Methods of Activism
1. The most common image of activism is a public protest, such as a rally, march,
or public meeting. This is a useful starting place in looking at methods of activism.
Researcher Gene Sharp divides the methods of nonviolent action into three
main types.
(a) First are methods of protest and persuasion, such as speeches, slogans,
banners, picketing, protest disrobings, vigils, singing, marches, and teach-ins.
To count as nonviolent action - and activism - these need to go beyond
conventional behavior. Singing in a choir is not activism, but singing as a
protest, for example in a prison or in a church, certainly can be.
(b) The second type of nonviolent action is non-cooperation, such as
religious excommunication, disobeying social customs, protest emigration, rent
strike, producers' boycott, withdrawal of bank deposits, international trade
embargo, and a wide variety of strikes.
(c) The third type is intervention, including sit-ins, nonviolent occupations,
guerrilla theater, fasting, and setting up alternative economic and political
institutions. All of these, and more, can be methods of activism - of the
nonviolent variety.
2. Another option is violent action, such as beatings, imprisonment, torture,
killing, and bombing. Conventional violent action is carried out by police and
military forces. Violent activism would be carried out by those not authorized to do
so, who might be called freedom fighters or terrorists. However, this is usually
called armed struggle rather than activism. In between nonviolent action and
armed struggle is violence against physical objects, of which sabotage is one
variety. This can include damaging a pipeline, destroying genetically engineered
crops, or defacing a website. These are activism if done on behalf of a cause. Like
other forms of activism, sabotage can be praised or condemned.
3. The methods of activism will continue to evolve along with political opportunity
and developments in culture and technology. To challenge consumer culture, for
example, a new practice has developed called culture jamming, involving a
transformation of conventional symbols, such as those used in advertisements, to
create a new, confronting message. Cell phone messaging systems are now used to
organize rallies. Online activism, called cyber activism, involves using the
Internet to communicate and organize traditional actions and as a direct form of
activism itself, such as bombarding a website or sending large files to slow down a
system.
Groups and Movements Activism
4. Many activists are members of groups, which can be small or large, local or
global. By operating in groups, activists gain several advantages.
(a) They can undertake larger tasks, such as organizing a city-wide
campaign.
(b) They can benefit from specialization, such as when one person responds
to queries, another sets up a website, another handles memberships, and yet
another talks to the media.
(c) Another vital function of groups is to provide mutual support. Many
activists lose heart or burn out through constant struggle and slow progress.
Working with others can give a feeling of solidarity and often leads to lasting
friendships.
A century ago, nearly all activist groups operated face-to-face, with coordination
between groups via visits, the postal system, and public notices. The telephone
allowed rapid coordination across greater distances and the Internet has made it
much easier to coordinate globally.
5. Activist groups, like groups of any kind, from families to corporations, can have
problems, including miscommunication, personal animosities, and power struggles.
Getting group members to work well together is vital. Skills like listening,
summarizing, and conflict resolution are called maintenance functions, whereas
skills for undertaking action outside the group are called task functions. Groups
are the main way that activists are organized to get tasks done. In many cases,
groups are part of what is called a “social movement”. A social movement
typically includes many groups and individuals acting towards a common
goal to change society in a particular way. A movement is broader than any
single organization and it has a broader, less precise vision than most groups.
6. Other social movements include the anti –corruption, labour, feminist,
environmental, animal rights, and disability movements. Movements provide an
important context for activism in several ways.
(a) They constitute a network of individuals and groups that is a source of
communication, advice and inspiration.
(b) They provide a learning environment, with activists drawing on the
experience of other groups to find out what works.
(c) And they provide a framework or perspective for understanding
society, its problems, possible futures, and ways of bringing about change.
This framework, or belief system, develops out of the experience of activists,
combined with the ideas of writers and leaders, some who are part of the
movement and some who are largely independent of it.
7. Most movements have activist and non-activist aspects. This again raises the
issue of the boundaries of what is called activism. Someone working on a campaign
might spend time listening to the news, reading and sending e-mails, phoning
others, participating in a meeting, and writing a grant proposal. None of this is out
in public, such as joining a rally or blockade, but it is all an essential part of what
makes such public events possible. It is useful to distinguish between "direct
action" or "front-line action," in which people are putting their bodies on the
line, and support work, which is usually behind the scenes. Without the support
work, the front-line action could hardly occur. This is analogous to military forces:
only a few troops are engaged in fighting, with vastly more personnel involved in
accounts, cooking, maintenance, and a host of other support activities.
8. Those involved in behind-the-scenes work, in support of a cause, can either be
called as “activists or supporters or members” of an activist group or movement.
This is a matter of definition but has a wider significance.
(a) For many people who are concerned about the world's problems, and
especially in social movement groups, there is status in being called an
activist. This can lead to a valuing of dramatic and visible direct action and a
corresponding devaluation of routine, less visible activity such as answering
correspondence or handling accounts.
(b) On the other hand, some people who take action do not think of
themselves as activists: in their minds, they are simply doing what is
necessary to address a pressing problem.
9. Ecology Of Activism, in which a flower or fruit can only exist with the support
of nutrients, roots, stems, pollinators, and sunlight. Analogously, effective direct
action depends on prior learning, supportive group members, resources (including
funds), and communication. Many people can contribute to making activism
effective without necessarily being activists themselves: financial contributors,
resource people, teachers, supportive friends and family members, and journalists,
among others.