decide to be a serious activist

decide to be a serious activist

Part 4

Click Here For Part 1: Threats Widespread/Opportunities Emerge

Click Here For Part 2: You CAN Make A Difference

Click Here For Part 3: Do What You Can Within The Political System

Developed By Alice Holstein, Ed.D.

OP-EDs

Click Here "Waging" nonviolence and peace

Click Here Reasons for Hope In A New Year Full of Trouble

Protest marches are important and can make a difference. They measure popular support for an issue, but they are the easy part of implementing potential, longer-range change. What happens after the street demonstrations are over? The Reverend Al Sharpton, host of MSNBC’s “Politics Nation” and longtime Civil Rights activist, wrote a 2020 book, since updated in paperback, that outlines what it takes to be a serious activist. His book, Rise Up: Confronting a Country At the Crossroads addresses the fact that people everywhere people are asking, “what can I do to make a difference?” He is full of sensible yet daunting advice about what it takes to build a movement after the protest is over. (I will quote or paraphrase liberally from his advice, found on pages 238-241.)

First, only try to start a movement if there is a vacuum in your community and no other functional group exists. Then, identify your priorities, such as health care, climate change, women’s rights, police brutality, voter suppression, racism conflict, etc. His thought is that activism without a clearly defined cause is nothing but a mob. He also stresses starting at the local level rather than setting out to create a national movement.

Next, he says, do your homework. Is there already a cause, organization or movement dealing with such issues? Is it effective or does it need help? Join it if possible. If not, then start small. Three dedicated people is enough. Then contact local officials to find out what their policies are. Where does local leadership stand? Are there already initiatives? Do they need assistance? Start building from the ground up. (He warns, it does not take much to start a coalition; the trick is in maintaining it.)

Sharpton continues: make sure you are registered to vote and attend local town meetings. Become a presence in your own neighborhood and at your children’s schools. Participate in city council meetings, town halls and other community-based meetings where you can begin to raise issues. Do not even think about local or social media until you have connected in the actual community. You must be embedded in your environment before you can change it. You must build from the ground up and be part of the community---the churches, the civic groups, the volunteer organizations---that you want to mobilize

If you do not have a backing, it is easy for your opposition to turn you into a threat. And if you’re branded that way, the opposition can discount whatever you are working toward. Sharpton points out that change agents will be tested. If the opposition comes after you, it means you are being successful. You cannot be dissembled, however, if you are associated with a cause larger than yourself and build it into the community.

He emphasizes, “I can’t stress this enough. Be an active part of your community.” He also advises to get your own house in order in terms of debts, relationships, etc. Know the issues facing your community, including your opposition’s viewpoints as well as you know your own. Engage with people outside your comfort zone. Engage with the opposition; keep an open mind and speak with all peoples, really speak with them to better understand their perspectives. Test your ideas in the real world.

Lastly, he advises, don’t assume it is you who needs to be the public face of the movement. Being seen is not the point.

Whew! My reaction is that this is a lot to consider. Activism is not an easy endeavor. The good news is that he believes it can start with as few as three, but the challenge is that there is lots of homework required. The few who are initially committed, however, could ultimately make a huge difference by building a base and proceeding from there. Such groundwork is key to success.

Protests are comparatively easy. Maybe they ignite a spark and publicize an issue, at least for the short term, but they quickly dissolve. If you are going to be an activist, then Sharpton has clearly provided a template. Passion is essential, but so is hard work and commitment over the long haul.

References

Irving, Debby. Waking Up White and Finding Myself In the Story of Race. Cambridge, MA: Elephant Room Press, 2014.

Maxfield, Otis, MD. The Anne Sullivan story was told to me in the 1970s by this psychiatrist who described meeting a food handler when he was a young resident sent to a psychiatric hospital that had been converted from a prison-like set of dungeons. The food handler was excited to meet Maxfield, hoping to participate in any pilot programs they and the other interns developed. She took Maxfield on a tour of the dungeons, saying, “this is where Anne lived.” The food handler then relayed how she had helped Sullivan get well enough to become a student at an institute for the blind.

Richardson, Heather Cox. “Easton Memo: Written Proof of Trump’s Attempt to Replace Our Democracy With An Autocracy.” Newsletter posting, September 26, 2021.

Sharpton, Reverend Al. Rise Up: Confronting A Country At the Crossroads. Toronto, Ontario Canada: Hannover Square Press. 2020.

© Alice A. Holstein, 2022.Please feel free to share this document while acknowledging its authorship.

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