\u201cAren\u2019t we supposed to sing beyond the choir?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This question recently came up during a training, the person\u2019s eyebrows drawing down into a perplexed expression. On the screen, a diagram of the Spectrum of Allies \u2014 a classic activism tool that helps us refine our strategy to sway people toward our cause \u2014 had the segments on mobilizing passive allies highlighted. I\u2019d just told them to remember to sing to the choir from time to time, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Usually, singing beyond<\/em> the choir is our greatest challenge as organizers. After all, making change is about shifting the actions of people who don\u2019t already agree with us. To succeed, we have to rally the choir, get them singing at the top of our lungs, wake up the sleeping, startle the disinterested, and disrupt the toxic monologue of business-as-usual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On the other hand, there are times when it\u2019s your own choir that needs to be sung to \u2014 and with.<\/em> In my observation, many of our movements are in this situation. Tired, despairing, plagued by hopelessness, overwhelmed by cascading crises of everyday survival, people are trying to keep the lights on, the family fed, the debt collectors at bay, and their bodies simply alive. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Now is the time to sing to your choir. They need the solace, the comfort, the solidarity and sense that they\u2019re not alone. The song changes, too. It\u2019s less of a battle cry to make your opposition quake in their boots. It\u2019s a healing balm and a comforting ritual that rekindles their love, passion, vision and even hope. These songs are about reminding your choir that you see them. You understand what they\u2019re going through. You empathize and <\/em>can strategize in response to our humanness as we respond to the compounding crises we face. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In this context, it\u2019s crucial to sing to the choir. You won\u2019t be able to reach beyond them unless you do. To bend this metaphor even further, here are six other circumstances in which focusing on your choir is vitally important to the cause. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Sing to the choir . . .<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n When they\u2019re silent. <\/strong>Even the truest believers can\u2019t sing all the time without going hoarse. They need a break \u2014 and if they don\u2019t get one, they burnout. The choir goes silent for many reasons. They think the song is over (even when it\u2019s not). They assume someone else is singing. The solo went on so long they didn\u2019t realize it was their time to sing (have fun parsing that metaphor for your organization\u2019s soloists). One by one, they fall off until the last person\u2019s ragged voice falters out. When any of these happen, someone needs to start the tempo up again, give them the one-two, one-two-three-four<\/em> count, and get them singing again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When they\u2019re busy looking at their phones. <\/strong>Seriously. It happens. The world is very distracting and the forces of destruction use bread-and-circus tactics to keep our folks scrolling through idiotic nonsense and terrifying news soundbites instead of working for change. Tell your choir that you get it, it happens to you as well, and invite them to consider silencing the notifications. Pick a song they love and get them singing again. (Hint: uplifting and inspiring songs help, rather than we\u2019re doomed unless we do something<\/em>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n When they\u2019re off-key or out of tempo. <\/strong>Every movement gets off-key from time to time. Our voices are loud, but discordant, and the choir\u2019s chaos is backfiring on our movement. Even when people hear us, they don\u2019t like the sound and decide they don\u2019t like the cause. When this happens, it\u2019s time to sing to (and I recommend with<\/em>) your choir until you find the rhythm and key that gets you all singing together again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When they forget the lyrics. <\/strong>Back when I was literally in the choir (and a marching band, if you must know), I was that kid in the soprano section moving my lips without any sound coming out. Usually, that was because I didn\u2019t know the words. I knew the melody, since it repeated over and over, but whenever lyrics eluded me, I just stopped singing. In our changemaking efforts, this can look like people who are unsure what to say to their relatives who disagree, or hesitate to write letters to the editor because they don\u2019t know the facts on the issue, or won\u2019t speak up because they\u2019re under-practiced in articulating the key points of the cause. Just raising your voice at them isn\u2019t going to do the trick. They need to train. Host some role-playing sessions, form a press and media training team, make space for them to try out their lines and get them right. Which brings us to the next point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When they need practice. <\/strong>All choirs need to practice. Where and when do the people who support your issue have time and space to do that? How do they get trained? What resources are available at midnight when a working-class supporter wakes up in the night and can\u2019t get back to sleep? How can you make reminders of these resources accessible to your folks who are riding the subway to work or class or health appointments? How can your true believers see each other\u2019s faces (even virtually) and practice lifting their voices together?<\/p>\n\n\n\n