How to Build a Coalition

1. How to Build a Coalition Advocacy for your library By : Elissa C. Cadillic President, AFSCME Local 1526, Council 93

2. First things first... • A coalition is made up of like minded individuals and/or groups for a common goal • Building a coalition is hard work • Building a coalition takes time and commitment • Building a coalition means being willing to educate others

3. Steps to Building a Coalition • Define your goals and objectives. Which will inform • Why you want/need a coalition • Define who you want to be part of your coalition • Find people to help you build your coalition • Identify the decision makers regarding your goals and objectives (who can implement changes) • Identify key dates (budget cycles, contract award dates, contractual dates, union, etc) • Build it!

4. Why is it important to define your goals and objectives? • You need to identify the issues • You need to be able to simplify the issues into talking points • You need to identify the groups who will be affected by the issues

5. Examples of Goals and Objectives • Increased participation from the community • Increased funding • Increased attention paid to health and safety of the workplace • No reduction of services • No reduction of hours • No reduction of staff • No reduction of security • No targeted neighborhoods

6. So, why do you need a Coalition? • A coalition gives you a larger voice • A coalition provides you with a support base • A coalition provides you with direct community access • A coalition is made up of stakeholders

7. Defining your Coalition • Identify your stakeholders • Seniors, teenagers, parent groups, students, workers, etc. • Identify groups who can help with outreach • Senior Centers, Youth Centers, Religious Institutions, Local Coalitions, National Coalitions, etc • Identify your internal support groups • Staff, friends, relatives, etc • Identify different levels of support within your Coalition • Tier one involvement, tier two involvement, etc

8. Find People to help you Build Your Coalition • If you are organized with a union, ask for help from your local chapter or your international one • Make note of individuals who speak up at community meetings, write letters to the paper or show up at library meetings • Reach out to local groups who create coalitions such as Jobs with Justice http://www.jwj.org/ • Reach out to local or national groups concerned with the issues such as the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health http://www.coshnetwork.org/

9. Building my Coalition… • Form a steering committee (no more than 7 people if possible) made up of representatives from different stakeholders • Create ground rules • Only Ms. Coalition speaks with the media • If you have an opinion on something sent via email, you must respond within 24 hours • If Mr. Friends Group Representative can not attend, he may designate one other person to attend in his place. • Ms. Senior Activist will be responsible for the agenda for three months and then it will rotate to Mr. Union.

10. Identify existing relationships and create a working list • Ms. Union has a working relationship with City Councilor X • Ms. Senior Activists has a relationship with Senator Y • Mr. Friends Group has contact information for all other Friends Groups • Local Coalition Builder has relationships with other coalitions who will lend their support • Library staff should reach out to other staff

11. Okay…I’ve done all that– now what? • People have different levels of involvement and you need to identify which “Tier” people fit in. • Tier One can be defined as: • Individuals/Groups who will show up when asked, contribute money, send letters, email and make phone calls over and over and over…. • Tier Two can be defined as: • Individuals/Groups who will show up occasionally, may send money, can be counted on to send more then one letter, email, etc. • Tier Three can be defined as: • Individuals/Groups who will only show up, call or email once or twice, not because of lack of support but due to lack of time or the fear of doing something they have never done before (such as calling a City Councilor or State Representative)

12. Why is this important? • You need to identify when to make your “big push”. If you have already asked your Tier two and three folks to ‘give’, you will not have them when you really need them. When you need 2,000 individuals standing at City Hall, you want to know you can count on all of your supporters for that day.

13. So I have a Coalition…. • You have identified yourself as a group in support of common goals. Many voices are always louder than an individual one. • It is important for your coalition to support the other organizations who are supporting you. This way, they show up when you need them most.

14. How do I make my Coalition work to support our goals and objectives? • Reach out to all stakeholders with a clear, precise message • Make sure the same message is being repeated • Identify key dates (budget cycles, contract award dates, contractual dates, union, etc) • Identify tools that have worked for other coalitions (no need to reinvent the wheel)

15. Tools…you say? • Sell t-shirts, banners, buttons and lawn signs with your slogan • Ask people to wear t-shirts and buttons to coalition functions • Create virtual groups and ways to broadcast your message: • Facebook Pages, Twitter, Bigtent, Google Groups, Distribution lists • Have a Rally – nothing is more impressive then a lot of people in one place all supporting the same cause. It also allows for people who are unaware of the issue to become aware of your cause. • Most cities and towns require a permit to hold a rally. Contact your local town/city hall and ask what is required. Don’t wait until the last minute • Get a sound system for that day. Bullhorns are great but if the crowd is large and the area unforgiving – people can’t hear and if people can’t hear, they leave.

16. Tools you say? • If you expect a lot of people, call the media. Make sure you identify who from your steering committee is the contact person. • Invite local elected officials. Elected officials love a crowd of registered voters. This is a good way to find out if they are on your side. • Have sign-up sheets prepared in advance and have people ready to walk through the crowd. The more individuals who provide contact information, the larger your coalition becomes.

17. Tools…you say? • If the city/town doesn’t require you to have security, have a plan in place. A couple of folks walking around with security armbands usually does the trick. • Don’t worry if it rains, weather happens. Just bring a large umbrella  • Are there any parades or festivals? Find out if you can join in with your banner and/or signs or have a table with information.

18. Tools…you say? • Smaller neighborhood? Get the community involved with a read-in around your location • Blast your local newspaper with editorials. • Create letters to the editor for individuals who may not be comfortable writing so they will have something they can sign their name to and send in. This also maintains the standard message you want to send. • Have a City Council call-in/email day • Designate a day and time for registered voters to call/email their City Councilor about the issue. • If there are meetings scheduled to discuss the issue – plan for a turnout and sign up to speak on the issue. • Create a flyer with talking points for individuals who are prepared to stand up and speak on your coalitions’ behalf. • Budget hearings • Pack the hearing room. Make sure people wear their t-shirts and buttons! Have people prepared to speak about their experiences.

19. Additional Resources • Union websites • Flyers with directed messages • Websites to find budget information • Links on how to find registered voter information (http://www.canivote.org/) • Facebookhttp://www.facebook.com/ • Twitter http://twitter.com/ • Google Groups http://groups.google.com • BigTenthttp://www.bigtent.com/

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