Case study: A spiritual community in crisis
"Thank you for coordinating this process for our community, it was really team building and reminders of how great this community is when we work together. I highly applaud Ms. Lightfoot and am grateful we are spending money on her services.”
— Community member
Client
This membership-based organization hosts expressive, spiritual dance events to uphold values of play, humility, self-expression, diversity, and experimentation. It aspires to be a supportive space where individuals are encouraged to express authenticity and build community through the power of rhythm.
Problem
Unresolved Harm and Divergent Interpretations. Prompted by increasingly urgent advocacy of members’ safety and equity needs, governing leaders suspended membership of several long-time members who repeatedly violated boundaries. A dedicated team and an incident reporting system were created to address boundary violations more systematically.
Distrust in Processes and Leadership. The introduction of the Anonymous Incident Report Form and the Incident Review Team, and subsequent suspensions of individuals from events, were followed by mistrust by some members who raised skepticism about fairness, impartiality, and consistency in these processes. People who worked hard to lead these processes also felt unsupported.
Polarization and Social Fragmentation. The community experienced intensifying polarization. Members formed factions around competing narratives, and dialogue often gave way to silence, withdrawal, or confrontation. What had been a culture of shared experience (with many harms invisible) became one marked by anxiety and ideological rifts. Feelings of betrayal, fear, grief, and hope all coexisted, often within the same individuals. Many were unsure what healing and accountability should look like.
Result
Clarity and Support. Sarah supported the leadership team in steps to address the rift and immediate steps. Community leaders received coaching on strategic communication to members that included this clarity.
Individuals heard, safely. In listening sessions, members voiced their perspectives with non-judgmental volunteer peers, in a group of people with similar views.
“I wasn’t sure what to expect, I felt wary, and I was surprised how nice it was to get my views off my chest.”
Community Brief. Raw data from listening sessions were compiled into qualitative themes that were synthesized into a reframed narrative.
Humanizing All, Building Mutual Understanding. Data analysis identified shared values across ideological rifts. Representative quotes were used to help people empathize with perspectives they did not understand or agree with.
Shared Narrative about What Happened. Data revealed how the sequence of decisions made and lack of inclusive dialogue and clarity about values and purpose of the incident review process led to the current situation.
Human Systems and Root Problem Analysis. The listening sessions generated over 800 quotes from community members. I took time away with the data, taking in the humanity of every voice, and becoming intimately familiar with the overall picture of the state of the community. I developed diagrams of relationships inside of the system, and applied multiple frameworks of human systems theory to compare perspectives on the situation at the system level. I compiled my analysis into a digestible community brief for the client with powerful reframing of the polarization and potential interventions for change, using analogies and stories to offer accessible new perspectives on an entrenched problem.
De-escalation. We facilitated a community meeting to hear and have highly moderated discussion (to mitigate further harm) about the Community Brief findings. Participants reported an experience of relief and togetherness after a challenging time of rancorous community discourse.
Forward Momentum. Community leaders identified and began to implement short and long term interventions to address the root problem.
