​

​

​

Your Organizational Plan to

​

SAVE OUR DEMOCRACY

​

UUSJ – Democracy Action Team

July 23, 2024

Dale Anderson

​

​

​

​

​

Credit: Motortion

Stock photo ID:1183327151

Our Current State

Those who want to protect our Liberal Constitutional Democracy believe we need a grassroots political movement to counter authoritarian threat . . . to date, such a movement doesn’t exist.

Source: We Need a Progressive Democracy Movement to Assure our Freedoms

Thom Hartmann – Common Dreams, Dec. 23, 2023

Expanding Civil Rights

MAGA is a Political Movement

We Need a Grassroots Political Movement

Curtailing Civil Rights

Imperative to Build a Movement

Source: Five Strategies to Support American Democracy Rachel Kleinfeld, 2022

​

4. BUILD A MOVEMENT -Build a broad-based, multistranded, prodemocracy movement around a positive vision concretized in locally rooted action.

​

​

​

Rachel Kleinfeld is an American international relations scholar currently serving as a senior fellow in the Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

RACHEL KLEINFELD

Five Strategies to Support American Democracy

ORGANIZATIONAL PLAN TO HELP SAVE OUR

DEMOCRACY

An Organizational Plan

​

1. Get Started – Lay the Foundation
• Make the Case
• Commit to Protecting Democracy
• Create a Democracy Action Team
• Organize Education
• Take Action / Track Results

​

• Form a Local Pro-Democracy Coalition
• Inventory Local Pro-Democracy Groups
• Form a Pro-Democracy Coalition
• Create an Integrated Events Calendar
• Build a Coalition Communication Platform
• Grow a ‘Big Tent” Coalition

​

• Sponsor Pro-Democracy Events / Programs
• Promote Coalition Member Events
• Plan Pro-Democracy Events
• Launch Educational Programs (e.g. civics)
• Support Pro-Democracy Legislation

​

• Profile Authoritarian Actors / Groups

​

• Connect with State and Nat’l Organizations

​

• Prepare for “Worst Case” Scenarios

​

ORGANIZATIONAL PLAN TO HELP SAVE OUR

DEMOCRACY

ORGANIZATIONAL PLAN TO HELP SAVE OUR

DEMOCRACY

ORGANIZATIONAL PLAN TO HELP SAVE OUR

DEMOCRACY

ORGANIZATIONAL PLAN TO HELP SAVE OUR

DEMOCRACY

ORGANIZATIONAL PLAN TO HELP SAVE OUR

DEMOCRACY

ORGANIZATIONAL PLAN TO HELP SAVE OUR

DEMOCRACY

​

​

1. GET STARTED – LAY THE FOUNDATIONS

​

• Make the Case for a Democracy Action Team (DAT)
• Commit to Protecting Democracy
• Create a Democracy Action Team
• Organize Education
• Take Action / Track Results

​

ORGANIZATIONAL MISSION

1. LAY THE FOUNDATIONS

​

UU’s Commitment to Democracy

​

• UUA - 5^th Principle

​

​

• Justice Value (Shared Values statement)

​

• 2019 Statement of Conscience

​

UU Seven Principles

​

• 1st Principle: The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
• 2nd Principle: Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
• 3rd Principle: Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
• 4th Principle: A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;

​

• 5th Principle: The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;

​

• 6th Principle: The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all;
• 7th Principle: Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part

ORGANIZATIONAL MISSION

1. LAY THE FOUNDATIONS

​

UU’s Commitment to Democracy

​

• UUA - 5^th Principle

​

​

• Justice Value (Shared Values statement)

​

• 2019 Statement of Conscience

​

UU Seven Principles

​

• 1st Principle: The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
• 2nd Principle: Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
• 3rd Principle: Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
• 4th Principle: A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;

​

• 5th Principle: The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;

​

• 6th Principle: The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all;
• 7th Principle: Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part

Justice

We work to be diverse multicultural Beloved Communities where all thrive. We covenant to dismantle racism and all forms of systemic oppression. We support the use of inclusive democratic processes to make decisions within our congregations, our Association, and society at large.

​

Our Democracy Uncorrupted

(Statement of Conscience – 2019)

Congregations/covenanted communities can take actions such as the following:

​

• Democracy Audit - Conduct a congregational democracy audit that includes any practices that continue to sustain white privilege and income inequality. Take action to address findings.
• Form Action Teams - Organize action groups based on the needs of democratic reform and investigate how structural racism, sexism, classism, environmental degradation, and militarization have driven the accumulation of wealth and political power.

​

• Democracy Coalition - Partner with other UU congregations and with other faith communities, non-profits, and unions to work on democratic reforms.

​

• Support Democracy Campaign - Support the Declaration for American Democracy campaign for comprehensive federal and state democracy reform.

• Organize advocacy initiatives - such as postcards, social media campaigns, rallies, sit-ins, petition drives, and other forms of direct action in support of democratic reforms.
• Educational Forums - Sponsor educational forums about factors contributing to the corruption of democracy.

