activism Archives - Page 4 of 4 - Nicole Clark Consulting

29 Nov, 2011

Raise Your Voice with Activism: Lesson 4- Rallies, Protests & Civil Disobedience

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2021-08-19T17:34:15-04:00November 29th, 2011|Categories: Equity & Justice|Tags: activism, protests|0 Comments

This is part four in a 4-part series where I share strategies that you can become more familiar with when it comes to activism: lobbying, writing campaigns and action alerts, using social media, and rallies/demonstrations. If you’ve read any of my other blog posts (and I thank you if you have been), you know that I’m all about sexual/reproductive wellness and rights, but I believe that these tips can be used for a variety of causes. Feel free to focus on the tips throughout the coming weeks that inspire you the most and what makes the most sense for your cause.

We’ve come to the final lesson in the Raise Your Voice with Activism series: holding & attending rallies and demonstrations. I can say that participating in a rally, protest, demonstration, day of action, or civil disobedience/resistance (I tend to use the terms interchangeably, though it depends on the event itself) is a very adrenaline-pumping and exhilarating experience. From the demonstrations during the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s to the more recent Occupy protests happening in many major cities around the world, people have been forever taking to the streets to make their demands heard. I will provide some tips on what to do while attending a rally, how to organize your own rally, and share some important differences between planned rallies and unplanned rallies (which is important, because one of these can possibly get you locked up!)

Attending a Rally

Attending rallies allows you the opportunity to have your voice heard about a particular concern happening in your community or across the nation. It’s also a great way to get more information on a cause. You can find out about rallies through actions alerts from community organizations, the local news, word of mouth, posted flyers, and even social media. If you have never attended a rally, what you’ll usually see are a crowd (small or large) of people chanting, and many holding signs, like this one:

Rally Sign at Planned Parenthood Rally

You may also see people passing out fact sheets as well as petitions and invites to attend planning meetings and other rallies. Also, there will be plenty of speakers and even some musical performances. Finally, while the majority of people there will be in support of the rally’s cause, be mindful that there may be people in attendance who will be on the opposite side. Be prepared for counter-rallies and random outbursts from goobers who are not down with you. Don’t let these people deter you, and don’t stand for someone disrespecting you. Everyone has the right to free speech, but when that free speech makes you feel that your life is in danger, contact the proper authorities. And if things escalate, get out of there!

Planning a Rally

Planning a rally is also great because you can bring together a large number of people from all walks of life to gain support for a cause. If you’re ready to plan a rally, here are a few tips:

1.Location, location, location: Pick a place where your presence will really be felt. I’ve attended rallies outside of elected officials offices, in popular parks, and outside of major buildings on campus.

2. Make sure you get permission: Some places require a permit. Make sure you speak with your local police precinct in order to make sure that the proper roads are blocked off and traffic is re-routed. If there’s a department in your local government that handles permits for rallies, make sure to contact them as well.

3. What are y’all talking about?: Develop your messaging and your reason for why this rally is taking place. Also, will there be a spokesperson for the rally? This is especially important for Tip #4.

4. Let people know!: Not only is it important to get out the word for potential attendees, it’s equally important to alert the media. Whether it’s the campus newspaper, the local news, or CNN, you’ll want reporters there to take in the action and report on it. Your spokesperson may be asked to speak to reporters to get sound bites and quotes.

5. Have items prepared: If you’re going to have chants, make sure you write them down ahead of time to pass out to attendees. Also, feel free to pass out fact sheets about your cause.

6. Gather up your speakers: Invite people to speak during the rally. Some rallies flow well with a pre-determined list of speakers, and some are good with allowing anyone to speak. Use your discretion. Also, have your spokesperson or other rally organizers control the flow of speakers.

7. Have a call to action: Tell your attendees to take action to make sure that the excitement over the cause doesn’t just stop at the rally. Give attendees actions items to take to further the cause along. If you plan to have any meetings, make that known as well.

8. Let your targets know: Be sure to let the people/organizations (i.e. elected officials, board of directors, and other people on the opposite side of your cause) know how many people attended, signed petitions, etc. Having reporters there will come in handy.

Now….Planned versus Unplanned

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22 Nov, 2011

Raise Your Voice with Activism: Lesson 3- Social Media

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2021-08-19T17:33:44-04:00November 22nd, 2011|Categories: Equity & Justice|Tags: activism, Social Media|0 Comments

This is part three in a 4-part series where I share strategies that you can become more familiar with when it comes to activism: lobbying, writing campaigns and action alerts, using social media, and rallies/demonstrations. If you’ve read any of my other blog posts (and I thank you if you have been), you know that I’m all about sexual/reproductive wellness and rights, but I believe that these tips can be used for a variety of causes. Feel free to focus on the tips throughout the coming weeks that inspire you the most and what makes the most sense for your cause.

