Organizing Against Censorship Deanna Duby and Mark Sedway People For the American Way Washington, DC This article outlines various action steps that citizens, teachers and administrators can take in the face of attempted censorship. Religious Right groups and their local followers have become more sophisticated in their tactics and rhetoric. Citizen action has emerged as the key ingredient in successful campaigns to keep challenged materials in place in the public schools and protect the freedom to learn. When the shouts of the censors are met by silence, when schools are left alone in defending materials against attack, attempts to ban books and programs often succeed. But when citizens get involved, form alliances with the schools and organize broad community support, such challenges can be defeated. Citizen Mobilizing Steps Listed below are some simple first steps that will help citizens build a successful campaign against censorship. 1. Find allies. Start by calling friends and colleagues, and build a nucleus of committed parents, citizens and school teachers, librarians and administrators. Then reach out to other people in the community: civic leaders, clergy, business people, women's groups, and students. Remember, for every individual who tries to censor a book, there will be dozens of potential allies in the communitypeople who, when warned of looming censorship, will come to the defense of the material, the schools and the freedom to learn. 2. Arrange a meeting of your group. Inform your group of the incident and the issues involved. Create a mailing list. Give your group a name. Define your goals. Then carry out the specific activities listed below. 3. Keep a file of information. Collect and save all information on the incident, including newspaper clips, school board meeting minutes, correspondence, fliers, meeting notes, and material distributed by the objectors. 4. Meet with the teacher, librarian or administrator who is in charge of the challenged material. Keep in mind the objector's complaints and learn how the teacher or librarian uses the material. Read it yourself. Develop a point- by-point rebuttal of the objector's claims. 5. Write letters to school officials. Mobilize your allies to write to the school board and school district voicing support for the challenged material and opposition to censorship. The more letters, the better. 6. Write letters-to-the-editor to local newspapers. Letters-to-the-editor are widely read, will increase awareness of your cause, and may inspire others to take a stand. 7. Contact and work with the local media. Notify the local media of a censorship attempt by calling reporters and providing them with information. Identify someone who would be a good spokesperson for your group. Write and distribute a press release announcing the formation of your group and its activities. Meet with newspaper editors or editorial boards to discuss the issue. Working with the local media is one of the most criticaland overlookedways to stop school censorship. 8. Mobilize your allies to attend all relevant school board meetings or public hearings. The more people you get there, the better. Obtain the agenda ahead of time. Ask for a chance to speak. If possible, have your allies wear buttons, t-shirts or some other visible form of identification so the board and media will see the strength of your support. Become the vocal majority. 9. Start a petition drive. Get the signatures of as many people as possible on a petition opposing censorship. Present the petition at a school board meeting or other public forum. Send a copy to each school board member. 10. Broaden your coalition further to include community groups and leaders. Broaden support for your cause by calling any groups or leaders who may have an interest in the matter or influence with the school board. Ask them to join your coalition. Prepare a coalition statement, have them co-sign it, and send it to the school board and media. 11. Hold community meetings to discuss the issue. Publicize them well and try to attract a broad range of citizens. 12. Research and expose possible connections between objectors and national Religious Right or censorship groups. 13. Work to frame the debate to your advantage. In your meetings and letters, put the challenge in its appropriate context by discussing broader issues such as censorship and academic freedom, any similar incidents that have taken place around the country, and the broader agenda of any national organizations involved in the challenge. When challenging school materials, many would-be censors claim to represent the views of "parents" and "Christians." Prevent them from staking a claim to these important constituencies by pointing out the inclusion of parents, churchgoers and clergy in your own group. Argue that neither parents nor Christians think as monolithic groups. Teacher and Administrator Mobilizing Steps Teachers and administrators can also combat censorship by organizing and preparing in advance to respond to challenges to the curriculum. Some guidelines: 1. Develop broad community support. Teachers can also spearhead or join a community coalition to come to the defense of the material, the schools, and the freedom to learn. 