​

• Fund Democracy Efforts - As part of the offering or special collections, ask for funds to support democracy-strengthening efforts.
• Support Resolutions - Adopt resolutions supporting democratic reforms including overturning constitutional rights and money as speech.
• Collaborate with UUSJ - with ongoing UU-related partnerships such as UUSJ’s “Write Here! Write Now!” campaign for democracy reform.
• Engage Children - Include children and youth of the congregation in conversations and invite them to join actions.

Get Board and Congregational

“Buy-In”

• Congregational Public Statement of Support

​

• Annual Board Goal

​

• New Committee

​

• Allocation of Resources

​

• Approval to Create or Join a Coalition

​

• Venue for Pro-Democracy Events

​

• Messaging in Newsletter, Website, Social Media

Board Goals 2024-’25

UUSRQ EXAMPLE

​

1. Launch an educational program about becoming a multicultural congregation

​

• Become a “Good Trouble Congregation.”

​

• Support website redesign and a revised communication plan.

​

​

Image:https://www.istockphoto.com/portfolio/diamo nddogs?mediatype=photography

Form a Democracy Action Team

(DAT)

PURPOSE

​

• ORGANIZE to support and engage citizens in creating a pro-democracy movement.
• MOTIVATE citizens to invest their time, resources and skills to help save our democracy.
• EDUCATE/TRAIN citizens on how to help save our democracy.
• COORDINATE align the DAT’s action with local, state and national pro-democracy coalitions and actions.

​

​

Congregational

DAT

GET STARTED

​

• INVITE MEMBERS - Recruit 5-8 members in your congregation who you believe are worried about our democracy’s future.
• APPOINT CONVENERS - Select one or two conveners to prepare agendas and communicate with members.
• NAME YOUR DAT - Give your group a name so others can refer to your team.
• SET TIME AND PLACE - Agree to meet every two weeks. Meet in person or on Zoom

Congregational

Democracy Action team

Congregational Democracy Action Team

Coalition of UU State Action Networks

CUUSAN

 https://simplemaps.com/custom/us/5UQSwtgE.

Based on Information from the CUUSAN website, there are

24 Active UU State Action Networks

Source: CUUSAN website

2.

​

Join or Create a Local

Pro-Democracy Coalition

​

​

​

Image: suksunt sansawast

• Inventory Local Pro-Democracy Groups
• Form or Join a Pro-Democracy Coalition
• Create an Integrated Events Calendar
• Build a Coalition Communication Platform
• Grow a ‘Big Tent” Coalition

OVERVIEW

In this time of transitions and crises,

the Power of Collaborative Action cannot be overstated

A coalition is a group of organizations that come together for the purpose of gaining more influence and power than the individual organizations can achieve

on their own.

​

Source: Western Organization of Resource Councils https://www.worc.org/media/Work_in_Coalitions.pdf

Source: How To Build Successful Coalitions, elementalstrategy.com

Form a Coalition

What is a coalition?

​

A community coalition is a group of individuals representing many organizations who agree to work together to achieve a common goal.

​

It is an “organization of organizations.”

​

• BUILD POWER

Members engage in collective actions that:

​

• build power,
• improve trust,
• communication among community sectors

​

• TAP INTO TALENT

Mobilize . . .

• diverse talents
• resources
• strategies

​

. . . .to builds capacity to implement culturally appropriate strategies that meet the community needs, increase community ownership and sustainability.

​

Phase I - Design

Core team of “frontrunners” takes the lead in designing the coalition:

​

• Coalition’s purpose
• Envisioning potential impact
• Determining which partners to invite

​

Source: Why Many Coalitions Fail and How to Avoid that. Elemental - https://elementalstrategy.com/how-to-build-a-successful-coalition/

National Partner Profiles: Criteria

1. MISSION - Has a mission that clearly ties to building a democracy movement.

​

• CHAPTERS - Has chapters or relationships with grassroots organizations in communities across the U.S. that are working on activities related to building a democracy movement.

​

• PARTNERSHIPS -Builds partnerships / coalitions as part of the work they do.

​

• TRACK RECORD - Has a track record that shows how effective they are as organizers.

​

• FINANCIALS - Appears to have sufficient funds to be sustainable

RATING SCALE:

1= not at all or a little,

2= somewhat or moderate,

3 = definitely

March 2024 UUSJ survey: Democracy Leaders expressed strong interest in learning about potential Democracy Movement partners.

National Partner Profiles

• Indivisible
• League of Women Voters
• Interfaith Alliance
• BLM Global Network Foundation / BLM Grassroots
• NextGenAmerica
• Our Revolution
• Pro-Democracy Campaign
• Represent Us
• The Workers Circle
• Third Act
• Inter Movement Impact Project
• Jobs with Justice
• Movement Voter Project
• Protect Democracy

Highest Scoring Organizations out of 41 Identified and Reviewed

Local Partner Focus

Identifying Local Coalition Partners

Organization Criteria (Example) :

​

1. Committed to Democracy / Social Justice – Organization has a deep history of commitment to democracy and social justice (e.g. UUA, UCC)

​

• Sufficiently Independent - Independent local organizations or semi-autonomous local chapters of national organizations capable of joining your coalition.

