KNOWLEDGE ➡️ ACTION ➡️ NETWORK
Winston-Salem showed up.
Our No Kings 3 gathering was something special—not just a rally, but a community coming together with purpose, energy, and direction.
For the first time, we intentionally brought this event into East Winston on MLK Drive, grounding it in community and connection—not just visibility. And it mattered.
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No Kings 3 returns March 28 at Union Station in Winston-Salem, bringing community members together in a historic East Winston landmark. The event combines civic energy, thoughtful planning, and a powerful setting for collective action.
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Over the past few meetings, I’ve been sharing something personal with our members.
My role is changing.
Not because I’m leaving.
Not because I’m burned out.
Not because I’m disengaging.
But because this movement is growing.
And when something grows, leadership has to grow with it.
Running Camel City United Indivisible has taught me a lot.
About organizing.
About community.
About power.
But it has also taught me a lot about myself.
I am not an administrator at heart.
I’m not most alive sitting in meetings about meetings.
I’m not energized by managing calendars, files, and forms.
I’m not built to spend my best hours buried in inboxes.
I respect that work deeply.
Every strong organization needs it.
But that’s not where I’m strongest.
I’m strongest in the field.
On the block.
At the door.
In the street.
With people.
I’m strongest when I’m helping clear obstacles.
Securing permits.
Solving problems.
Building relationships.
Making sure things can happen.
That’s where I do my best leadership.
Why I’m Stepping Back to Move Us Forward
So when I say I’m stepping back, I don’t mean stepping away.
I mean stepping aside—so others can step up.
For too long, too much has flowed through one person.
That’s not healthy.
That’s not sustainable.
That’s not how movements last.
They create space.
They develop people.
They multiply capacity.
And that’s what time it is for CCUI.
We Need Builders of Infrastructure
As we grow, we need more than passion.
We need structure.
We need systems.
We need organizers who can manage meetings.
Keep records.
Coordinate teams.
Run operations.
Hold continuity.
We need administrators.
Facilitators.
Coordinators.
Strategists.
Not as “paper-pushers.”
As movement architects.
People who understand that logistics is justice.
That organization is power.
That preparation is protection.
This work is sacred.
And it matters.
Let me use an image.
Right now, this movement is holding out a ring.
An opportunity.
A chance to grow.
To lead.
To shape something real.
To become something new.
And I’m saying to you:
Reach for it.
Grab it.
Don’t wait to be invited twice.
Don’t wait until you feel “ready.”
Don’t wait until you think you’re perfect.
Nobody ever is.
Leadership is learned by doing.
This movement is offering you a gift:
A place to become who you are capable of being.
A Message to Young and Emerging Leaders
Especially to our younger members.
To folks who may be watching quietly.
Learning.
Wondering if there’s room for you.
There is.
We need you.
We need your creativity.
Your technology skills.
Your energy.
Your perspective.
Your courage.
This is your space.
Not someday.
Not later.
This movement will stretch you.
Challenge you.
Grow you.
Strengthen you.
Like the old Army slogan said: Be all you can be.
That’s not about militarism.
That’s about potential.
That’s what organizing does.
It reveals who you are.
What I’m Moving Toward
As I step back from daily administration, I’m stepping deeper into:
Field organizing.
Relationship building.
Training.
Mentorship.
Strategic growth.
External partnerships.
I’ll still be here.
Still accountable.
Still engaged.
But my role is shifting—from carrying everything to cultivating everyone.
From doing everything to developing others.
That’s leadership too.
Every movement that lasts learns this lesson.
It cannot depend on one voice.
One face.
One organizer.
One personality.
It must become many.
Many leaders.
Many centers of gravity.
Many carriers of vision.
That’s how we protect what we’ve built.
That’s how we grow stronger.
That’s how we honor this work.
So this is my invitation to you.
If you’ve been waiting:
Step forward.
If you’ve been unsure:
Try.
If you’ve been learning quietly:
Now is your time.
This movement is offering you the ring.
Reach for it.
Let’s build this together.
Let’s grow together.
Let’s lead together.
And let’s become—together—everything we are capable of being.
One of the most important conversations in our recent meeting happened near the end, when we began talking about venues, visibility, and where we should show up in public.
It’s a conversation worth reflecting on—because it gets to the heart of who Camel City United Indivisible really is.
Across the country, many groups measure success by visibility alone. They look for the busiest corner, the most traffic, the place where the most people might glance their way for a few seconds. They spread out along sidewalks. They hold signs. They hope someone notices.
There’s nothing wrong with that. For small groups, sometimes that’s the right strategy.
But that is not who we are.
When CCUI shows up, we don’t show up in twos and threes.
We show up in hundreds.
We show up in thousands.
We show up organized, connected, and grounded in community.
We don’t stretch ourselves thin across three blocks just to be “seen.”
We gather people together—intentionally—so that we can know one another, protect one another, and move together.
When we gather, we gather in force.
That’s why the press comes.
That’s why people ask, “Who are all these folks?”
That’s why elected officials pay attention.
Not because we stood on a corner.
Because we built something real.
There’s a reason we work so hard to collect names, phone numbers, emails, and addresses at every event.
It’s not bureaucracy.
It’s not busywork.
It’s organizing.
If people are stretched across three blocks and we don’t know who they are, we haven’t built power. We’ve built a moment.
Moments fade.
Relationships last.
Power grows when people know each other, trust each other, and stay
connected long after the rally is over.
That’s why we invest in follow-up.
That’s why we build lists.
That’s why we create teams.
That’s why we stay in touch.
We are building a community—not a crowd.
Some folks ask: Why downtown? Why public spaces? Why permits?
It’s not because we’re asking permission to exist.
It’s not because we’re trying to make anyone “comfortable.”
It’s because we are responsible.
When thousands of people gather, we plan.
We communicate.
We coordinate.
We notify the city and law enforcement not because we need approval—but because we are saying:
We are coming.
We are organized.
Be ready.
That’s what leadership looks like.
It’s how we keep people safe.
It’s how we protect our elders.
It’s how we make sure families, youth, and mobility-challenged folks can participate.
It’s how we make sure our movement is sustainable.
Think back to our major actions.
At No Kings II, we didn’t occupy a corner.
We occupied the city.
From 101 to 251.Two full blocks.
Thousands of people.
Music. Speeches. Community. Purpose.
That didn’t happen by accident.
It happened because people trusted this organization.
Because they knew when CCUI called, it mattered.
Because they knew they were part of something bigger than themselves.
That is our strength.
CCUI is not just about showing up.
We are about staying connected.
Staying organized.
Staying in relationship.
Staying in the work.
We protest.
We march.
We rally.
But we also BUILD.
We build leaders.
We build teams.
We build donors.
We build youth.
We build coalitions.
We build community.
That’s how change lasts.
Every strong organization has moments where it pauses and reflects.
This is one of those moments.
Not to criticize.
Not to discourage.
But to remember.
We are not a small group hoping to be noticed.
We are a movement.
We are a force.
We are a community.
When we gather, we gather with purpose.
When we gather, we gather with structure.
When we gather, we gather to win.
Camel City United Indivisible is growing fast and turning energy into action. Since January, membership has surged from 100 to more than 1,500 engaged community members across Winston-Salem and Forsyth County. In just six weeks, CCUI helped lead three large protests, organized activist trainings, supported local food drives, and mobilized residents for city and school board meetings. Through weekly listening sessions, deep canvassing, and public demonstrations, CCUI is building people power and strengthening grassroots advocacy across the region.
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