Operation BART Protesters Should Change Tactics for Monday's Protest

Operation BART protesters are planning to stage an act of civil disobedience to protest the killing of a homeless man who was shot by BART police officers in 2009 - they're also also protesting BART's decision to censor cell phone use in 4 Bay Area train stations last Thursday in an effort to prevent protesters from organizing a protest via calls, SMS and social media.

Operation BART organizers are planning to stage their next protest on Monday at 5 p.m. and they're directing protesters to flood one BART train station platform (to be announced shortly before 5 p.m.) to prevent BART riders from entering or leaving the train platform - protest organizers will be trying to shut down a train station and send a message to BART officials that their voice will be heard.

I applaud the actions of the Operation BART organizers, but I believe they're choosing the wrong tactic.

Organizers should direct protesters to block the entrances leading into a BART station that will be picked shortly before the 5 p.m protest. Protesters should form human walls around the entrance of all BART stations to prevent BART riders from entering or exiting the station. Protesters should be seated with arms clasped to prevent police from easily dispersing them.

This tactic would prevent BART officials from censoring protesters' cell phone messages. BART officials won't be able to block cell phone signals outside the BART station. Protesters will still be able to coordinate activities after the protest has commenced.

Secondly, protest organizers will be able direct protesters to entrances that aren't being blocked. Organizers would also be able to direct protesters to entrances with a heavy police presence. If police start making arrests, organizers can call on protesters to fill in gaps in the lines where protesters are being arrested.

Thirdly, this tactic will give protesters the opportunity to protest for free. The current plan calls on protesters to purchase a BART fare to protest on the train platform - protesters won't need to pay if they protest in front of station entrances.

Also, BART officials are right, flooding a train platform with protesters is dangerous for protesters and BART riders that are trying to enter or leave a BART station. You can easily imagine a situation where someone is accidentally pushed onto a track because the platform is too crowded with protesters and riders.

This tactic would also cause the least amount of disruption to BART riders that use the station that's blocked. After the protest site is announced and the protest begins, protesters, media and other BART riders will be able to inform riders to avoid the station where the protest is being staged.

Please let me know if you disagree with me. Protest organizers should email me if they want to take this conversation offline. ChrisOlsonDC at gmail dot com

How Political Advocacy Shouldn't Be Conducted

Train drivers in London are threatening to strike on April 29, the day of the Royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, if demands aren't met.

London Mayor Boris Johnson is incensed that the local train driver's union, ASLEF, would threaten to strike on an important day for the city of London. In turn, Johnson wants the citizens of London to put pressure on the ASLEF to rescind their threat to strike on the day of the Royal wedding.

Mayor Johnson implored his Twitter followers to "bombard their website".

First of all, how do you bombard a website? Do you send them countless comments on their webform? I don't get it.

Mayor Johnson's link in the Tweet directed you to the ASLEF's Contact Us page. The page contains their email address. Does Johnson want you to email the ASLEF? I don't know.

Mayor Johnson's Tweet doesn't tell supporters how to send their message to the ASLEF. Also, Johnson doesn't provide supporters with a message. "Bombard their website" isn't a campaign message - that's a call for idiocy.

All political advocacy campaigns should have a have a message and they should also direct supporters on how to send that message.

Congressman Talks about Use of Social Media in Office

Rep. Justin Amash sat down this afternoon with the Facebook DC team and talked about how he uses social media to reach out to constituents.

Before being elected to the House this past November, Rep. Amash gained notoriety during his time in the Michigan House of Representatives by posting an explanation of why he was voting for or against bills that were coming up for vote.

Rep. Amash told Facebook “it’s very important to have a tool like Facebook to explain yourself.” “I want to know what my constituents are thinking”, said Amash.

Rep. Amash went on to say it’s important to use social media because “you can get your message out quickly” and “that message doesn’t need to go through…filters.” Amash added that social media can be used “to convey information”, but also “to receive information.”

