Conservative Street Activism: A Primer

Denver Anti-Stimulus Rally and Pig Roast IV

Some great tips for those planning events around the country:

1. Get the word out on Talk Radio and prepare a Press Release for all of your local media. Have a flyer prepared with your talking points and goals for your event clearly outlined, as well as contact information for all of the organizers.

2. Use the days leading up to the Tea Party to prepare effective signs (Some of the best are found at Peoples Cube) Home made signs are great as well and don't forget to bring your America Flag. It is the best "sign" of all.

3. Keep your event short, an hour or less and do it at lunchtime your state capitol or a large city close to a population center. This way attendees can come on the lunch hour. Keep speakers to a minimum and give each five minutes or less to make a speech.

4. Begin each rally with someone singing the National Anthem and leading the group in the Pledge of Allegiance.

5. Give the local press a specific time, generally fifteen minutes at the end of the rally for a Press Conference where those who have organized and spoken will be available for interview.

Be prepared with a few talking points, flyers, business cards etc so reporters can do follow up interviews. Don't be surprised if the press interviews and then does little or no reporting on your event. Hold them accountable by getting the name of the reporter, a picture or video of them interviewing you and/or the name of the editor of the piece and then make a follow up call or email asking them to publish the interview.

I was interviewed by a Daily Camera video reporter intern during an Anti War rally and the editor in charge of the video online at first told me that no one from Boulder had been at the rally. When I sent her a picture of him interviewing me she finally admitted that "yup, he was the intern they had sent to the rally".

Jenny%20and%20Robin%20being%20interviewed%20by%20Daily%20Camera%20Intern.jpg

I like to stand on the UN Flag when I am demonstrating. I also think it is effective to hold Rallys outside of Media Establishments, which is why I have organized several events right outside of our local papers building. I sent press releases to the Daily Camera before and after a september 2007 Fight for Victory rally in Boulder.

Boulder%20Rally%20Fight%20for%20Victory%20Tour.jpg

They did not bother to send a reporter to our event, but I believe it is important to use these visual images to hold them accountable. You don't need a large amount of people to have a sucessful event. We used the time to write out words of encouragement to our troops. A few of those who attended this event were parents of troops serving and we used the time to get aquainted and share stories. As the organizer I led the group in prayer, the star spangled banner, and we all said the Pledge together. This was one of my favorite rallies. Short, sweet, and a chance to meet some wonderful people.

After the Gathering of Eagles event in Denver an activist friend and I held a bake sale to raise some money for a Daily Camera Intern who interviewed us for his video but did not even bother to mention that we were there counter protesting. His editor told me that the Camera did not have the "time or resources" to provide balanced media coverage. So we earned $23.00 for him selling cookies to help him out. When he did not respond to my emails offering him the money to help him be more balanced in the media, I told him I would use the money to buy him some Halliburton Stock.

Google Video of our bake Sale

I have been interviewed literally dozens of times by local media at the many rallies, demos, and conservative events I have attended. Only a handful of these interviews ever made it into the local press. It is why I believe the most important thing you can bring with you to an event is a video camera to take your own footage.

At the million mom march event in Denver back in 2000 I brought my young children with me and we counter demonstrated with signs that said "I am a Mom 4 guns!" At the last minute as we were preparing to leave our home, I decided to grab my huge old fashioned video recorder. At a crucial moment during the rally I pulled it out of my stroller and started filming the activity. I believe this helped to diffuse some of the energy of certain activists who looked like they were about to become violent. Cameras have a cooling effect on potential criminals.

6. Have fun, smile, and enjoy getting together with fellow activists. A little bit of righteous anger is not a misplaced thing, but overall the feeling of your event should be upbeat. Don't be shy about inviting local politicians to come speak at your event, and make certain that as organizer you investigate all local laws regarding licenses and event planning. Most cities have people assigned specifically to the task of coordinating events in public places. With the current emotion tied to the Stimulus bill, your biggest issue may be too many people attending your the event and potential problems with parking, etc...

Good Luck as you use your Constitutionally Endorsed right to organize and protest the government.

