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No matter whose statistics you believe, LGBT people are a small minority of the population.
There is no way you can win a campaign without widespread support from other people. One of
the most important techniques for getting both public support and the support of politicians is
getting endorsements. You need endorsements both from organized groups and from individuals
who are respected, either generally or by the board members you are trying to reach.
The strategic planning covered in this section requires a little basic research. You need to know
what political, civic, issue based, ethnic based, religious and social groups there are in the area.
You need to know which ones typically make policy endorsements, who their allies are, who and
what they have endorsed in the past. You need to find out how they communicate with their own
members, whether they are connected to any national organizations, what their stands on civil
rights for LGBT people and on related issues are. Following local media, especially newspapers,
is likely to be particularly valuable here.
Before you approach any local organization that is affiliated with a national organization, contact
the national and find out if it has a nondiscrimination or domestic partnership policy of its own,
and whether it has a position against discrimination or in favor of domestic partnership. Many
churches, unions, professional organizations (such as the American Bar Association and the
American Psychological Association) and civic organizations have both national
nondiscrimination policies of their own and official positions in favor of them. Local
endorsements are usually easy to get if you've got the organization's national policy in hand.
Find out what stand the group has on the issues which are most important to it. You need to do
this to avoid being inadvertently offensive.
More important, this information will be critical in seeking endorsements beyond natural allies
(see below).
In most parts of the country, the groups most likely to support you simply if asked will not be
enough. You'll have to do more than round up the support of the "usual suspects". You will
have to convince moderates and other groups which might be reluctant to support you as well.
You need to map out an endorsement strategy at the very start of your campaign. The basic
technique for going beyond natural allies takes time. In addition, there are lots of groups which
might support you which can be persuaded to stay neutral if the other side gets to them first (and
there are groups which might support the other side that you might convince to stay out if you get
to them first). Finally, the more endorsements you line up early, the more it may appear that
passage of your policy is a foregone conclusion. This can discourage the opposition and make
your job significantly easier.
The best plans are usually based on "logrolling." Logrolling is using one endorsement to get
another. Your start by approaching one of your most likely supporters, get its support, and then
move to a slightly more doubtful group which is connected to the first group (or greatly respects
it). When you ask the second group for its endorsement, you tell them about the endorsement
from the first group. Keep moving progressively from you most likely supporters to your most
doubtful ones. As you pile up endorsements, it will be harder for people to resist.
Start by making a list of natural allies, groups which are likely to support you either because of
their political views in general or because they specifically support civil rights for LGBT people.
Next, make lists of groups you think might be "logrolled" into support. Think about surface
connections; for example, the endorsement of one religious group may help you get that of
another group which shares many of the same beliefs. Also, go back to your basic research; the
support of one political club may help you get the support of another club which frequently
works with the first.
Finally, think about the Board you'll need to persuade and do some targeting. Concentrate first
on the endorsements which you think will be most helpful in convincing your board.
It should be easy for you to figure out who your natural allies are. Typically, they'll have already
expressed support for LGBT civil rights, or they'll have an ideology which will make it likely that
they'll support you. So for example, the local ACLU, NOW chapter, and the local Unitarian
Universalist church are all likely supporters. Local human rights commissions and commissions
on the status of women are often willing supporters.
Labor unions are often overlooked. Many unions have nondiscrimination policies at the national
level, and locals are often required to abide by them. Unions frequently have considerable
knowledge about local politics and considerable experience with lobbying. Their advice is often
valuable, their help sometimes invaluable.
Once you move beyond organizations that are already committed to LGBT rights, getting
endorsements is harder. Showing that you have the support of other groups or individuals who
are respected helps; but most people will need to be convinced that they should support the
policy.
This usually means two things. First, you need to be ready to show that the policy is a good idea.
Second, you need to show that you deserve support. Sometimes, showing why the policy is
needed will do that. But with many groups, you'll have to show that your policy fits the group's
agenda. This is why you need to know the organization's position on the issues important to it.
Think about how your policy fits the organization's own agenda, as an extension of its policies
(for example, as helpful to a church's policy that no one should be without a job or a home) or as
a reflection of the same underlying philosophy (for example, a union's commitment to the idea
that people shouldn't loose jobs for reasons that don't have to do with ability).
While you should be ready to make the case that the organization should see your policy as
connected to its agenda, you should do it respectfully. Never assume that because you see a
connection that you are entitled to an endorsement. Never lecture a group about the meaning of
its principles.
Perhaps as important as arguing a connection, you should show (as opposed to state) sensitivity
to the organization's concerns.
Sensitivity also means acknowledging the pioneering work others have done, and while
respecting the struggles of others, not presuming to understand them. No one who is not LGBT
really knows what it is like to be LGBT in America. The same is true for other groups who've
suffered discrimination.
You will have a better chance of getting an organization's endorsement if you ask for it with the
support of one of the organization's leaders, or another individual respected by the organization.