Rep. Amash said he wants to continue using social media to increase transparency in Congress.

Click here to watch a recording of Facebook’s interview with Rep. Amash.

Rep. Giffords' Last Tweet Before Shooting

* There Are Conflicting Reports on The Condition of Congresswoman Giffords

Congresswoman Giffords last Tweet before taking a bullet from an unknown assailant told followers that she would be meeting constituents at a Safeway grocery store in Tucson, AZ.

After waking this morning, I normally do what I do when I don't have to wake up and go to work, I grabbed my BB and went straight to my Twitter feed. I read Rep. Giffords post while in bed and noted its excellence.

Here's the Tweet: My 1st Congress on Your Corner starts now. Please stop by to let me know what is on your mind or tweet me later.

I've been following Rep. Giffords on Twitter and Facebook since last year and have enjoyed her updates. During DC's first significant snowfall, she had taken a picture of the National Mall with a phone and posted it to Twitter - I liked the picture so much, I reposted it to my Facebook page (something I hardly ever do).

Rep. Giffords has shown a unique interest in using social media as a tool for connecting online and offline resources to reach out to constituents. Giffords' last Tweet did exactly that. Giffords used her online army to organize on the ground outreach efforts.

This is exactly how members of Congress should use Twitter. It will be a huge loss for the social media community if we lose Rep. Giffords.

How Members of Congress Can Create Good Social Media Content

Sean Hackbarth at CRAFT Media has written a blog post about how members of Congress can create meaningful social media content - it’s called Twitter: Creating Good Content. Hackbarth’s advice is much needed at a time when many members of Congress are flying by the seat of their pants as they try to navigate the social media world.

Here are the takeaways from Hackbarth’s post:

Tweets Should Engage Constituents - Members of Congress should Tweet about how they’re engaging constituents. What are constituents telling them when they’re at town hall meetings? What’s the zeitgeist of their district or state?

These Tweets give members of Congress the ability to advocate on behalf of issues that are supported by a majority of their constituents. These Tweets will come in handy when a key vote is being considered that impacts constituents in their district or state. These Tweets show that members of Congress understand the issues back home and are acting on behalf of their constituents.

Tweets Should Inform Constituents – Congressional Tweets should be noteworthy to constituents. When will the members be back in the district? When will members be appearing at a media event? When will they need support from Twitter followers when a key vote is coming up? How are they enacting their platform? How did they help a constituent?

Tweets Should Entertain Constituents – As Hackbarth says, Congressional Tweets should “break outside the Washington bubble”. Tweets should let constituents know who members of Congress are when they’re not working on their behalf. Tweets should talk about hobbies and good times with family - constituents don’t want to always hear about official business in your Tweets. Tweets should show off their personality.

This is the first session of Congress where a majority of members are actively using social media tools. I look forward to seeing more members of Congress engage, inform and entertain their constituents in Tweets.

How Your Advocacy Organization Can Attract More Followers and Fans

E.Politics.com compiled a list of 11 advocacy organizations that “get it” when it comes to online advocacy. These websites effectively spread their message and help them engage potential supporters.

These advocacy organizations understand how to build an excellent website, but they don’t know how to use them to attract potential supporters to their social media properties. Of the 11 sites in the E.Politics list, only 2 feature widgets or links to the social media properties on their landing pages.

If a potential supporter visits your advocacy organization’s website for the first time, they’re most likely not going to sign up for your mailing list or give you money. However, these potential supporters might be interested in learning more about your organization to see if they would like to continue engaging with you (and possibly give you money in the future). Friending or following gives your potential supporters an easy way to stay engaged with your advocacy organization.

If your supporters are choosing to use social media to engage with your advocacy organization, then why would you hide the social media widgets on your website? Your advocacy organization’s website should prominently feature widgets or links to your social media properties. Make it easy for potential supporters to follow or like you - don’t make them hunt for your properties.