ABSTRACT
Communities of belief almost always lead to and encourage political action on the part of their members, but they remain anchored in particular beliefs. As participants in a community of beliefs, individuals involved in the group were navigating what everyone engaged in a common cause must navigate: the forging of compromise in order to pursue a common end and the ongoing maintenance of trust. Though dedicated to action and anchored in discourse, the left-leaning political coalition known as the People's Campaign and the attendant stories of Keith Joseph and Kristina Bas supply a telling example of the Internet's value in building and sustaining communities of belief. The People's Campaign formed around two common purposes, the challenge to the established political order in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and the reliance on authentic, broad-based democratic political participation within the coalition. Bas's and Joseph's activities in the People's Campaign were informed by deeply held beliefs, which were catalyzed and sustained by political action.