Jenny Hatch The Natural Family Blog Healthy Families Make A Healthy World! The Natural Family Company

Rick Santelli gets the credit for starting the revolution:

Rick Santelli and the "Rant of the Year"

How to Organize Your Own “Tea Party” Protest Brendan Steinhauser also has some great tips on how to organize a protest.

http://www.right.org/bailout/main

Bailout Prize Patrol video! (great rightwing activism)

Try using their own Alinsky’s Rules against them
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RULE 1: “Power is not only what you have, but what the enemy thinks you have.” Power is derived from 2 main sources - money and people. “Have-Nots” must build power from flesh and blood. (These are two things of which there is a plentiful supply. Government and corporations always have a difficult time appealing to people, and usually do so almost exclusively with economic arguments.)

RULE 2: “Never go outside the expertise of your people.” It results in confusion, fear and retreat. Feeling secure adds to the backbone of anyone. (Organizations under attack wonder why radicals don’t address the “real” issues. This is why. They avoid things with which they have no knowledge.)

RULE 3: “Whenever possible, go outside the expertise of the enemy.” Look for ways to increase insecurity, anxiety and uncertainty. (This happens all the time. Watch how many organizations under attack are blind-sided by seemingly irrelevant arguments that they are then forced to address.)

RULE 4: “Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules.” If the rule is that every letter gets a reply, send 30,000 letters. You can kill them with this because no one can possibly obey all of their own rules. (This is a serious rule. The besieged entity’s very credibility and reputation is at stake, because if activists catch it lying or not living up to its commitments, they can continue to chip away at the damage.)

RULE 5: “Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon.” There is no defense. It’s irrational. It’s infuriating. It also works as a key pressure point to force the enemy into concessions. (Pretty crude, rude and mean, huh? They want to create anger and fear.)

RULE 6: “A good tactic is one your people enjoy.” They’ll keep doing it without urging and come back to do more. They’re doing their thing, and will even suggest better ones. (Radical activists, in this sense, are no different that any other human being. We all avoid “un-fun” activities, and but we revel at and enjoy the ones that work and bring results.)

RULE 7: “A tactic that drags on too long becomes a drag.” Don’t become old news. (Even radical activists get bored. So to keep them excited and involved, organizers are constantly coming up with new tactics.)

RULE 8: “Keep the pressure on. Never let up.” Keep trying new things to keep the opposition off balance. As the opposition masters one approach, hit them from the flank with something new. (Attack, attack, attack from all sides, never giving the reeling organization a chance to rest, regroup, recover and re-strategize.)

RULE 9: “The threat is usually more terrifying than the thing itself.” Imagination and ego can dream up many more consequences than any activist. (Perception is reality. Large organizations always prepare a worst-case scenario, something that may be furthest from the activists’ minds. The upshot is that the organization will expend enormous time and energy, creating in its own collective mind the direst of conclusions. The possibilities can easily poison the mind and result in demoralization.)

RULE 10: “If you push a negative hard enough, it will push through and become a positive.” Violence from the other side can win the public to your side because the public sympathizes with the underdog. (Unions used this tactic. Peaceful [albeit loud] demonstrations during the heyday of unions in the early to mid-20th Century incurred management’s wrath, often in the form of violence that eventually brought public sympathy to their side.)

RULE 11: “The price of a successful attack is a constructive alternative.” Never let the enemy score points because you’re caught without a solution to the problem. (Old saw: If you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. Activist organizations have an agenda, and their strategy is to hold a place at the table, to be given a forum to wield their power. So, they have to have a compromise solution.)

RULE 12: Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it.” Cut off the support network and isolate the target from sympathy. Go after people and not institutions; people hurt faster than institutions. (This is cruel, but very effective. Direct, personalized criticism and ridicule works.)

RULE 4: “Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules.” If the rule is that every letter gets a reply, send 30,000 letters. You can kill them with this because no one can possibly obey all of their own rules. (This is a serious rule. The besieged entity’s very credibility and reputation is at stake, because if activists catch it lying or not living up to its commitments, they can continue to chip away at the damage.)

COMPLAIN TO ADVERTISERS OF LEFT WING NEWS!

The rules are that advertisers do not like controversy thus complain to those who advertise on Olberman, Mathews, and whatshis/her name around those shows. Make MSNBC advertising INSECURE and dangerous for producers..

ping for later

I just caught Santelli’s statements for the first time. He is the MAN!! Good on ya, Rick!!!

“Make the enemy live up to its own book of rules.” If the rule is that every letter gets a reply, send 30,000 letters. You can kill them with this because no one can possibly obey all of their own rules. (This is a serious rule. The besieged entity’s very credibility and reputation is at stake, because if activists catch it lying or not living up to its commitments, they can continue to chip away at the damage.)

Sounds like Alinsky