The Plan! Activism

This is a series on activism and grassroots organizing! The last time I wrote about the Inside Out Game, this morning I am writing about the first step in grassroots organizing… planning!

Getting Out There!

• When we were working to pass the gender inclusive non-discrimination bill we had a Speakers Bureau where we went out to talk to anyone who listened.
• We had a group whose job it was to write replies to newspapers editorials.
• We had a list of “Talking Point” so we were all on the same page.
• We had our “Elevator Speech” a 30 second summation of what the bill is about.
• We had a lobby day at the Capitol where we did training for those who wanted to talk to their legislators. (Here is a link to one of our training presentations.)
• We were organized!

For the lobby day we did training on how to talk to your legislators, (My presentation here.)

The Community Tool Box writes about communication…

What do we mean by communication?

Communication is the process of transmitting ideas and information. For a grass roots initiative or community-based organization, that means conveying the true nature of your organization, the issues it deals with, and its accomplishments to the community.

Communication can take many forms, including:

• Word of mouth
• News stories in both print and broadcast media
• Press releases and press conferences
• Posters, brochures, and fliers
• Outreach and presentations to other health and community service providers, community groups, and organizations
• Special events and open houses that your organization holds

To communicate effectively, it helps to plan out what you want from your communication, and what you need to do to get it.

[…]

How do you develop a plan for communication?

Planning for communication is an eight-step process. The steps are:

• Identify the purpose of your communication
• Identify your audience
• Plan and design your message
• Consider your resources
• Plan for obstacles and emergencies
• Strategize how you will connect with the media and others who can help you spread your message
• Create an action plan
• Decide how you will evaluate your plan and adjust it, based on the results of carrying it out.

Back in the early days of trying to pass the Gender Non-Discrimination bill we had an example of what

At UConn School of Law talking about the non-discrimination bill

not to do… A trans person wrote to their legislator a damning letter that got read on to the floor of the House, in the letter she swore, personally called their legislator names. It took a long time to counter the letter, there is nothing that we could do to stop them. So be prepared for letters like that!

Go on the Sunday morning’s talking head shows, I’ve been on all the local network affiliates including Fox. The local CBS network affiliate we the only one that I did a slow burn on the show… I was there to talk about the bill but the only the anchor talked about was trans athletes.

*** A Tip ***

If you can get a friendly media person to come in and talk about how to do interviews and avoid traps, it helps greatly. One of the things that I learned quick… talk in sound bites. No long winded speeches. 

Have you ever been in a press conference… I have.

Another Community Tool Box chapter is on press conferences…

What is a press conference?

You and your group members have probably seen them on television  before or after a major local or national event,. On the evening news there’s a short television clip of a speaker surrounded by a crowd of reporters asking questions. So, you may know what press conferences look like, in general.

But what exactly is a press conference? A press conference is a tool designed to generate news – in particular, hard news that can advance the cause of your organization. Hard news is defined as a story in the print or electronic media which is timely, significant, prominent, and relevant.

Imagine a flock of media reporters coming to an event that you have organized. This can be exciting stuff, and an important opportunity for your organization. If you've never done it before, holding a press conference can be intimidating, even frightening. But the material in this section will guide you through the process, and you'll see that it's not all that hard.

Why should you hold a press conference?

Press releases, interviews, and informal media contacts are excellent ways of getting your message across. They are the bread and butter of your media relations, and often of your entire outreach effort. A press conference is an additional media technique, for special occasions, when you really want to make an impression. More specifically, why hold a press conference? Because:

You can give more information than in a press release.

• A press conference is interactive; you can answer questions from the press, and emphasize points you might not otherwise have a chance to make.
• You can announce an important development, and explain its significant local and wider implications.
• You can set the record straight if your group received negative publicity.
• You can often generate the kind of notice or publicity – a spot on the 6:00 TV news, for instance – that you’d otherwise have to pay a large amount for.
• When many media representatives are present, it makes your conference seem really newsworthy -- the media presence itself adds to the importance.
• A successful media conference can not only generate news, but can also boost the morale of your own group -- that is, your group can take pride in knowing that the press will really turn out to hear what you have to say.

You just don’t call a news conference and wait for everyone to show up.

Rehearse what everyone is going to talk about… and keep to the script! Have one person who is the MC and they are the ones who answer the questions. Practice answering questions, have people quiz you before the press conference.

Your homework assignment: Read Community Tool Box chapters 3 through 7 on the media.