The Dale "Present" Campaign

mostOne: It’s a cold and musky night in the heart of Canada’sChapter asleep populous city… Although most of Toronto is sound Marginalization after a satisfying supper, some are not as fortunate.

These are the people on the margins who, for varying reasons, have troubles accessing basic needs. adequate housing

meaningful employment

proper healthcare

Tom Smith is street involved due to a devastating accident that took his fiancée, Laura, ten months ago. The paramedics said it was a miracle he survived the crash.

His fractured back has since healed...

...but a toxic combination of depression, medical costs, and time off work forced him onto the streets. Tonight, Tom stumbles his way to a park bench nearby to rest.

“Four dollars from today’s panhandle. My unpaid loans from physical therapy costs are beginning to cause me anxiety.

I should talk to that lady at housing services again but it’s not like she cares about who I am or what I need.”

Self-esteem is an often “Laura would tell me to stop talking to myself and sleep.

It’ll be good to get some rest.

Tomorrow morning, I’ll wake early to get some free lunch at The Soup Kitchen.”

over-looked foundation which props people up to properly access basic needs. Someone who doesn’t believe that they’re worth anyone’s time or consideration will be less likely to walk through the door of a public service providing housing or healthcare.

Community and personal relationships are essential to alleviating poverty.

CHARITY’S RECEIVER CHARITY’S GIVER Jenny, a working middle-class woman, is in a townhouse nearby and can’t fall asleep. Thoughts of the time she spent with her aunt Laurie flood her mind; Laurie had taken her in while her parents’ jobs temporarily relocated them.

Philanthropic, financially stable Torontonians have the

mindset of charity that The Dale wants to challenge. They leisurely spend money on themselves and loved ones.

They have busy schedules, yet more free time than they allow themselves to perceive.They have short, inconsistent histories with charity involvement.

Earlier, Jenny had received word that her aunt Laurie suddenly passed away in Seattle from an aggressive form of cancer. She thought about sharing the news with her childhood friend, Fiona, but refrained because Fiona never opened up about her personal life.

One’s vulnerability liberates others to be real about their struggles.

Sharing transcends age, social differences or financial disparities.

“Get it together, Jenny. You promised Fiona you’d be at The Kitchen in five hours. She’d only judge you if you called her this late at night, crying. You were also given a paycheque on Monday; you should do your part and not spend all your money and time on yourself.”

Feelings of obligation

towards helping the poor and guilt over inaction dominate the target audience.

When speaking about philanthropy, they use the words “I should,” as if positive action were their responsibility because they have the means to give.

The next morning, Jenny makes her way to The Soup Kitchen to meet Fiona, when she walks by a billboard.

During their daily routines, the target

audience revisits the same routes and often comes to recognize the marginalized it sees along the way.

“Another one? These ads always make me feel horrible.

They’re basically making me responsible for these people, but there are so many of them and only one of me!”

“It’s hopeless… I already have enough on my plate to deal with!”

Ads from organizations

that address homelessness often call for monetary donation and awareness, placing the responsibility on the viewers to create change.They leave people feeling guilty and ashamed if they don’t take action, perpetuating a superhero complex.

Charity’s superhero complex is a notable obstacle to potential involvement—the pressure on the privileged to “save” those who are not is tiring and debilitating. It paralyzes those who want to help from actually doing so, or stunts any chance of long-term commitment.

Empathy fatigue is created by the over-saturation of tragic news.This leads to discouragement from action, and desensitization towards others’ suffering.This then brings about avoidance and public cynicism towards social causes. .

“Maybe I should offer him some change.

Would it be dangerous to? What will happen to me if he’s prone to be violent or high?

I’m sure someone else will help him.”

“Even if I did give him money, I’d probably be buying him drugs. Is he homeless because he struggles with addiction? Or because of an uncontrollable situation? I wish I knew his story.”

“I feel horrible! He probably saw me intentionally walk faster and avoid eye contact. I wish I could hear his story, but he’s looking for money, not someone to tell his story to... I’ll stop next time?”

Broken trust is another obstacle for the target audience in their interaction with the marginalized.

Stereotypes make potential participants are uncomfortable with the myth of panhandlers’ dishonesty, drug-use, and rudeness. A few bad experiences have formed their assumptions about all of the street-involved.

