Decolonizing Narrative Strategy
A fundamental flaw in nonprofit communications is the colonial mindset that persists even in well-intentioned "assets-based" approaches. While recognizing community strengths is better than focusing solely on deficits, true decolonization requires moving beyond asset identification to challenging the very power structures that determine who gets to tell whose story and whose knowledge is valued.
In colonial systems, the ability to "write about" communities is a form of power. When nonprofits position themselves as the ones who "recognize assets" in communities they "serve," they maintain colonial hierarchies where the organization determines what constitutes value and whose wisdom is acknowledged. This is not equity—it's benevolent colonialism.
It is critical to examine how the language of serving communities implies certain communities are in need of serving/saving.
The Colonial Framework of "Assets-Based" Writing
The problem with traditional "assets-based" approaches is they accept the colonial premise that nonprofit organizations hold the power to identify and validate community strengths. This framework:
Maintains organizational authority over community value assessment
Positions communities as objects to be "asset-mapped" rather than subjects with inherent sovereignty
Reinforces the colonial gaze where external organizations determine what constitutes "assets"
Creates dependency on organizational validation for community recognition
Decolonized Writing Practices
Center Community Sovereignty in Language
Instead of positioning your organization as the one who "recognizes" community assets, acknowledge that communities have always possessed inherent strengths and knowledge. Your role is to create space for this knowledge to be expressed on its own terms.
Examples of decolonized language:
Colonial framing: “We recongize the assets in the communities we serve.”
Decolonized framing: “We work with communities to elevate their inherent strengths and self-determined solutions.”
Challenging Systemic Power in Your Lanugage
When addressing systemic inequities, name the structures of power rather than focusing on individual or community characteristics. The systems that create inequity are the problem—not the people impacted by them.
Examples:
Colonial framing: "Communities of color face higher rates of poverty."
Decolonized framing: "Economic systems extract wealth from communities of color, creating manufactured poverty."
Redistribute Narrative Power
Instead of your organization "writing about" communities, create systems where communities control their own narratives:
Community-led storytelling projects with organizational support
Co-created content where community members have equal decision-making power
Budget allocation specifically for community narrative creation
Training and resources for community members to develop their own communication skills
When we move beyond "assets-based" approaches to decolonized narrative practice, we're not just changing words, we're redistributing the power to define reality itself.
This transformation requires an ongoing commitment to unlearning colonial patterns and creating new ways of being in right relationship with communities. It means recognizing that justice cannot be achieved within systems designed to maintain unequal power structures. The work of decolonizing narrative is not just about communication. It is ultimately about building the foundation for collective liberation and self-determination.
