Application Guide

How to Apply for National Organizing Department (NOD) Governing Power Organizer

at Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)

🏢 About Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)

Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) is unique as a national organization specifically mobilizing white people to join multiracial movements for racial and economic justice, working through 150+ local chapters across the US and Canada. Unlike generic social justice organizations, SURJ focuses on building the 'white flank' of movements, addressing racial justice from a specific identity-based approach that recognizes the particular role white people can play in dismantling systemic racism.

About This Role

This Governing Power Organizer role involves developing and executing electoral campaigns within SURJ's National Organizing Department to prevent authoritarian consolidation and win back governing power through volunteer-driven operations. The organizer will set up both online and in-person infrastructure for target electoral races while identifying and developing SURJ members into campaign leaders, directly impacting political outcomes through racial justice organizing.

💡 A Day in the Life

A typical day might involve morning check-ins with volunteer teams via Slack, developing training materials for member leaders taking on new campaign responsibilities, and afternoon work setting up digital infrastructure in EveryAction for target electoral races. The organizer would balance immediate campaign needs with long-term movement building through SURJ's chapter network while maintaining communication with staff across the organization.

🚀 Application Tools

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Interview Prep

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🎯 Who Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ) Is Looking For

  • Has 3+ years of hands-on experience specifically with volunteer recruitment, training, and management in social justice or political contexts
  • Demonstrates proven ability to develop member leaders who take on significant campaign responsibilities, not just manage volunteers
  • Possesses both excellent time management for multiple projects AND familiarity with SURJ's likely tools: Slack, Google Drive, EveryAction, and organizing tools for racial justice work
  • Has direct experience organizing on racial justice issues with understanding of how white people can effectively show up in multiracial movements

📝 Tips for Applying to Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)

1

Quantify your volunteer management experience: Instead of 'managed volunteers,' specify how many volunteers you recruited/trained, retention rates, or leadership pipelines you developed

2

Demonstrate knowledge of SURJ's specific approach: Show you understand their 'white flank' strategy and can discuss how you'd apply it to electoral organizing

3

Highlight experience with their mentioned tools: Specifically mention experience with Slack, Google Drive, EveryAction, or similar organizing platforms

4

Connect electoral experience to racial justice: If you have campaign experience, explicitly link it to racial justice outcomes or multiracial coalition building

5

Show understanding of 'governing power' organizing: Research SURJ's electoral strategy and reference specific aspects in your application materials

✉️ What to Emphasize in Your Cover Letter

['Your specific experience developing member leaders (not just managing volunteers) with concrete examples', "How your racial justice organizing experience aligns with SURJ's 'white flank' approach and multiracial movement building", 'Your ability to set up both online and in-person campaign infrastructure for electoral organizing', "Your familiarity with the organizing tools mentioned (Slack, Google Drive, EveryAction) and how you've used them in previous roles"]

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🔍 Research Before Applying

To stand out, make sure you've researched:

  • → SURJ's 'White Supremacy Culture' resources and how they inform organizing approaches
  • → SURJ's recent electoral campaigns and their 'governing power' strategy documents
  • → The structure of SURJ's 150+ local chapters and how national organizing supports them
  • → SURJ's position within broader multiracial movement ecosystems and partner organizations
Visit Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)'s Website →

💬 Prepare for These Interview Topics

Based on this role, you may be asked about:

1 Describe a specific example of how you developed a volunteer into a campaign leader with increased responsibilities
2 How would you approach setting up electoral campaign infrastructure that aligns with SURJ's racial justice framework?
3 What experience do you have with online organizing tools like EveryAction, and how have you used them for volunteer management?
4 How do you understand SURJ's 'white flank' strategy, and how would you apply it to electoral organizing?
5 Describe how you've managed multiple projects simultaneously while maintaining attention to detail in a campaign setting
Practice Interview Questions →

⚠️ Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Using generic diversity language without demonstrating specific understanding of SURJ's racial justice framework for white people
  • Focusing only on volunteer management without emphasizing leader development and campaign responsibility delegation
  • Presenting electoral experience disconnected from racial justice outcomes or multiracial coalition building

📅 Application Timeline

This position is open until filled. However, we recommend applying as soon as possible as roles at mission-driven organizations tend to fill quickly.

Typical hiring timeline:

1

Application Review

1-2 weeks

2

Initial Screening

Phone call or written assessment

3

Interviews

1-2 rounds, usually virtual

✓

Offer

Congratulations!

Ready to Apply?

Good luck with your application to Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)!

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