Deep Listening for Deep Understanding
Galvanize USA was literally built by listening to women—it’s been at the core of our efforts before the organization was even established! Prior to launching Galvanize USA in 2018, Founder Jackie Payne spent more than a year on a listening tour. From living rooms to county fairs, Jackie listened to women across America to learn how they think and feel about the big issues and their hopes for this country.
Listening to—and learning from—women is still the cornerstone of our work. Last fall, we tested our first-ever Deep Listening Program: a research-based approach built on the principles of deep canvassing. This program was designed to help us understand the women in our communities even better. Our incredible volunteers called women in Wisconsin on the phone to find out what they think about everything from COVID to critical race theory. Here are three things we learned!
1. Nobody asks women about their dreams for the future—but they should!
Many of our phone conversations started out the same: we’d ask the woman on the other end what she thought about an issue in America, and she initially wouldn’t have much to say. So many women told us they didn’t know or didn’t feel qualified to have an opinion. It made us realize something important: nobody else is out there asking women what they think!
After a little chatting and relationship building over the phone, it would become clear that women DO have strong opinions about the state of our nation—they’re just not used to being asked for them.
“If I decide my voice doesn’t matter, then I’ve already lost.”
Wisconsin voter
Feeling seen, heard, and valued can go a long way toward making women feel ready for brave conversations about the issues that face America. That’s why we’re in community together every day; we’re building each other up and helping each other feel strong, powerful, and capable of creating the America we want to live in.
2. Women are worried about America, but proud of their local communities.
There’s one thing almost everyone on the phones agreed on: they feel that America is generally going in the wrong direction. They’re not alone—70% of Americans now agree that our country is on the wrong path. Despite this consensus, most women we spoke to felt that their own, local community is on the right track and that people in their community have what they need to get by.
So many women told us they are proud of the communities they live in! While most women told us they don’t think they can change the world by themselves, the folks who told us they do feel empowered to enact change find that power in their own neighborhoods, especially at their children’s schools. When we asked women what made them feel powerful they mentioned attending school board meetings, volunteering through church and community groups, and fighting for the level of COVID precautions they want their local government to adopt.
3. Above all, calling women voters helped people on both sides of the phone see that we all have more in common than we realize.
“We may assign different reasons to what we believe is happening in the world, but we have a lot of common belief systems and values that we share.”
Laurie Schipper, Community Care Specialist
We ended all our conversations with one final question: “If you had a magic wand, what would you change in your community?” It’s a great way to end a conversation because it invites possibility, openness, and seeing each other’s humanity.
Folks had all different answers to that question, from ending COVID to fixing the economy to making sure all children are safe. At Galvanize USA, if we could wave a magic wand over America, we’d instantly transform it into a nation with a robust, healthy democracy in which everyone can thrive. Until that magic wand arrives, we’ll keep doing the work the hard way: by inspiring meaningful connections and brave conversations every single day.
