PETA India:: Activism

If there is a specific abuse you want to target and you’ve got all your facts together, you are ready to organise a campaign.

A campaign is a long-term plan of action focused on one particular issue. Set an ambitious but achievable goal, plan escalating levels of action, and be prepared to stick with it until you win.

As part of a campaign, you may stage several demonstrations, a march, or a rally. Or you may organise a letter-writing campaign and a sustained public education effort of tabling, leafletting, and public meetings. By using a well-thought-out strategy and an escalating level of activity, you may be able to do anything from shutting down a pet store to stopping an abusive research project.

PLANNING A CAMPAIGN

A campaign requires a great deal of commitment, planning, and organisation. While it’s possible to do this alone, the support of others is very desirable. In either case, it’s important to establish an identity as a group. Once you get going, others will join you. You, however, must expect to lead the way.

Your first step is to thoroughly research your opponents. Make a list of their strengths and weaknesses. Where are they most vulnerable? What arguments will they use to defend their position? A research project may already be jeopardised due to inadequate funding or inability to produce results. Your exposure of their problems could be enough to tip the scales.

Think about the information you gather. What do you hope to achieve? Decide exactly what your demands are: What do you want your target to do? Know what the alternatives are (to the research your target is doing, or to the way animals are housed in the zoo, etc.).

What is the minimum you’ll accept? Are your goals realistic? If your case is too weak, it’s better to face that fact now.

If you’ve got a good target, start developing your strategy. Begin by designing a timetable for your campaign. Then establish short-range goals.

For example, if your long-range goal would be to close down a pet shop, first get a letter to the editor on the subject printed in a local newspaper. Your next goal might be to get another community group to support your cause. Short-range goals keep momentum going and bring you closer to your target. Prepare for countercharges. What claims will your opponents make to defend their actions? How will you refute them?

Decide whose support you really need to win; don’t just say “the public.” Which part of the public? Which groups or individuals in particular? Consider how to reach them. Whose support can you count on from the beginning? How will you work with those people? And analyse how you will win over or neutralise supporters of the opposition.

CHOOSING YOUR STRATEGY

You may be able to accomplish your goals with a low-level effort, such as a letter-writing campaign or a series of leafletting and tabling activities — not all campaigns are require demonstrations or rallies. If you start out with a bang, you must be able to sustain it.
Take the time to consider what’s going to make your campaign a success. The more planning time you give yourself, the better chance you have of winning your cause.

Here are some general strategies to follow:

Try to communicate with your opponent. Write to the head of the company or organisation, politely state your grievance and ask for action.

Give them time to respond, but set a deadline so they don’t keep you dangling forever. It’s always possible that your opponent is unaware of abuses, and there may be room to negotiate a change. Regardless, if you don’t go to the source first, your credibility will be impaired.

Document your communications. Keep copies of letters and a written record of telephone calls.

Before you go public, try to get some expert opinions to back you up. Such statements lend credibility to your campaign and make it easier to convince both the public and government officials. Approach scientists, veterinarians, doctors, or anyone else who has the experience and credentials to be considered an expert on the issue. Inform them of the situation and ask them to give you a written statement criticising your target and recommending alternatives.

Produce some basic campaign literature first: a factsheet, a background/history sheet, an alternatives sheet, a page of expert opinions, and a short leaflet that lists your demands and tells people what they can do to help. These provide essential factual information for the public and the media. (PETA has factsheets and leaflets available on a variety of topics that you can use as references.)

Arrange a meeting with the municipal commissioner’s office and/or the specific regulatory office related to the issue. Clarify the facts about the issue and the changes you are proposing and try to get their support.

Write letters to local government officials, political representatives, and the head of the organisation you are targeting. State the problem, your demands or alternatives, and specify what you want the official to do.

Arrange to meet personally with as many elected officials as possible. Try to enlist their support.

Write to news editors of local papers and to related trade journals to try to interest them in doing a story on the issue.

