Getting the Word Out
Here are some suggestions on how to get information out to people.
* Begin building relationships with organizations within your community. This takes time, but worth it in the long run. If they know who you are and see you as credible, they will be more likely to support you and to pass your information on to their memberships. No intelligent organization will extend public support to people and or organizations they don't know anything about and even if they know and respect you, won't give you their mailing or email lists. Having said that, as you make friendly contacts, ask if you can send them a email poster and ask them to send it out and post it their offices. Every friendly contact has other contacts. Ask them who else they would recommend you contact.
* Look through past issues of Letters to the Editor of your local newspapers. They can give you names of possible people to contact who might care about this budget. They may also give hints as to organizations worth contacting.
* Does your newspaper have a community calendar of ongoing events by various organizations? If so, you've got a built in list to contact.
* Contact both public and private sector unions in your area. Also call the local Labour Council, the contact information for which can be found on the Canadian Labour Council website. Call your local teachers' association.
* Look to organizations within your community that will be adversely affected the impacts of Bill C-38. Are there student groups either in high schools, colleges, trade schools, univerisities to contact? Are there seniors groups? What about environmental organizations of various kinds? What political actions have you seen or heard of in the last year in your area? It might be a good idea to contact them, as they also have lots of contacts. Opposition political parties are good bets! What about women's groups? Housing advocates? You get the idea, whomever will be adversely affected by provisions of the budget are more likely to be interested in having their voice heard.
* Are there progressive municipal councillors who you should talk to. If they got elected its a safe bet they have an extensive network of people who helped them get into office and likely share our views on the budget. Ask them if they would be willing to speak at the rally. Every politician likes an audience. They may have some good stuff to say and will be more likely to invite their networks to participate.
* Use email and Youtube. Do a quickie video with the reasons for, time and location of your demo and put it up on Youtube, mention the existence of the video in your email correspondence. When you send out emails, tweets etc. ask those receiving it to pass it along to their own networks, which will magnify your impact.
* Do up a poster and put it in places where people naturally congregate, bus stops, laundromats, popular coffee bars, shopping areas, libraries, community centres, municipal halls, schools and colleges. Look for public bulletin boards locations to post your material. Do a 1/4 size handbills and hand them out on the streets, put them on windshields of cars in parking lots.
* Are there free PSAs - Public Service Announcements in your local newspapers, local cable station, or local radio station? If so, contact them with the script written for the announcement.
* Lots of small businesses are just as mad as you are and may well be willing to put up a copy of your poster in their windows.
* Send a well written, but brief press release to local media, with the time, date and location well cited.
* In your signs, use colour and use humour. Use the fattest felt pens you can find so that your letters are big and bold. Advertising folks will tell you that a good billboard never has more than seven words, because people can't read any more than that on a quick glance. Make sure your slogans are short and catchy...'Harper's majority isn't Canada's majority' You are writing a billboard not an essay. Put colourful signs on your vehicles safely placed so as to avoid obscuring your vision, so that you become a moving billboard as you drive around your town.
* Take lots of photos of your actions, particularly closeups with peoples faces clearly visible. People like looking at recognizable faces as opposed to human bodies so small in the picture you can barely see their faces.
* At your demos, find people with voices and guitars to lead people in topical songs. Maybe someone can write a new words to a well known song so that everyone can sing along. Get everyone to sing Oh, Canada. Bring along as many Canadian flags as you can. The movement of multiple flags blowing in the breeze is very eye catching and clearly shows you're concerned about Canada.
