Movement Magazine: Issue 160

A NEw Story of Activism & campaigning
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STUDENT CHRISTIAN MOVEMENT
20 MOVEMENT Issue 160
You may have seen our recent blog
series on activism and campaigning,
with advice on topics from campaigning
on campus to inclusive activism and
theological reflection. We’ve gathered
the highlights from those blogs into
one place for you here!
Understand that
LGBTQ+ people, women,
BAME and disabled
people are often at the
frontlines of change,
grassroots movements,
and protests long
before those without
marginalised identities
show up.
Before championing someone’s
good work, take some time to
consider whether the issue has
been raised by marginalised
individuals before, but without
media attention, praise and
support from politicians, or even
protection from police surveillance
or hostility.
Never do something that you feel
very uncomfortable with.
Never get arrested by accident. A criminal
record, and even a caution, may have serious
employment repercussions later on in life.
Conversely, don’t be put off by a robust police
presence at events. 99% of direct actions do not
involve ‘arrestable’ situations. If you are new to
direct activism attend some Non-Violent Direct
Action training before getting stuck in. This will
let you know what you can and cannot do if you
want to feel safe in your action.
Christian Activists need
to pray and read the
Bible.
Jesus gives lots of examples
of direct action, from obvious
ones such as upturning tables
in the temple against economic
injustice, to less obvious ones like
silently drawing on the ground
prior to preventing a woman from
being executed to de-escalate
the violence of the mob. Draw
inspiration from Jesus and the
early disciples.
Do something
attention-grabbing
or artistic
if you can.
The best campaign I’ve
seen in this sense was a
campaign to raise awareness
about conflict in Palestine.
Three people played dead
on the floor, while a fourth
read out a testimony from
someone who had witnessed
a shooting through a
megaphone. This can be
a really effective way of
educating people. Photos
and collages can also catch
people’s eyes if you are
campaigning from behind a
stall.
Holy Activism, Batman
Don’t forget
your goal.
Campaigning is
important, regardless
of what you do, but
one thing which
often seems to be
missing is a strategy
tying it together. An
isolated action is still
worth doing, but you
can achieve much
more carrying out a
campaign with a goal.
As such, that should
be a starting point:
what do you want to
achieve?
Thanks to SCM
members Patrick
Ramsey and Dr. Feylyn
Lewis, and university
chaplain Revd Chris
Howson for this
advice. Find their full
articles and more at
www.movement.org.uk/
blog