Educate your community. Set up tables and hand out leaflets to publicise the issue. Write letters to the editor. Run an advertisement in the newspaper if your budget allows.
Try to get support from other national and local groups. Contact civic associations, Rotary Clubs, and political clubs and ask for their support.

Develop an “emergency response” telephone tree early in the campaign and keep it up to date. It should be separate from your regular telephone tree and should include only those people who can demonstrate or take other action on a day’s notice.

Give your opponent a second chance to negotiate with you. This may also be the time to issue an ultimatum if negotiations are unsuccessful.

When you escalate to a new level, don’t abandon your original activities. Public education should be a constant effort, complementing all your other tactics.

Escalation means finding ways to exert more pressure, such as picketing, holding a candlelight vigil outside an official’s home, or doing street theatre at the company headquarters. To increase the pressure, you could organise a boycott, hold a march or rally. Obviously, it is vital to try to get media coverage for every action.

STAGING A DEMONSTRATION, RALLY, OR PICKET

To plan it, you need to answer these questions:

• What do you want your opponent or target to do? What are your demands?
• What do you want the public to do or learn?
• Will it be silent, noisy, militant, or peaceful?
• Will you need a permit from the police or city hall?
• What type of visual aids (posters, banners, or costumes) will you use?
• What type of leaflets will you hand out?

Make sure your leaflet lists your demands and what the public can do to help.

Chances are better for media coverage if you can stage the event during work hours on weekdays.

During the weekend you may get a better turnout of demonstrators, but news coverage is less predictable. Although a demonstration is almost always worthwhile, you’ll be less in the public eye without media coverage. Don’t overlook holidays. They’re generally light news days and a nice public interest story may be appealing to the media. Pick your time carefully so you don’t conflict with a major sporting or community event, unless you’re responding to an emergency situation that gives you little choice.

Allow a few weeks to secure any permits you might need, but don’t hesitate to organise a demonstration on a day’s notice if you have to. You usually don’t need a permit to hold a picket line on a public sidewalk, as long as you don’t block traffic on the sidewalk or go into the street. Permits are usually needed weeks in advance for street marches.

A demonstration must be visual — more than just a picket line and signs. Consider eye-catching costumes, cages, or street theatre.

Prepare leaflets that explain the issue. Mail some out ahead of time and use the rest to hand out the day of your rally. Make some posters to display or order some from PETA, and prepare a short handout that gives the background of your group.

Before you hold the demonstration, get your group together for a sign-making party — it will inspire the group and ensure that you’re all on the right track. Use pictures and slogans that illustrate the issue simply and dramatically. Stay away from offensive language that will turn people off. Use stencils (but fill in those gaps) so the lettering looks neat.

Decide ahead of time who will be the spokesperson for your group, but make sure each person has a short statement prepared for the press or a bystander’s question. Keep in mind that you may be photographed by the press. Make sure your group dresses neatly and conservatively (unless you decide to wear costumes). If you wear a costume you should not be the spokesperson – the audience will want to hear from an authority figure, not someone dressed like a clown. Prepare short and easy-to-understand chants ahead of time, and when appropriate (not during silent vigils) keep the chants going throughout the demo. Chants make more people take notice and want to know what is going on, in addition to making good background noise for the media. Remind people not to smile or laugh if they’re protesting a serious abuse. And never argue or make derogatory comments to bystanders.

Notify the media — radio, TV, and newspapers — with a telephone call and news release at least one day before you hold the demonstration, and be on site at least one-half hour before starting time. Be sure to have visited the site beforehand so you have an idea of how to set things up. Keep your group together, and remind them (quietly) to hold their signs so they can be clearly seen and photographed.

Write down the names and telephone numbers of the people who attended the demonstration, so you can contact them for future actions. If you got media coverage, assign one person to tape each television station that was present at your event so you may begin a library of media coverage. Don’t forget to pick up the newspaper the next day for print media coverage.