Last week, we discussed tips for writing letters to the editor and to policy makers, and participating in political action alerts. These strategies involved different tactics, but together they each bring about one key result: taking quick action. This week, we’ll be discussing an even quicker way to get your message across: using social media. Social media has risen in prominence within the last decade, and many users are utilizing this medium for a variety of purposes. Today’s lesson is on showing how social media has changed the face of activism, how you can utilize it for your cause.

So what is “social media”?

If you ask 5 people what their definition of social media is, you’ll probably get 5 different answers. I think of social media as a platform of a variety of networks in which people and organizations share information, content, and other interests. There’s a lot of social networking sites , but most people are familiar with these: Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn (These are the ones that I use the most.)

I’m going to make the assumption that you are either using the mentioned sites or are at least familiar with them, so I won’t go into the differences among these networks. (If you’re not familiar, click on the links and find out what they’re all about!) I use each for different purpose: I have a private Facebook account for friends and family, a Facebook business page, a Twitter account for networking and connecting with followers/friends, and a LinkedIn profile for connecting with former classmates and colleagues for consulting opportunities.

The ones I used the most to get the word out about different causes are Facebook and Twitter. And it looks as though many people around the world are doing the same. From Occupy Wall Street, to the execution of Troy Davis, to the Arab Spring, people are sending out updates and messages at a thousand tweets and Facebook status updates a minutes (and that’s just my personal estimate). Let’s go over the pros and cons concerns of using social media as a form of activism:

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15 Nov, 2011

Raise Your Voice with Activism: Lesson 2- Writing Campaigns & Action Alerts

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2021-08-19T17:33:19-04:00November 15th, 2011|Categories: Equity & Justice|Tags: activism, Campaigns|0 Comments

This is part two in a 4-part series where I will share strategies that you can become more familiar with when it comes to activism: lobbying, writing campaigns and action alerts, using social media, and rallies/demonstrations. If you’ve read any of my other blog posts (and I thank you if you have been), you know that I’m all about sexual/reproductive wellness and rights, but I believe that these tips can be used for a variety of causes. Feel free to focus on the tips throughout the coming weeks that inspire you the most and what makes the most sense for your cause.

Last week, we touched on tips for lobbying elected officials. I wanted to start off with that one first because it tends to be the most daunting of the various strategies we can use to getting voices heard. This week’s tips are just as important, but I think it’s easier to get into for many people, and you don’t have to be an activist to do it! This week, we’re discussing tips for writing letters to the editor and to policy makers, and participating in political action alerts. These strategies involved different tactics, but together they each bring about one key result: taking quick action!

Letters to the Editor- Writing a letter to the editor of a newspaper or magazine is a great way to get your message out to your community, as well as to local officials that support your cause (or don’t!). Here are some tips to consider:

Keep it short– Just like with lobbying, make sure you stay on topic. However, unlike with lobbying, be as concise as possible. Shorter letters increase your chances of actually being published.
Announce yourself- Let’s say there was an article discussing mothers with a history of sexual assault who experience Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) that you felt did not speak to your experience and relied heavily on stigma. Inform the editor that you are a mother who has experience PTSD after childbirth. Example: “I am a sexual assault survivor and new mother who recently gave birth, and I experience PTSD as the result of traumatic child labor.”
State the facts– If you have statistics on mothers who experience PTSD as a result of child birth (especially if they are stats from your age or racial/ethnic group), be sure to add them. An example would be: “Of more than 900 U.S. mothers surveyed, 9% screened positive for meeting all of the formal criteria for PTSD set out in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM-IV, a handbook of mental-health conditions.”

[article source]

Invite others– If it applies, encourage other people in your community to raise more awareness about what you’re discussing. Be sure to add your contact information so that others may be able to contact you to connect and build on creating awareness.
Finish strong- The two sentences that stand out the most are your opening sentence and your closing sentence. Take the time to connect your closing sentence to your opening sentence by stating again why it was important for you to write.
Do it now– Submit your letter to the editor at least 2 days after the original publication. At the beginning of your letter, you can state: “I am writing in response to your article about mothers and post-traumatic stress disorder (insert title of article, and date it was originally published)”.

Letters to Policy Makers- The tips above for writing to the editor also can apply to writing a letter to a policy maker. While writing to an editor can help to create awareness about a particular cause, writing to a policy maker is equally as important because the job of a policy maker is to listen to the voices of their constituents and to support laws that their constituency are for. Here are tips more tailored to writing to a policy maker:

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8 Nov, 2011

Raise Your Voice with Activism: Lesson 1- Lobbying

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2021-08-19T17:32:36-04:00November 8th, 2011|Categories: Equity & Justice|Tags: activism, Lobbying|0 Comments

This is a 4-part series where I will share a strategy that you can become more familiar with: lobbying, writing and media campaigns, using social media, and rallies/demonstrations. If you’ve read any of my other blog posts (and I thank you if you have been), you know that I’m all about sexual/reproductive wellness and rights, but I believe that these tips can be used for a variety of causes. Feel free to focus on the tips throughout the coming weeks that inspire you the most and what makes the most sense for your cause.

