© Hany Khalil, [email protected]@igc.org An Organizing Approach to Palestine Solidarity Work Tools from Community and Labor Organizing Traditions

© Hany Khalil, [email protected]

An Organizing Approach to Palestine Solidarity Work

Tools from Community and Labor Organizing Traditions

A Workshop for Member Groups of the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation, July 2008

Facilitator: Hany Khalil, [email protected] Times, http://www.war-times.org

Steering Committee member and former Organizing Coordinator, United for Peace and Justice http://www.unitedforpeace.org


Objectives

1. Participants evaluate strengths and weaknesses of their groups in building power.

2. Participants understand key elements of a campaign.

3. Participants analyze power relations shaping Palestine work at the local and national level.

4. Participants design a campaign plan for a particular campaign.

5. Participants recognize the importance of recruitment and leadership development in building power.

6. Participants develop strategies to increase recruitment and involvement in their organizations.


Time-Activity AnalysisActivities Importance to

building group’s power (1-5 scale)

resources devoted to this per month

Assessment: Does the importance of the activity match the resources we’re devoting to it?


CoreElements of

Power PersuasiveNarratives

Resources, Infrastructur

e

Large MembershipBase Among

Core Constituencies

Developed Leadership

Effective Organization

alStructures

Broad Allianc

es

PoliticalConsciousne

ss

Effective Strategy &

Tactics

StrategicCampaig

ns

1. On a scale of 1 – 3, rank how important each element is to exercising power.

2. Note the % of resources your group currently devotes to each element of power.

3. Mark the areas that your group needs to make a higher priority.


Elements of an Effective Campaign Plan

1. Goals: 1. Long-term: Major changes you eventually hope to win and toward which the campaign is a first step.2. Intermediate Campaign/Issue Goals: Main goals you hope to win in this campaign. Should alter the

relations of power and win improvements in people’s lives. 3. Short-term Campaign/Issue Goals: Specific, incremental victories/steps that allow you to attract

supporters, motivate your membership, make your target take you seriously, and weaken the opposition.

2. Target/Decision-Maker: The person and/or body who has the power to make the decision and/or take the action, i.e. give you what you want.

3. Power Analysis: An analysis of the various forces exercising influence over the decision-maker and where they line up with respect to your goals, including constituents, allies, and opponents.

4. Campaign Strategy: The overall approach to building and exercising the power to compel the target to accept your demands.

5. Tactics: Steps in carrying out your campaign strategy. Specific things constituents and allies do to make targets feel their power to give them goals. Target should not want it done and will make concessions to stop the pressure.

6. Organizational Considerations: Resources your group will put into the campaign, organizational gains you want to come out of the campaign, and internal problems requiring solution.

7. Time Frame: The time period from the beginning of the campaign to the end.

8. Tactical Plan: A timeline of key campaign tactics, major activities, and/or events.


4Taken Into Account

Noticed3

6Decision-Maker Responds

8Active Participant in Making Decisions

10Decisive Influence to Make or Influence Decisions

2

Not Taken Into Account

Vertical Axis: Level of Power

Their Goals/DemandsTheir Goals/DemandsOur Goals/DemandsOur Goals/Demands Opposing Agendas

Strong SupportStrong Support Inclined Toward Active SupportActive Support Inclined Toward

Horizontal Axis: Opposing Agendas

Political Groups:Comm. Org., Unions

Opposition:Republican Party, Real Estate

Developers, etc.

Primary Targets:

Cong. Rep., Church Board,Weapons Manufacturer

POWER ANALYSIS

Community Institutions:

Churches, Block Clubs, etc.

Community Residents

Secondary Targets:

Banks, Members of Faith Community,

Source: Anthony Thigpenn, SCOPE

http://www.scopela.org/index.html


10Decision Maker

8Active Participant

6Taken into Account

4Gets Attention

2Not on Radar

INCLINED TOWARDS

ACTIVE SUPPORT

INCLINED TOWARDS

ACTIVE SUPPORT

DIE HARD

DIE HARD

Workforce LA

Entertainment Industry Business

Associations

Business Associati

ons

OVERALL GOALS OF DREAMWORKS CAMPAIGN1. Get YCME/Jobs Programs funded to address a real need2. Set precedent in Corps giving back in return for subsidies3. Set precedent on how regional policies should be done

“TRICKLE DOWN” AGENDA:1. $90 million-plus in Subsidies as business incentives2. “Token” resources given to communities in need

Competing Agendas

RW CD9

RG CD6

JG CD13 MRT CD8MH CD1

RA CD7

RA CD14

MF CD5CM CD11

HB CD12

JF CD4

RS CD15

NH CD10

JW CD2

LC CD3

Playa Vista Developers

Dreamworks SKG

Decision Makers

Metropolitan

Alliance

Key Constituencies:• CBO’s in Communities of Color• Churches/Community Dev. Corps• Citywide CBO’s• Labor Unions• Students & Youth

General

Public

WEST LA

RESIDENTSEAST LA

RESIDENTS

LAUSDLACCD

CBOs in Commuities

of ColorSOUTH

LA

RESIDE

NTS

AFT

UTLA

CHURCHES

CHURCHES

Students/Youth

CITYWIDE

CBOs

Building

Trades

Service Unions

CBOs in

Commuities of

Color

Entertainment Unions

Source: Anthony Thigpenn, SCOPE



4Taken Into Account

Noticed3

6Decision-Maker Responds

8Active Participant in Making Decisions

10Decisive Influence to Make or Influence Decisions

2

Not Taken Into Account

Vertical Axis: Level of Power

Their Goals/DemandsTheir Goals/DemandsOur Goals/DemandsOur Goals/Demands Opposing Agendas