2. Have a reconsideration policy and use it. Require objectors to file formal or written complaints that spell out specific objections and substantiate their claims. The policy should require that materials not be removed during the reconsideration process. 3. Inform other teachers and administrators whenever a book or program is challenged by an organized group. Rely on your colleagues for guidance and support. Speak with any teachers who have used the challenged material. Don't hesitate to ask for help from school or district administrators. 4. Speak with educators who have faced similar attacks. Educators from your district or around the country who have experienced similar challenges are valuable resources. 5. Teachers should refer complaints they receive to administrators at the schoolor the district level for highly organized challenges. This approach will ensure that district reconsideration procedures are followed and that teachers and librarians are spared the disruption of daily visits by objectors. 6. When faced with an organized attack, district officials may want to provide school board members with thorough information on challenged materials. Likewise, teachers and librarians may provide school or district officials information on materials and how they are used. Informed board members and administrators are better able to respond to challenges, more likely to withstand distortion campaigns, and ultimately more willing to defend materials under attack. 11. Do not hesitate to contact the local media if a challenge develops into a big battle, since organized would-be censors will likely do the same. Meet with publishers or editors, provide reporters information, have supporters write letters-to-the-editor, ask a parent activist to write an op-ed. Media exposure will help your cause. 12. Find out about the objectors, their claims and any outside groups they might be working with as soon as possible. Although objectors often claim to be acting alone, many receive information or help from national Religious Right groups. It will help if you expose this larger network. Also, verify whether objectors know about the materials they are challenging or instead are acting at the behest of outside groups. 13. Many district and school officials send a newsletter to parents explaining the truth about the challenged program or book, its educational purpose, and how it is used. Such newsletters often solicit parental input and support. 14. Don't assume that an organized challenge will simply go away if you don't fight it. Take it seriously.u Combatting Censorship In The Arts: Action Steps Jill Bond and Michelle Richards People For the American Way Washington, DC The following is excerpted from People For the American Way's artsave action kit. The kit provides suggested techniques for artists, arts administrators and activists facing censorship challenges to the arts.. Developing a Freedom of Artistic Expression Policy. A strong freedom of artistic expression policy can be a first line of defense against any attack or controversy. Although policies cannot prevent censorship attempts, they can help combat such efforts. Specifying and publicizing the importance of artistic freedom to the mission of your organization helps educate the community about your overall goals and objectives. Then, if a challenge occurs, it is easier to defend against it by showing how you have not strayed from your goals and objectives as outlined in a formal policy. Any organization or group involved in the funding, promotion, production or presentation of art should make it a priority to have a freedom of artistic expression policy in place. It is especially important for colleges, universities, and state and local arts agencies to have such a policy. Policies are most effective when: they are created before a censorship challenge; their drafting involves both staff and directors; they are tailored to their environment (e.g., college or university gallery policies address the parallel between academic and artistic freedom); they use existing, working policies as models; they are publicly announced, printed in programs or posted on plaques. Building a Coalition. The purpose of building a coalition is to demonstrate the breadth of support for your anti-censorship position. A coalition should include organizations or individuals who agree at least on the fundamental issue at handopposition to arts censorshipalthough they need not agree on specific issues. A viable coalition is an important tool when a would-be censor attacks a work of art in your community. When a challenge arises, it is important to strengthen any existing coalition and broaden your support. First, get the facts. Understand the censor's challenges and familiarize yourself with policies and procedures for handling a challenge. Then begin to identify your naturaland sometimes not so naturalallies. At your first meeting, begin to define your goals. Set specific organizing benchmarks for your coalition. Ask coalition members to do something specific, being careful not to overwhelm them with too much work. Announce the formation of your coalition by releasing a public statement of purpose, along with a press release. Working with the Media. When an institution or individual comes under attack, the media can be contacted to express your side of the issue. Favorable media attention can decide the battle. First, set a goal for your media efforts. It