. They are often very limited in rights, because they are subordinate to other governing bodies. Thus, grassroots civic initiatives are just ordinary people who want to solve their problems.
The second reason is that the state, criminal groups or commercial organizations often neglect the rights of ordinary citizens. To protect themselves, people are forced to gather in initiatives. Among such civic associations can be distinguished club "Danko". It was created to help preserve housing for children whose parents were denied the right to raise them. Officials will do a lot for the appropriation of easily accessible housing. Authorities in N. Novgorod decided to cut down the garden in order to build a commercial center in its place. In this situation, the Zimina 6 club was created, which for a long time struggled with this decision. And the organization "Old Nizhny" in the same city protested against the eviction of residents to the outskirts due to the demolition of the old housing stock.
The third reason is in the people themselves. There are individuals who are not indifferent to other people's problems and are actively trying to help everyone. And if these people have the natural qualities of a leader, then the emergence of groups under their leadership is inevitable. Conflict civic initiatives imply that when a problem arises, there must be a person who will take care of all organizational issues. Moreover, he should have free time and the ability to mobilize a group of people interested in this matter. In supporting civic initiatives, the personal qualities of community organizers are important. These people strive to realize their ideals, enlighten disadvantaged social groups, and help others improve themselves. They care about the spiritual state of society.
conclusions
The importance of civic initiatives is gradually gaining momentum in Russia, especially in the political sphere. It is enough to recall the dissatisfaction of the inhabitants with monetization. When the state wanted to deprive citizens of certain benefits (for example, free travel, drugs), people did not remain indifferent. Small civic initiatives were created at the place of residence, which became part of a huge protest movement.