Hello chapters & organizers:
November 12, 2019
[1] All Out for November 16 protests to demand: Trump/Pence #OUTNOW!
It is critical that we push, push, push to make a leap in numbers and impact for this final week of our 5-week launch of the #OUTNOW Movement. We have begun something of tremendous importance for the people of the world, and we need to aim to double or triple our high water mark in terms of numbers of people out at the protests this Saturday. (If your biggest protest was 100 people, aim for 200 to 300 people… if your biggest protest was 6 people, aim for 12 – 30 people… etc.).
We have put forward a different, and in reality the only way, that the Trump/Pence regime could be removed from power and the fascist onslaught be thrown on the defensive with our program of sustained non-violent mass protest that grows and gains momentum around our single demand. We have been modeling this and people and social forces are watching. It will really matter that we grow qualitatively and quantitatively this Saturday. Making such an advance will provide a dynamic platform to springboard off of our 5 week national launch.
Some ideas on how to do this:
– Most important: Get the word out very broadly. Flyers, posters, social media, psa’s, word-of-mouth and more. Most of the people who will populate these protests and this growing movement have not yet even heard of this movement and are not currently active in any existing organization or movement. Plan outings to campuses, to events happening locally (are there author readings, screenings of the new movie Harriet, sporting events, or other events that might attract an important audience to reach), to campuses, to transit hubs and other places people can be found in numbers.
– The new flyer we are sending should be used to build for this Saturday’s protest. It also provides a very good guide for conversations to spread the word to family, friends, and all kinds of others. The content of the flyer could also be used for phone-calling people who have signed up with us in the past or for announcements in classrooms and other places.
– Make plans with new people in your chapter or group for broad outreach and spreading the word soon and let everyone in your chapter (or who has ever volunteered or just signed up) know about your plans so they can be involved.
– While your main focus should be on reaching broad unaffiliated groups of people, it is important to carve out some time to reach out to key organized forces and individuals of influence in their communities– religious forces, student groups, or other organizations of various kinds (could be protesters of various kinds, professional networks, or others).Focus on those who have expressed interest in RefuseFascism or #OUTNOW! Invite them to mobilize those in their own networks and, in some cases, to come and speak at the rallies. Do not waste time on those groups who up to now have not welcomed or distanced themselves from RefuseFascism. While our focus is on reaching and organizing masses of people we should put some attention to making a leap in the breadth of organized forces in the #OUTNOW Movement.
[2] Plan for mass meetings November 24.
We will be writing soon with proposals for plans to advance the #OUTNOW Movement through the end of the year very soon. Right now, we want every RefuseFascism.org chapter to host #OUTNOW organizing mass meetings on Sunday afternoon November 24. These should be very broadly built. We will be announcing December plans at these meetings – and working with people to further develop them.
Find locations and start getting the word out for this now – and especially at the mass protests on November 16th. Invite other groups who agree with the #OUTNOW mission to take part, including some to speak. We will be developing more materials before these meetings that speak to the impeachment crisis and how we should view it and that lay out plans through the end of the year. We are starting now to produce bulk of materials (stickers, posters, t-shirts, and more) to have available in mass quantities at these mass meetings – and to use for fundraising through the holiday/prime-fundraising season.
[3] Thanksgiving Holiday Protest Ideas.
We are strongly inclined that we need to find ways to boldly project the #OUTNOW demand that the Trump/Pence Regime Must Go through the Thanksgiving holiday. Start thinking about bold ideas that could capture headlines – possibly on Black Friday. Involve as many people as possible – this is the particular way we will be sustaining mass protest over the Holiday. Share with us your ideas and start recruiting people who will want to participate, and we will write with more thinking on this soon as well (including hopefully sharing some of your ideas for this).
[4] FUNDRAISING!
Fundraising is always part of the life-blood of any important movement – both providing the resources for all we do and scaling up all we do, and stitching together diverse and committed people in growing numbers who give who are the base of this movement. All this is even more important through the holiday season when most donations are made. It is not too soon to set a date for a holiday fundraising party in your area. Build fundraising into your plans this weekend – a good fund-pitch at the protests as well as plans to phone-bank together on #GivingTuesday (the Tuesday after Thanksgiving), promoting #OUTNOW merchandize as holiday gifts, and more.
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With that, let’s all push, push, push these next few days to make a real advance in building the strength, the size, and the breadth of the #OUTNOW Movement through this Saturday’s protests – putting ourselves in the strongest place to go forward to stop this fascist nightmare before it becomes too late.
From the Refuse Fascism National Team