Try to get a leader to come with you when you ask for the endorsement, or, failing that, to give
you a letter of support. If possible, get an LGBT member of each organization you approach to
ask for the endorsement. People usually find it more difficult to say no to a colleague.
You should also recognize that asking for an endorsement is an opportunity to persuade people
that discrimination against LGBT people is wrong. Always ask for a little time to speak and lay
out the basic themes of your campaign. Even if an endorsement is a sure thing, explaining your
position may win over some members who disagree or who don't care. Remember too that any
chance to appear in public is a chance to smash some stereotypes. Even if only one person can
speak to a group, it doesn't hurt to send a small delegation which reflects the diversity of the
LGBT community.
If it looks as though you will not get an endorsement, ask for the opportunity to come back and
explain why you are right at greater length. If it looks as though an endorsement proposal is
going to fail, it is better if you can get the group to postpone the vote until a later presentation.
Once the proposal has failed, it will usually be tougher to get the organization to reverse itself.
Like requests for support from candidates, endorsement statements pose a specificity dilemma. If
the statement is very general -- like a stand against discrimination, or in favor of the principle of
civil rights -- it may blunt the effect of the endorsement. Politicians who want to ignore it can
simply say that those who made it didn't understand the specific proposal. Sometimes,
politicians or groups who have made endorsements in general language will then use the specific
proposal as an excuse to back off, claiming to support the concept but not the specific proposal.
On the other hand, if your policy is complicated, it will be much harder to get endorsement of a
detailed draft. People are understandably nervous about backing detailed proposals and will
usually want to study them at length to make sure they have no hidden surprises. Worse, if you
have to change the proposal in any significant way as you negotiate, you give an organization
feeling some pressure an excuse to back off, saying the proposal is not the one it endorsed.
The best tactic is probably to suggest a statement which backs the principle of nondiscrimination
and which gives a general description of the proposal. For example, if the proposal were for a
city ordinance to ban discrimination by the city, its contractors and all employers in the city, you
might suggest:
[Name of organization] condemns discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual,
and transgender people. It supports the proposal to have [name of city or
institution] adopt a [policy, ordinance, law, etc.] banning sexual orientation and
gender identity discrimination by [name of city or institution], its contractors, and
employers in [name of city]. [Name of organization] urges all members of the
[name of body which is considering the nondiscrimination proposal, e.g., the City
Council] to support the proposal.
If the organization has a national policy against discrimination, you may want to refer to it in the
proposed endorsement statement. It is probably a good idea to give the organization a copy of
draft proposal as it exists. However, you should tell the organization that while the general
principles will stay the same, the details could change as the campaign evolves.
When you ask for the endorsement, ask for a written copy of the resolution or the minutes
containing it. This my be useful in written materials. It may also help if the organization later
comes under pressure to withdraw its support.
Before you approach any group, think about things other than just support that it might be able to
give you. The ACLU may be able to get you legal help. Human Rights Commissions and
similar bodies may be able to give you advice about city politics. Groups like NOW and the
Unitarian Universalist church frequently belong to civil rights coalitions, and can help get
endorsements from other members of the coalition and the coalitions themselves. Membership
organizations may be willing to let you ask their members to call, write or meet with board
members, either through requests in newsletters or appearances at large public meetings.
Ask the organization to agree to send a representative to any public hearings on the proposal,
and, if possible, to lobbying sessions with critical members. The organization is most likely to
agree at the moment it endorses your proposal. Like a written endorsement, a commitment to
send a representative will be helpful if the organization later comes under pressure to disavow or
play down the endorsement.
Occasionally, groups may be willing to give you "nonnegotiable demand" support; that is, a
commitment not to support anyone who does not support your policy. Groups often are not
willing to put this type of commitment in writing, but get it if you can. If you have that
commitment, but not in writing, it is essential that you get a representative of the organization to
visit the members of the board and tell them.
Your first campaign is not likely to be your last. The odds are it will take more than one try to
pass your policy. You could face repeal efforts in the future, and you are likely to face related
issues in the future. You need to keep the allies you make.
If the only thing you ask for is a statement of support, it probably isn't necessary to get back to a
group until you thank it at the end of the campaign (which you should do no matter how it comes
out). If you ask for more -- if you ask for representatives at Board meetings, help with lobbying
and especially if you ask for advise on the campaign or help getting other endorsements -- you
should keep the group posted as the campaign progresses. The greater the commitment you seek,
the more the group is likely to be resentful if it feels you contact it only when you can exploit its
support. At a minimum, you should report back to your major supporters on important
developments (approval by subcommittees, major endorsements, etc) and on important upcoming
events (rallies, hearings, etc).
If you keep people informed you are also likely to get more people to hearings, and perhaps to get
useful information or advice which you wouldn't have known to seek.
>> Next: 10. Getting On The Public Agenda
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