Nearly 700 movement leaders, organizers, strategists, artists, cultural workers and storytellers came together for Narrative Power Summit 2025, co-hosted by ReFrame and the Radical Communicators Network, in Tremé, New Orleans and online across the globe. Together, we wrestled with the questions we’ve all been carrying: Not just what if we win, but how do we prepare when we win? What if narrative isn’t just reactive, but revolutionary? What does it take to build narrative infrastructure that holds under pressure, especially in the face of rising authoritarianism?
From the big screen of the main ballroom, ReFrame board members and longtime movement leaders Malkia Devich-Cyril and Jen Soriano grounded us in the work ahead. As Malkia reminded us:
“Authoritarians win through the politics of isolation, and our job is to build belonging.” — Malkia Devich-Cyril
Jen followed with the charge:
“The right wins by driving wedges between us. Our task is to build the bridges that keep us connected — through story, through strategy, through struggle.” — Jen Soriano
Their reflections draw from a deep lineage of justice communications — one that recognizes narrative not as a tactic but as infrastructure for organizing, campaigning and cultural transformation.
We showed up with open hearts and sharpened minds. From the first drumbeat to the final mic drop, it was clear: this wasn’t just another conference. This was a pulse check for our movements.
We began with a cultural grounding from the Mardi Gras Indians of New Orleans, a living tradition of resistance, beauty and survival. Local historian Cierra Chenier reminded us that, "Black New Orleans will be free." Wendi Moore O’Neal and local frontline organizers including Sara Gozalo, Tamia Cenance, Renée Slajda and Amber Walker shared narrative interventions rooted in deep practice of community organizing and cultural resistance. Hermelinda Cortés closed the opening with a charge to the room:
"Narrative power must be principled, strategic and collective. The charge at hand is not just resisting power but preparing to win it. Narrative is a team sport. It’s time for us to coalesce, to be greater than the sum of our parts.” — hermelinda cortès, ReFrame
To read her full opening remarks, click here.
Over the next three days, we moved through dozens of sessions, from narrative design labs to strategy clinics on climate, abortion, AI and antifascism. Some spaces held stillness. Others sparked action. But three themes came up again and again:
- We need infrastructure that can hold more than moments. Otherwise, we stay stuck in narrative whack-a-mole.
- Narrative strategy on the left needs deeper coordination, trust and adaptable tools. Building bold narrative infrastructure means taking real risks and resourcing the long game
- Our stories must be rooted in futurism, not just survival. What happens when we plan like we might actually win?
“Each session felt like an intervention in the best way. Powerful, clear and rooted in movement.” — Samy Nemir Olivares, Narrative Power Summit 2025 Attendee, In Person
The virtual summit brought the same energy. Attendees built the vibe with playlists, chat love, screen takeovers and real-time organizing. Film screenings, keynotes and workshops came alive onscreen. Many called it the best virtual convening they had ever attended.
“It felt like a family reunion. I laughed, I cried, I built strategy. The virtual space made me feel just as seen and heard as if I were in the room.” — Lourdes Rivas, Narrative Power Summit 2025 Attendee, Virtual
Even folks tuning in from their kitchens or phones felt the NPS-heat. Our virtual fam didn’t just log on, they showed up, dropped wisdom and built community. If you think a chat box can’t be lit, you are mistaken.
Friday night, we turned up. ReFrame’s 10-Year Turn Up kicked off our yearlong anniversary celebration for ten years of building narrative power. We packed Sweet Lorraine’s Jazz Club in the Tremé with movement family and DJ Rakimbeau kept the dance floor moving. The Original Pinettes, New Orleans’ legendary all-women brass band, lit it up.
It wasn’t just a party. It was a declaration. Joy is strategy. Culture is infrastructure. The room smelled like sweat and sequins. We danced to our own beat, laughed too loud and remembered why we fight for narrative power. The joy was earned. The rhythm was resistance.
Our people are worth celebrating. Since 2015, ReFrame has trained, supported and collaborated with thousands of organizers, creatives and communications strategists. We’re proud of the work and we’re just getting started.
“The sessions were deeply transformative. Every element felt crafted with political care.” — Rukia Lumumba, Narrative Power Summit 2025 Attendee, In Person
Saturday closed with a rapid-fire block of Ignite Talks. Movement builders offered bold, urgent reflections on trans liberation, worker power, reproductive justice, housing, abolition and economic transformation. The format moved fast. Every speaker brought clarity and imagination.
“At some point I forgot I was attending from my laptop. The energy, the facilitation, the culture — everything made me feel like I was right there.” — Sarah Soto, Narrative Power Summit 2025 Attendee, Virtual
After the round of impressive ignite talks, RadComms’ Shanelle Matthews took the mic and brought us home with the kind of clarity that cuts through the noise. She reminded us that narrative isn’t just a tool we use when things fall apart. It’s how we shape what comes next.
“The future isn’t just something that’s happening to us. It’s something we are narrating into existence. The empire will try to write the ending — and why we are here is to make sure they do not get the last word.” — Shanelle Matthews, RadComms
You could feel the shift in the room. Heads nodding. People grabbing their notebooks. That wasn’t just a closing line. It was a charge. For us to pick up the pen, claim the story and build narrative power to win.
This summit launched the next chapter of our work, alongside Radical Communicators and other power builders. In June, we’ll kick off 100 Days of Narrative in Atlanta, a coordinated space for narrative strategy, networked infrastructure and campaign support aimed at what our movements need now to push back the authoritarian threats facing all of us.
100 days of Narrative is part of a larger push – a cross-movement effort to build coherence and drive strategic narrative action. Want in? Sign up here: bit.ly/100daysofnarrative
We closed the space knowing the terrain is shifting but so are we. We’ve got imagination and vision, compelling strategies, a decade of movement narrative power building, and we’ve got each other - a robust network of leaders positioned and ready to answer the charge of this time.
To the facilitators, co-dreamers, tech wizards, cultural workers, funders who get it, and every single person who helped hold this thing down — you have our unending gratitude.
To the people of the 64 parishes of Bulbancha, or what we call New Orleans: thank you for hosting us with deep hospitality and stewardship. We thank you.
Endless gratitude to our movement partners at the Radical Communicators Network for your radness, your throw-down spirit, and for co-holding this powerful space with us. Here's to continuing to build the bench, the infrastructure, and everything our movements need — today and until we all win. We left recharged and recommitted to this work, and we hope you will join us for our next sets of offerings, including the Narrative Nerve Center, ReFrame’s virtual Academy October 20th - 24th, Spanish-language narrative training, and more.
Nos Vemos
— Team ReFrame
Special thank you to Red Feather Films and Green Tangerine Photography
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