The Purpose of Power: How We Come Together When We Fall Apart

The second part of The Purpose of Power turns to Garza’s history as an organizer from her earliest years to the establishment of the Black Lives Matter movement. It is largely a narrative retelling of Garza’s post-college work experience. Another narrative on the social developments of the time, especially regarding police brutality, parallels Garza’s story.

These chapters describe the events that have shaped Garza’s point of view and situate the BLM movement within both a personal and a broader societal narrative. The goal of these chapters is to supply additional context explaining Garza’s stances and arguments in Part III. Between Chapters 3 and 7, Garza matures into an experienced organizer, one who learns from mistakes and dares to hope for the future.

In Chapter 3, Garza recounts lessons from her earlier years as an organizer. She defines organizing as “the process of coming together with other people” for a specific purpose, which is usually about changing policies that impact people’s lives (58). Garza was drawn to organizing because of its ability to help forge human connections and build relationships within communities. Growing up as a Black girl in a white neighborhood, Garza often felt alone and ostracized.