This reflection on California’s Proposition 15 campaign shows how even a “loss” can seed long-term narrative power. Community and labor groups came within a razor-thin margin of closing Prop 13’s corporate tax loophole, shifting what was once considered untouchable into the realm of possibility. The story underscores how movements build power by challenging dominant myths, training new leaders, and investing in narrative infrastructure that outlasts any single election cycle. At Aspen CSG, we see this lesson as vital: durable change in rural and urban communities alike requires long-term organizing coupled with narrative strategies that expand imagination, confront entrenched inequities, and make space for just and inclusive futures.
Losing Forward: Lessons from Organizing for Narrative Change