They have a genuine desire for opportunities to see them as “people” with

unique characters, stories and names, to meet their specific needs and be proven wrong about their assumptions.

They seek an organization that can help them see that the marginalized want to help themselves, and debunk myths of laziness or drug-abuse.

Jenny makes her way to her neighbourhood church, where The Soup Kitchen, a charity organization, provides free lunch. Fi had invited Jenny to volunteer with her as a server.

“Those poor lads outside don’t have anything and here I am wallowing in my self-pity and grief.

There’s already enough brokenness here; I should leave my troubles at home to deal with later and do all I can to help the people who actually need it.

The supehero complex

doesn’t give volunteers room to share and acknowledge the ways they struggle, which creates a relational chasm between the financially privileged who “should” take on responsibility and the “needy” who are not given opportunities to offer their gifts. Charity thus reinforces the differences between people. Givers become lonely and burdened, while receivers feel entitled or useless.

“Hey... Jenny? Earth to Jenny!

This man’s waiting for his dinner roll; stop daydreaming!”

Tom walks into the free lunch at The Soup Kitchen, and starts a conversation with Jenny.

“Are you familiar with “Pizza Panic” down the street? My fiancée used to talk incessantly about a restaurant with the same name that she once tried in Seattle!”

Relationship building is often

dismissed in favour or efficiency in environments structured by charity.

The superhero complex and giver–receiver hierarchy becomes an obstacle to people getting to know one another’s names and stories, beyond the stereotypes.

“Ah, yes, acually, when I was 6, I lived in Seattle with my aunt and she used to...”

“HEY YOU TWO! GET MOVING. Stop chit-chatting.

You’re holding up the line! Some people behind you are hungry and this place has a quota to meet.”

Clickers are often used at charities which rely on funding and thus have a certain quota of people fed or clothed to be met each day.

Clickers, as well as paperwork in other bureaucratic institutions, dehumanize the marginalized, as they can quickly become reduced to another statistic.

“Aunt Laurie used to treat my soccer team to Pizza Panic whenever we won a game…

Oh gosh, Jenny, get it together.”

Brokenness has many forms.

Though appearances and posessions differentiate the privileged from those who are not, experiences like grief reveal a shared humanity.

“The tag team, doing good for the world! Hey Jenny, let’s take a picture and share a cute one of us on Instagram!

Make sure the people we’re feeding are in the background!”

“Voluntourism,” a recent

“It’s 4 p.m. already? I feel good about how many bowls I’ve filled with soup, but I’m exhausted!”

“Yeah, I am as well… Do you think we’ll ever know if we actually impacted anyone today, Fi?”

Volunteers leave feeling they had not helped because they had not relationally connected with those they were helping and thus couldn’t see the impact they made.They had no desire nor motivation to return.

“Don’t be silly; you were great with those dinner rolls! C’mon, let’s go.”

“Soup kitchens and The Good Shepherd are good organizations, but they’re only scratching the surface.

It’s like you’re sick but only treating the symptoms and not the actual sickness.You’re feeding people, yes, but are you helping the individual?

Probably not. In the end, it all comes down to people’s perceptions of the homeless. Giving the homeless empowerment would be the key to solving this. Show me they care.

Show me that they’re trying.”

(October 19, 2015: One-On-One Interview with student from OCADU who isn’t involved with any poverty-oriented non-profit organizations)

trend, focuses on the heroism of the volunteer, reinforcing negative stereotypes of the impoverished and neglecting real needs of communities. Photographs shared by volunteers often suggest that these communities are incapable or uninterested in caring for its own people, and are “less about doing actual work and more about retrospectively appearing to have had a positive impact.”

(Pacific Standard Magazine, “#InstagrammingAfrica: The Narcissism of Global Voluntourism” by Lauren Kascak)

The Dale’s unique request to those who’d like to contribute, is that they not volunteer at first, but rather engage in conversation or simply sit and take in what’s going on.This emphasizes the ‘gift of presence’ and breaks down stereotypes because they are given an opportunity to co-exist with others in relationship. People are invited to help out when they are well-integrated in the community.

“Google Maps says The Dale’s drop-in is somewhere here.”

“Hey there! I’m Joe! Have we met? Well Jenny, it’s an honour to have you here. Come on in! Welcome to The Dale; take a seat!

