Winter 2025 Report
Our Journey So Far
As we reflect on the first quarter of 2025, we're filled with gratitude for the community that has begun to form around our vision. What started as a simple idea to use our shared knowledge in the pursuit of liberation is blossoming into something greater than we imagined.
We started our think tank with a simple but powerful belief: meaningful change begins with conversation. In a world where divisive rhetoric and information silos keep people apart, we saw the urgent need for spaces where folks could come together, process current events, share knowledge and lived experiences, and imagine better futures together. That's why we made our monthly community discussions the heart of our work.
January: A Beautiful Beginning
Our first community discussion took place on the first day of the new administration's incumbency, coinciding with the observance of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday. This timing provided a unique opportunity to reflect on all that led us to the current climate and explore the potential direction of the country under new leadership. We aimed to gather insights into what stories and current events were top-of-mind for people, what might have long-term implications, and what we should prioritize tracking moving forward. We also sought to understand how the new administration's policies and decisions could impact these events and influence the year ahead and the ways we, the people, can impact change.
With about a dozen attendees, it was a beautiful beginning for us. What emerged from that conversation was a deep concern about how to find trustworthy news in the age of Trump and how social media shapes not only our political perceptions but those of the next generation as well.
February: Navigating the Current Information Landscape
Pulling from the themes that emerged from the first conversation, February's discussion centered on learning how we can become more informed, critical, and confident consumers of news and information today. As a think-tank and data company, one of our core beliefs is that when we share our knowledge and experiences, we create possibilities for more thoughtful civic discourse and informed collective action. In an era of information overload, misinformation, and algorithmic curation, we wanted to explore strategies for discerning credible sources and develop our own tactics for fact-checking and critical thinking as a group.
We reflected on the sources we trust, the diversity of those sources, and the importance of using both discernment and intuition when engaging with the news. The conversations reminded us that knowledge isn't just about what we consume; it's about how we question, analyze, and apply it to our world.
March: Strategy and Growth
While we considered the first two discussions a success, we also knew we wanted to expand and reach more people beyond our immediate network. March became our month of strategic thinking and expansion. We recognized that to truly make an impact, we needed to create more frequent touchpoints for the collective and expand beyond our inner circles. We asked ourselves: "How can we expand these vital conversations beyond monthly meetings? How can we make our collective wisdom more accessible to those who might benefit from it?"
We don't want to simply grow bigger, we want to grow deeper, fostering more meaningful connections with the collective.
Looking Ahead: Spring 2025
As we settle into the spring, we're excited to implement the ideas and strategies we developed in March:
The Think Tank by MD: We're creating a Discord server to facilitate ongoing conversations between our monthly community meetings. This space will allow for the sharing of resources, spontaneous discussions, and stronger community bonds, extending our collective's reach beyond geographic limitations.
The Assembly: We're breathing new life into our monthly community discussions, drawing inspiration from the democratic tradition of people's assemblies, where community members gather to deliberate on important issues and take collective action. These Assemblies will incorporate feedback from our first two discussions to make these events even more engaging, participatory, and action-oriented. They will be held in our Discord server every third Monday.
The Reading Room: Beginning in April, we're launching a book club that will explore texts related to social change, community building, and liberation. Our inaugural selection is "Freedom Dreams: The Black Radical Imagination" by Robin D.G. Kelley, a powerful exploration of how social movements and visionary thinkers have imagined and worked toward alternative futures. Through Kelley's work, we'll examine how radical imagination has been central to liberation movements and discuss how these historical visions might inform our present-day work as a community. This carefully chosen first selection aligns perfectly with our mission of using knowledge sharing as a tool for collective liberation. Our book club discussions will also take place in Discord.
Toplines: This month, we launched our weekly news recap podcast, creating an accessible audio and video format to share our perspective on current events with the collective. New episodes will be released every Friday, and we invite you all to engage with the conversation by sending us a voice note or email to connect@majoritydata.com, and we may feature them on the show.
Connect With Us
This report is more than just a record of what we've done or an update on where we're headed—it's a roadmap reflecting our dedication to community-building, knowledge-sharing, and inspiring others to do the same. We offer it as a resource for others seeking to create similar digital and physical spaces of connection and collective action in their communities. It's also an invitation for feedback to help us refine and expand these spaces. This work isn't just about keeping up with the moment—it's about building the relationships, knowledge, and momentum needed to create lasting change.
As we continue this journey, we invite you to join us—whether by attending an Assembly, participating in our online community, listening to our podcast, or simply sharing our mission with others who might find value in it. The path to liberation is one we walk together, step by step, conversation by conversation.
Thank you for being part of this growing community. The work continues, and we're just getting started.