Originally posted for The Pro-Choice Public Education Project

Revised November 8, 2011

Today, the state of Mississippi will vote on Amendment 26 (aka, the Personhood Amendment), an amendment that, if passed, will give the legal rights of a person to an unborn fetus, thereby banning all abortion, and likely banning forms of birth control and in vitro fertilization. This could be a huge win for the pro-choice movement, or a really huge loss.

People across the country have been organizing to educate Mississippians (and people in many states in which similar bills are set to be introduced in their states) about how this amendment will become a detriment to women and their families if passed. When it comes to sexual and reproductive rights, it’s important for women, especially women of color, to educate ourselves about the laws and policies that are passed and/or taken away by our state and federal legislators to ensure that our voices (and our bodies) are protected.

With all the excitement in the air about the 2012 election season, I wanted to share my tips on ways that you can become move committed to the process of creating change in your community. And Lesson 1 is a doozy, often because it can be very intimidating.

Get your pens, paper, and laptops ready to take notes on Lesson 1: lobbying.

Lobbying is the act of speaking with local and federal public policy decision-makers in an effort to gain their support for current legislative laws or new bills that are in favor of what you feel citizens will want. The word “lobby” comes from the idea that advocates would stand in the lobbies of their representatives and senators and push to have people support their issues. In other words, lobbying is about getting people to do what you want. The more persuasive you are, the better the chances of having more laws that will reflect positively on the group of individuals you’re representing.

Who Do Lobbyists Target?

Lobbyists target political legislators, people that we vote into state and local office. For federal leaders, they are elected to represent their home state as legislators in Washington, DC. They become members of Congress, and are either a member of the House of Representatives or the Senate. For state legislators, they are elected to represent their county or district, and are also a member of their state’s House or Senate.

What is a Legislator?

A legislator has many roles- lawmaker, a representative of her/his state or local government, and an overseer of the interests of her/his national and state citizens. As a lawmaker, legislators propose, study, discuss, and vote on legislation to become law as well as modify or completely eliminate current laws. As a representative, legislators serve her/his constituents (citizens) at the federal or state level. Federal legislators serve as liaisons between their state and Washington, DC, and state legislators serve as liaisons between their county/district and their local government. As overseers, legislators make sure that the laws are being carried out according to their legislative intent.

What Does the Legislative Process Involve?

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23 Aug, 2011

You Don’t Have to Go to Every Rally: Self Care & Activist Burnout

By Nicole Clark, LMSW|2021-08-19T17:28:46-04:00August 23rd, 2011|Categories: Self & Community Care|Tags: activism, protests|0 Comments

When I was in graduate school for social work, my professors (particularly in my first year of grad school) told my classmates and I two things: 1) As a social worker, people will expect you to run around and put out fires and 2) you have to make time for yourself. It’s no wonder that many activists tend to be social workers themselves (or in some other profession that sounds social work-y.) When you’re working directly with populations that are marginalized and constantly being denied basic human rights, it’s hard to sit back and ponder on all of the injustices in the world and not have the urge to take action.

I’m in New York City, the biggest activist city in the world. During most weeks, you can find some sort of rally or protest going on that causes streets to be shut down, or people standing in the middle of sidewalks to ask for your signature on the latest campaign. I’ve experienced my fair share of rallies and protests in my day, and while it is exhilarating, there is more to life than fighting the good fight. The good fight isn’t so good when it costs you some peace of mind.

The most successful activist is the activist who strikes a balance between advocating for others as well as making the time to take care of self. In order to advocate for someone else, you have to be able to advocate for you first. It reminds me of safety instructions whenever you’re on a boat on preparing to take off on a flight. You’re asked to place the safety vest or the oxygen mask on you first before placing it on the other person. How can you advocate for people living in low-income neighborhoods to have health care clinics in their neighborhood when you haven’t gone to your primary care physician in over two years, or how can you fight to get better grocery stores in your neighborhood yet you spend more of your time in fast-food restaurants than walking down a grocery aisle?

The two biggest things that separate the well-off activist from the worn-down activist are self-care and burn-out. Self care is a very social justice terms that focuses on the ability to engage in this work while still being able to maintain and outlook on looking and feeling well. Burn-out, on the other hand, is when it feels as though you’ve hit a wall, literally and figuratively. You’re physically and emotionally drained, and maybe a little cranky towards the people you’re working with (and even working to help).

Here are 8 of my tried-and-true tips for preventing activist burnout and getting back to the person that matters most—You: (more…)

Previous 34

Raise Your Voice with Activism: Lesson 4- Rallies, Protests & Civil Disobedience

Raise Your Voice with Activism: Lesson 3- Social Media

Raise Your Voice with Activism: Lesson 2- Writing Campaigns & Action Alerts

Raise Your Voice with Activism: Lesson 1- Lobbying

You Don’t Have to Go to Every Rally: Self Care & Activist Burnout

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