​

• Primary Mission at Risk - Success of their primary cause threatened by loss of democracy (e.g. gun control, climate justice)

​

• Targeted Group - Represent a group at risk for targeted oppression if a right-wing regime is successful in taking power (e.g. LGBTQ organization).

​

• Respected Organization - Are a recognized / respected organization in the community.

​

• Experienced Leader(s) - Have leaders and members comfortable with social activism.

Evaluate Local Organizations

National Pro-Democracy Organizations

with Local Chapters

Coalition Development - Example

(Sarasota, FL)

Coalition Development - Example

(Sarasota, FL)

Questions to ask:

​

• How essential is building a pro-democracy movement to the achievement of this potential partner’s mission?

​

• Would partnering with this potential partner make it difficult to partner with others? (e.g. level of partisanship).

​

Phase II - Build

​

Coalition moves to implementation and evaluation:

​

• Recruit purpose-aligned coalition partners
• Develop a shared narrative
• Establish an organizational model
• Determine governance and finance structure
• Roles and responsibilities
• Decision-making process

​

Sample Invitation

Dear Democracy Leader

​

The authoritarian forces in Florida are powerful and unremitting in their assault on our rights and freedoms.

​

Most of us are recognizing the limits of our own organizational resources and skills as we work to defend and strengthen our democracy. We are inviting you to consider how we might be more effective in strengthening and defending our democracy by working together here in Sarasota County.

The purpose of such collaborative meetings could include:

​

1. Sharing of each organization’s plans from now through the election (and potentially beyond).
2. Cross-promoting the actions and events of each other’s organization (creating a shared calendar).
3. Planning together for public events (e.g. “democracy day”, John Lewis Voting Rights vigil on July 17, adult civics education plan, etc.)
4. Coordinating messaging about key issues (e.g. Amendment 4, school board decisions, etc.)
5. Publishing joint resolutions and position statements.

​

• Exploring recruitment strategies for new members to each of our organizations.
• Developing shared infrastructure and skills (e.g. adoption of a common secure messaging system).
• Preparing for a “worst case” outcome of the November elections (and beyond), i.e. scenario planning.
• Collaborating on non-violent resistance training for members.

​

Creating a Shared Narrative

EXAMPLES of a shared narrative for pro-democracy coalition members:

"We are committed to defending democratic institutions and processes, ensuring that power remains in the hands of the people and not a select few.“

"Together, we stand united in our belief that democracy is the cornerstone of a just society, where every voice matters and every citizen has a role in shaping our future.“

"Our shared vision is a democracy where all individuals, regardless of background, can engage in meaningful dialogue and influence the decisions that affect their lives.“

​

"In unity, we challenge authoritarianism and disinformation, standing firm in our belief that informed citizens are the backbone of a healthy democracy.“

​

Coalition Organizational Model:

Levels of Involvement

Competing Coalitions Forming in

Sarasota County

SEE ALLIANCE

Social Justice ALLIANCE of SW Florida

PEN SARASOTA

DEMOCRACY

COALITION

SEE – Social Equity Through Education

PEN – Public Education Network

Phase III – Take Action

The third stage – Structuring Phase

​

• Coalition begins to function in a systematic matter

​

• Begin to take their first actions which reinforce their beliefs that joint action can be beneficial

​

• Begin to get some external recognition

​

• Start to see the fruits of their labor.

​

In coalition work, this becomes a critical phase and indeed can not be put off for too long . . . .

​

Stakeholders join coalitions tentatively, waiting to see whether indeed this new organization will have results, and unless early actions occur, they tend to be easily discouraged

​

​

​

Phase 3 – Short-Term Action Plan

FIVE INITIAL PLANNED ACTIONS

​

1. Organize a Coalition Leaders “Meet-and-Greet” Social Event

​

• Create an Integrated Pro-Democracy Event Calendar
1. Post all coalition member events that are open for public participation.
2. Push a reminder of the event across the entire coalition network near the time of the event.

​

• Plan a Democracy-Expo between now and November
• Consider Sunday, Sept 14 – International Democracy Day

​

• Publish a Coalition Position Statements:
• Example: Condemning Project 2025’s assault on our Democratic Principles and Institutions.
• Example: Demanding responsible media reporting.

​

• Initiate a Civics 101 webinar series about:
• How our local government and elections operate,
• Proposals to strengthen our democracy,
• The Global Authoritarian Playbook

​

Subscribers

Coalition Event Calendar

Promoting All Member Events

Coalition Member

Coalition Member

Coalition Member

Coalition Member

Coalition Member

INTEGRATED CALENDAR

POST & PUSH

SUMMARY

1. Get Organizational “Buy-In” (Support)

​

• Form a Democracy Action Team

​

• Join or Form a Pro-Democracy Coalition

DISCUSSION