may be as general as building support for free expression or as specific as correcting misinformation about a particular exhibit. Then define the audience you're trying to reach and select the media outlet that best targets that audience. You can approach the media through a number of avenues: press releases, public forums or news conferences, letters-to-the-editor, meeting with editorial boards, speaking directly with reporters covering the arts, appearing on television and radio programs, and submitting op-eds. Here are a few specific tips: Letters-to-the-editor should be to the point and brief. Focus on one or two points. Letters should, if possible, refer to a specific story or article that has already run. Remember that readers are not all experts on the subject, so you may need to repeat key facts. Be sure to include your name, address and phone number. News releases should read like a news storyattention-grabbing headline, most important information in first paragraph, answers for the questions who, what, when, where and why. They should include a quote or two from your spokesperson. Always include a contact name and phone number so reporters can follow up. Be sure to get the press release to the individual reporters covering the story. Well-planned news conferences include a visual backdrop that complements your story. They should be held at a location convenient to the media. Be brief and include no more than three or four speakers. Distribute a news release at the press conference, and fax or messenger copies of the release around to reporters who were unable to attend.. Radio and television interview programs are always looking for ideas. Contact the producer of a given program and suggest your story and a spokesperson. Be ready to send background material. Letter-writing Campaigns. Letter-writing campaigns to defend freedom of expression can be vital tools in the effort to influence decision-makers. Target decision-makers who can help sway the outcome of a challenge. These include elected officials, boards of directors, and others. Letter campaigns require lots of preparation. Start by preparing an action alert that lays out all the facts for writers. The alert should be brief (one to two pages), describe the incident or threat to free expression and announce the letter-writing campaign. Include in the alert a clear call for immediate action and provide simple steps that an activist can follow. Provide a sample letter that activists can use as a guide, while encouraging them to express their own personal perspective as an artist or patron of the arts. Distribute the alert to all potential allies and encourage them to share it with others. You can often get mailing lists from other organizations or ask them to mail your alert. Pass out the alert at meetings, events or wherever likely allies would be. Display the alert (or an abbreviated "flyer" version) at galleries, museums, book stores, video stores, libraries, universities or wherever allies have a public venue. Keep your sample letter brief, limited to a few artfully worded points. Describe them clearly and back them up with facts and examples. Adopt a constructive tone. People are more likely to be receptive if they receive a persuasive letter, not an attack. The First Amendment and the Artist. In dealing with censorship threats, it is important to consider the legal issues raised and to understand your legal rights. Of course, not all arts censorship controversies wind up in court, but some important ones do. Moreover, arguments based on the First Amendment can be very compelling in the court of public opinion as well. Of course, you'll want to consult an attorney if you think a legal case may be brewing, but here are some important things to keep in mind along the way. The First Amendment applies to artistic expression, verbal as well as non- verbal, just as it applies to political and other speech. It is a shield that protects against government restriction or punishment of expression, particularly when the government discriminates on the basis of content or viewpoint. The First Amendment applies to action by federal, state, or local government, but not to purely private art galleries, theaters, or other organizations. Not all expression is protected by the First Amendment. The Supreme Court has found that the First Amendment does not protect speech that creates "a clear and present danger" of violence or injury, such as shouting "fire" in a crowded theater. There are limits on the First Amendment in prisons and in the military. Libel and slander are generally not covered. Finally, the Court has ruled that the First Amendment does not protect obscenity or child pornography. =================================================== How to Win: A Practical Guide for Defeating the Radical Right in Your Community Copyright 1994 by Radical Right Task Force Permission is granted to reproduce this publication in whole or in part. All other rights reserved. For more information contact: Pat Lewis National Jewish Democratic Council 711 Second Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20002 (202) 544-7636 =================================================== This document is from the Politics section of the WELL gopher server: gopher://gopher.well.com/11/Politics/ Questions and comments to: gopher@well.com .