Class as Community: The New Dynamics of Social Change

The debate over whether class and community are alternative or mutually complementary bases of collective action is examined. A typology is developed to examine the relative contribution of each in determining the demands of grass-roots organizations. Specific emphasis within this analysis is on Tri-State Conference on Steel, a community–labor organization fighting plant closings in the Pittsburgh, PA, area. It is concluded that class consciousness can emerge out of participation in grass-roots movements, and the author focuses on the role of human agency in shaping this process. Further, it is concluded that grass-roots movements do have the potential for effecting structural reform.