Framing the Flint Water Crisis: Interrogating Local Nonprofit Sector Responses Article

Nickels, AE, Clark, AD. (2019). Framing the Flint Water Crisis: Interrogating Local Nonprofit Sector Responses . 41(3), 200-224. 10.1080/10841806.2019.1621653

cited authors

  • Nickels, AE; Clark, AD

authors

abstract

  • The Flint Water Crisis captured the attention of the world in January 2016 when both the state and federal governments declared a public health emergency in Flint, MI. Building on framing theory, we look to both the theory of casual stories and critical intersectionality to explain both how and why local grassroots associations (GAs) and high-capacity nonprofits (HCNPs) differed in their rhetorical responses to the crisis. Interviews, speeches, and op-eds published from both groups between May 2014 and May 2017 were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. We find that, while all spoke in terms of helping the community recover from the crisis, the narratives surrounding the crisis unfolded along two distinct paths—one focusing on the technical responses and moving forward, while the other focused on identifying root causes and calling for intersectional solutions.

publication date

  • July 3, 2019

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

start page

  • 200

end page

  • 224

volume

  • 41

issue

  • 3