Move to Amend Salt Lake Events Campaign Plan
Events Campaign Goal:
To reach 100 new people and teach them in-depth about MTA--the history of corporate rights, the amendment plan, and what a democracy movement is. To collaborate with 5 new groups on events. To raise $400.
Events Sub-Goals:
1. Bring in 20 new people to a 100-person campaign launch that teaches people the basic history of corporate rights and plugs them into campaign working groups. Raise $100.
● Action(s)
○ Host a corporate rule and pub quiz event where we teach about the history of corporate rule, plug people into working groups, and raise money from beer and food.
○ Work with VC and Coalitions to hold a phone bank where we call 10 coalition members and ask them to share on their FB/Twitter/listserv and all the folks on our list with phone numbers.
○ Work with media team to get advanced media and put up event on calendars, in PSA’s, etc.
○ Work with Outreach team to flyer at places on our flyering list.
○ Ask group members to ask 5-10 friends (can do at phonebank).
○ Concerted FB launch where everyone in group invites their lists on same two days.
○ In total, invite 400 people. (Half of people we contact will answer, half of those will say yes.)
○ Get 300 beers donated, suggested donation $3.
2. Throw a spectacle-based fundraiser that activates 50 current volunteers, recruits 20 new volunteers, raises $350-700 for campaign expenses, and gets us in the print and TV media.
● Action(s)
○ Hold a 401(k) race against the banks. People dress up as corporate shills in business suits with corporate logo sponsors and carry briefcases. Race 4.01 km to several banks in the city, where we will put up banners showing how much they contributed to last election (federal and state) and what beneficial legislation they got out of it locally. Each runner has to pass out five flyers to passersby before going onto the next bank. Winner gets a money bouquet and a golden parachute/briefcase/blank check from democracy/money is speech trophy.
■ People pay $5-10 to participate. ($350-700 raised)
■ Reach out to orgs affected by banking (private prisons, enviros, immigration, foreclosures, etc) and ask them to participate.
■ Put up posters around city and also activate our base.
■ Get media out and use finish line ceremonies as a chance to talk about the problem of money in elections.
■ Use money raised for money drop action later in campaign.
○ July 3rd or 4th? Too early?
3. Throw a 100 person event that brings in 50 new people and 5 new groups to talk about the relationship between race/class/gender and the law and why we need democracy movement to create the new world we want after dismantling the old.
● Action(s)
○ Host a workshop where we use the Rights Race/Rights and Privileges Timeline/Divided Movements Exercises to explain MTA’s analysis of law/power/movement building/democracy movement. Follow it with a panel featuring people from affected movements: healthcare, labor, food, climate justice, immigration, prisons, education, poverty, public space, indigenous rights, etc.
■ Workshop begins with discussion of relationship between power, law and personhood. We discuss MTA and what our analysis/goal is and then do the Rights and Privileges Timeline to explain why we need both an amendment and a democracy movement/to explain how power is constructed and can be deconstructed. Continues with Rights Race to cement why corporate power and -isms divide us and why we need both an amendment and a movement. Finish up with cards about how movements have divided themselves or been divided by those in power. Talk about how we are all impacted by corporate rule, some more than others, and we need to create an indivisible movement across issues to succeed. Introduce panelists and ask them questions about how corporate power impacts them, what they are doing about it, and how we can collaborate.
○ Work with Coalitions to educated then invite at least five reps to be on panel about democracy movement. Ask them to invite people from their org (about ten people per org) so everyone can amplify their movements and come together under a common banner.
○ Work with VC and Outreach to do a phone bank/flyering to invite 300 people to the event (Half will say yes, half will come, some will be new).
○ Work with media to promote.
○ Pass the hat, but don’t focus on it. Maybe $50?
○ Sign up 50 new people.
○ July 16, 17th or 18th?
4. Throw a fun, 75 person event in a public place to bring in 20 new people humorously teaches people about corporate personhood and its consequences in a democracy. Collaborate with three other groups to play different roles.
● Action(s)
○ Throw a Let Them Eat Cake! Corporate Wedding.
■ Host a wedding between a corporation and its bride on Library Square/Liberty Park or City County steps. Invite people with a formal invite and post the invitation around the city, as well. Have the the Supreme Court be the corp’s best man and Democracy give the bride away/object. Each can give a short speech. Recite vows that sound like a contract. Exchange a ring pop. Money bouquet. Corporate logos for groom. Wealth inequality cake w/ images of a corp on it. First dance “I Want Money” or “Money Changes Everything.” Followed by a dance party.
○ Work with other orgs to be bride, groom, preacher, bridesmaids/best men, etc.
○ “Democracy” character raises money from audience for a pre-nup. (Goal: $100)
○ Work with media to get word out and film. Work with Outreach and Coalitions to get actors/attendees. Work with materials to make invitations. Work with Events to put up posters.
○ Sign up 20 new bystanders (collab with Outreach) on list.
○ August 25th-ish
4. Host a Democracy Week that gets the word out about the vote. Host a 200 person event that brings in 20 new people and talks about how to build a Constitutional amendment movement that is geared toward broader justice. Reach 100 new random people and get them out to vote. Do a public spectacle that brings attention and education to broader public.
● Action(s)
○ Presentation about past and current social justice movements with people Skyping in from Iceland and Ecuador or Bolivia.
○ Presentation on the failure of the regulatory system?
○ Money-drop with dollars telling people to vote.
■ Where is a good crowd?
■ How much?
■ Do an IndieGoGo campaign, use proceeds from 401(k) fundraiser.
○ Screening of The Corporation?
■ At the Tower? Raise money?
○ Giant Monopoly game
■ People play a life-sized game of Corpocracy as they learn how corporations have gotten human rights and rigged the game, then learn how people have to fight back.
■ Need to make the board game and script/rules.
■ At the park? On a campus? At an intersection?
■ One last public venue to teach people about the problem and encourage them to vote.
■ If we can vote at the library, we could do this outside and shuttle people inside.
○ Newsies Dance and Sing-Along?
○ I Miss Democracy pageant?
5. After the vote: A 150-person event that gathers new and old volunteers and pushes people to consider if we need a new/improved Constitution.
● Action(s)
○ Host a People’s Movement Assembly where different issue groups articulate their demands for a new world in law or in the Constitution. Start with an exercise that shows how different the Constitution would have been if it had been written by slaves, women, poor people, and indigenous folk instead of white, wealthy men. Compare Constitutions from our country and others to see what ours is lacking/what it doesn’t need. Do an exercise editing the document. Talk about corporate power and how it affects all of us. Talk about the power of law and how it can be harnessed for good. Break out into issue groups to decide how each group would codify their demands in law and what is one step that they will take toward realizing that.
■ Invite all volunteers from course of campaign to push action the next level in the democracy movement.
■ Get media out to push democracy movement part of our message.
■ Collaborate with all groups we have worked with in the campaign so far to solidify relationship.
Volunteer Needs:
● Posting/passing out flyers for events
● People to do phone banks, FB, Twitter, coalition and personal invites to events
● Actors for wedding and Corpocracy
● People to develop content of Corpocracy game, corporate wedding, 401k, Rights and Privileges workshop and panel, PMA
● People to find and reserve venues
● People to bring food to events
● People to solicit food, beverage and prize donations from local businesses
● People to find/make costumes
● People to work with allies to develop relationship and invite to collaborate
● People to work with media team to get message out
● Facilitators for Rights and Privileges workshop
● Research, signs, and flyers for 401(k) race