From the Editor: Building Community Isn't Always Fun. Do It Anyway.

"I butted heads most with a man on my floor. He advocated for cameras and security guards; sometimes my concerns about privacy and how hired muscle might treat our unhoused neighbors came out as passive-aggressive jabs. He would get defensive or say I was dismissing his thoughts. Sometimes I was."

"Then we got to know him. We would pet his tiny, quivering dog in the hallway, check in about his chronic back pain; he asked us about our work. We would still get into heated discussions during our meetings. But our common goal became clearer. In time, we understood each other in good faith, in solidarity, with respect and honesty."

"Instead of simply hanging out with whoever is closest, we form many of our social groups online these days, building relationships around shared interests or values as opposed to geography. But our bespoke online worlds are not great places to learn to talk to strangers in the real world."

A tenant union organized around a broken elevator created an unexpected community among neighbors with different backgrounds and perspectives. Initial conflicts arose between organizers and residents with differing security priorities, but sustained interaction—casual conversations, shared concern for each other's wellbeing—transformed these tensions into mutual respect and solidarity. While online communities enable connection around shared interests and values, they often lack the friction and proximity that teach people to navigate disagreement with strangers in physical spaces. Geographic proximity forces engagement across difference in ways curated online spaces do not, creating opportunities for genuine understanding and community formation.

Read at Portland Monthly