Hi, How are you?

If we are discussing ‘togetherness’ then by definition there is also, separation.

On the afternoon of May 12th this year I was arrested by 12 police officers. I was walking on along one of the main thoroughfares in North London, beautiful sunshine on my face and a podcast playing through my headphones. Suddenly a police van u-turned in front of me and came sideways onto the pavement, blocking me in. Within seconds, I was surrounded. My arms were yanked behind my back and I was handcuffed (which hurts like hell). Through the confusion, I heard words, hoodie, headphones, mask, being said as identifiers as to why I was being detained. I confidently declared “You have the wrong man”.

Within ten minutes I was free. A knife robbery nearby matched my description. They had the wrong man. Incredibly professional, the officers politely apologized to me and said they hoped I understood. I did and I took the opportunity to thank them all for their hard work during this pandemic.

In those long ten minutes, did I feel afraid? Not in the least. There was no worry that this wasn’t anything other than a mistake. There was no doubt in my mind it wouldn’t quickly be sorted out. There was certainly no fear I would be detained for any meaningful time. I knew they would quickly realise the error and I’d be free to go. Reflecting on this experience I wondered why I was confident I’d be free to go?

I am a white middle aged male and recent events remind us that something very different can happen if you are not. The fact that I get to write this article is proof of privilege enough.

How then do we begin a conversation about togetherness in light of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmed Aubrey, Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner and many black men and women whose names don’t hit the headlines all over the world? As an American by birth…where the original sin of Slavery is still creating havoc…I am also a British citizen by glorious choice. In Britain, there are also reminders of pain and violation: Stephen, Grenfell, Windrush, Belly, among too many others. In politics, nationalism and race – we are too often separated. Sometimes it seems the only thing joining us together on both sides of the Atlantic is experiencing these recent events and others like them with sadness, shock and anger. To go forward together, we must recognise this.

Then, I believe we work together. We build together. We serve together.

Our company RockCorps was founded on the back of another moment of separation. In New York after the horrific attack on 9/11, there was a great deal of pain and a lot of confusion. There was also a lot of desire to be connected.

We wanted to channel this energy through two great equalizers: music and time. Music is the universal language – simply proven as notes and manuscript are written down in the same way across the globe. Whereas time is the most democratic measure, an hour is an hour, rich or poor. We combined these concepts by producing concerts for which the only entry was the requirement to participate in a 4 hour volunteer project with a local non-profit. Give, Get Given. Over the years, we have a lot of data points that have revealed many things.

Here are a few of them that lead us to believe that community and togetherness is are a visceral phenomenon:

1. When people are treated as residents, they take ownership of their neighbourhood and the goings on there.
2. Localism is powerful. The US congress has a 24% approval rating, but when asked locals give a 54% approval rating to their specific representative.
3. Try something once, come back again. Once a volunteer has tried a RockCorps community project (they came for the ticket), they are four times as likely to volunteer again within the next year (they stay for the community).
4. To go fast, go separately. To go far, go together. When an individual shows up at our community project – they don’t think much can be done or they have much to contribute. When they join 100 others, a school or city park is transformed in no time. When they enter a gig with 5,000 others, who have all done the same thing to be there, change isn’t possible, it’s inevitable. This realisation can be life changing.

We fund all of this work through brand partnership. Sponsorship. Let’s talk about brands. Let’s talk about purpose. Well, even Sorrell warns of homogenous purpose campaigns emerging globally. While all positive effort in this area is welcome, of course some will be more effective than others. But here’s the new bottom line: unless real work is being done, no work is being done. Authenticity. Virtue signaling absent of acts has been and is dead.

Can actions meet ads, yes they can. There is a tsunami of kindness, that responds always in times of crisis. It’s in our humanity. I believe it’s still there and growing and growing at rates proportionate to the size of the shocks we’re experiencing. COVID and George Floyd have revealed this: the NHS was so overwhelmed with volunteer applications, they had to cap registrations at 750,000 as the infrastructure was not there. Just Giving donation platform nearly crashed under the generosity seen from Sir Captain Tom’s campaign. Global protests from the George Floyd murder have been much more heterogenous than ever before. This kindness is the rocket fuel of togetherness.

And this rocket fuel can be channeled and meaningfully put to work as part of a brand programme, itself merged with individual positive action. The mechanic framework of something like RockCorps can help brands foster their own lanes of action. Brands standing shoulder to shoulder with their audience, whether it’s picking up a shovel or sharing through a screen.

We’ve lived it, and we know how the complex becomes simple. Brands must step up or step back. How can brands roll up their metaphorical sleeves, stay true to their commercial objectives and help to strengthen communities all at the same time? The answers are not easy, but are now required.

Above all….

We are now through the portal. Covid and George Floyd have created an opportunity and there is a lot of work going on right now. People are exercising their community muscle. From the literal ashes, there is much more to do. Nevertheless, the work must be done together and not separate. Leaving no one behind.

We won’t go far together – if we are not all in this together. Maybe first start by saying….. Hi, How are you?