Strong SupportStrong Support Inclined Toward Active SupportActive Support Inclined Toward

Horizontal Axis: Opposing Agendas

Political Groups:

Opposition:

Primary Targets:

POWER ANALYSIS

Community Institutions:

Community Residents

Secondary Targets:


Campaign Strategy Chart

Campaign Goals

Organizational Considerations

1. Resources Invested

2. Organizational goals

3. Problems to Solve

Our Side: Constituents & Allies

1. Constituents

2. Allies

Targets & Opponents

1. Primary targets

2. Secondary targets

3. Opponents

Tactics

1. Long-term

2. Intermediate

3. Short-term

Modification of strategy chart in Kim

Bobo, et. al., Organizing for Social

Change

Counter-Tactics


AIWA Garment Justice Campaign Strategy

Campaign Goals

Organizational Considerations

1. Resources Invested

2. Organizational goals

3. Problems to Solve

Our Side: Constituents & Allies

1. Constituents

- Asian-Am women workers

2. Allies

-Students

-Women’s groups

-Asian-Am groups

Targets & Opponents

1. Primary targets

- Jessica McClintock

2. Secondary targets

3. Opponents

Tactics

1. Long-term

2. Intermediate

Pay garment workers $15,000 in backwages owed by Lucky Sewing, contractor

3. Short-term

• Public letter

• Public support meeting for allies

• Announce boycott

• Endorsements from 400 church, labor, & community groups

• Organize core allies to picket in 11 cities

• Get other groups to pressure as they can

• Ad campaign to appeal to middle-class constituency (Let Them Eat Lace)

• Press from ally CIR, then corp. and Asian ethnic

• Endorsements from gov’t bodies (Berk. Alameda Cty Board of Sup’s)

• Get City Council to investigate industry conditions

Counter-Tactics•Discredit: really a union, financial shakedown

•List women who refused their deal, harrass and blacklist them


Why must we build a membership base and develop leaders?

Organizations with membership recruitment focus

Organizations that do not build a membership base


The 4 Core Layers of an Organization’s Base

Activists

Organizing Core

Supporters

Periphery

Organizing Core: The people who put the most hours in on a weekly basis.

Activists: People you can get to come to meetings or marches, make calls to targets, volunteer regularly, on a weekly or monthly basis, who identify with the organization.

Supporters: People who may donate or participate in an activity once every 6-12 months.

Periphery: People who take very little action but who may know and like your work.

Are our plans designed to increase the size of our base and move people into more active involvement?


Base-building: Mapping Social Networks

vs.

Conception of people as isolated individuals

Conception of people as part of social

networks

•Most activists unconsciously think of people they want to organize as isolated individuals. In fact, most people who join political movements do so because someone in their everyday social networks encouraged them to do so. Effective recruitment identifies existing social networks, approaches people in their everyday life spaces, and focuses recruitment efforts on influential people within those networks.

•One reason we often don’t expand our ranks is because activists don’t consciously recruit people outside their own social circles. Mapping and recruiting from others’ social networks helps us avoid this problem.


Recruitment Effectiveness/Success Factors

Cutting Issue/Campaign in Dynamic & Compelling Way Issue/framing appeals to constituency’s self-interest, values, relationships, and vision Having/articulating Goals/Demands which have VALUE to constituency Using language and images target constituency understands and is moved by Building on “good sense” contradicting dominant ideology Campaign strategy/tactics that are within experience of your constituency and will allow you to win Convincing examples that organizing is effective approach to changing conditions Recruiting to an activity, not a meeting

Effectiveness of the Organizer

Effective credentialing Listens Language, appearance, etc. appropriate to

that constituency Inspires trust, confidence, sincerity, sense

of urgency, and excitement Dynamic presentation (delivery) Tailoring based on clues Effective crunch Rigorous follow-up Effective record-keeping

Contacting Sufficient Numbers of People (Critical Mass)

Regular, frequent, systematic, one-on-one contact

Contact strategies that match constituency Execution of tactics Concentrated efforts Campaign activities/materials that give

opportunities to raise group’s visibility Echo chamber in media

Tapping into existing social networks Accurate mapping of social networks and natural leaders Targeting of natural leaders

Modification of tool developed by Anthony Thigpenn, SCOPE



The 4 Core Layers of an Organization’s Base

Activists

Organizing Core

Supporters

Periphery

What can we do to increase the size of our base and move people into more active involvement?


Components of a successful recruitment meeting

1. Get in the Door

2. Listen: Build relationship/trust/legitimize yourself

3. Listen: ID Issues/Self-interest

4. Agitate to People’s Self-interest Make people angry: Is that fair?

5. Lay out vision/demands, need to organize, & plan to win Must counter fear, cynicism, isolation, low expectations…

6. The crunch: Get commitment to group and specific tasks

7. Rigorous Follow-up


A Process for Developing Leaders

Model leadership

Assess leader’s level/strengths, what they want to get out of participation, make a plan to take them to the next level

Give measurable, specific assignments through which others can develop. A good assignment Meets the organization’s needs Stretches the person Is manageable for that person Brings satisfaction or reward

Provide systematic, formal training, using popular education as much as possible Agitate, inspire, show how the small task fits into the campaign, the whole

Provide experienced person to advise and help, if necessary

Follow up on assignments and hold people accountable. Raise expectations of themselves and what they can do. Push where necessary. Check-in regularly.

Give one-on-one and public recognition

Re-assess where the person is at

Documents

© Hany Khalil, [email protected]@igc.org An Organizing Approach to Palestine Solidarity Work Tools from Community and Labor Organizing Traditions