I hope you haven’t eaten yet—brunch will be coming around shortly.”

Trust and vulnerability is fostered within The Dale’s community. All are welcomed to come be as they are. In raw conversation, the privileged realize their common humanity with those from the streets.The way the marginalized wear their brokenness on their sleeves, often because they can’t hide it, gives ‘permission’ to others to reveals theirs as well.

“Your husband is also an immigrant from Poland?”

“…It was then that I knew that she was definitely the one I needed to marry.”

“Wow, me too!”

“My car flipped in the air three times and thankfully...”

SOLIDARITY’S GIVER IS ALSO SOLIDARITY’S RECEIVER Those serving at The Dale

“Would you like some eggs? ”

are people from the streets who were first introduced to the community because they needed help.This empowers them by giving them an opportunity to offer their gifts, and dissolves the separate identities of volunteers who have resources and available time, and poor people who don’t have the needs or resources.

Receiving more than what you give is common at The Dale,

beyond the feeling of doing a good deed. Volunteers receive friendship, hope, new perspectives, and liberation from superhero complexes or mindsets plagued by stereotypes, simply from bringing themselves to the community.

“…and that’s how I finally grieved Laura in a healthy way that both honoured what she meant to me but let me look forward to the future without regret. ”

“I also struggled to face my grief when my aunt passed away. It’s comforting to talk to someone who understands me!”

Dignity is given when people sit down, share in conversation, and choose to see one another eye to eye.To those often avoided or dehumanized, this simple gesture means a lot and helps them receive all other needs.

“Can I help with anything?”

“Oh no, don’t worry, just enjoy the company!

Make yourself at home. I’m Tom, by the way!

Save me the seat next to you! I’ll swing by once I’m done serving these eggs”

“This person was shooting in an alley yesterday but today now he’s here helping. I’m convinced that says something to you about who he really is or who he wants to be” (October 14, 2015: One-on-one interview with a social worker at Sanctuary, a community which the Dale closely partners with, and models itself after).

CHEAT SHEET

Charity is the traditional one-way relationship between the privileged and underprivileged. The transaction mediated by money or material goods is often overcast by pity, fear or guilt because no personal relationship is formed.

In contrast, The Dale’s model of solidarity is an empathetic relationship wherein both parties are welcomed to give and receive. It is built upon the belief that people are more than their possessions, and brokenness comes in many forms.

THE DALE

A non-profit community that empowers those experiencing poverty of spirit or space through its weekly drop-ins hosted in Parkdale.

who find themselves a superhero complex

THE DALE

How can we relieve their burdened mindset of charity with The Dale’s belief of solidarity?

You aren’t a superhero responsible for saving the poor. Both “superheroes” and “victims” struggle with brokenness. We’re not asking you to donate or volunteer—giving is as easy as bringing yourself to The Dale to sit and have a conversation!

All research was done through oneon-one interviews in October 2015 at various cozy coffeeshops in Toronto.

Brand Insights: The Dale

THE DALE The Dale is a community organization that welcomes all people, especially the vulnerable and marginalized, to participate in drop-ins and spiritual conversations. In 2012, the community lost its rights to its primary meeting location due to financial difficulties, forcing them to spill onto the streets.

Today, they gather several days a week in various churches and coffeeshops, rendering their presence difficult to recognize and articulate by the Toronto public. As a non-profit organization, the Dale is financially supported by donations, suggesting the need for a marketing campaign to incite publicity and invite charitable involvement. Historically, however, campaigns of this nature by other non-profit homeless organizations have frightened their target audiences with the burdensome responsibility of supporting strangers from the streets. On the contrary, The Dale values support conducted through long-term relationships within its organization, asking newcomers to integrate into the community as receiving members before offering help. Strategically, the brand has an opportunity to extend a gracious invitation to its target audience by addressing its barriers to involvement and straying from the competition’s tones of intimidation and guilt.

PeiYing Lindsey Cheung is an INFP who loves to wonder and wander, easily swept up in the beauty of nature. When she’s not chasing golden light filtering through forest canopies, you’ll find her whizzing down wintery slopes on a pair of skis. Through her art, she desires to record life in its most honest form, mourn the ways it has fallen, and hope for the glory that it will be.