RE: Collaboration versus constructive engagement

[Rich Puchalsky <rpuchalsky@att.net>]

Michael Glaab writes:
"If you had troubled yourself to inquire of me you would have been informed that the media were always invited to RAB meetings and that on numerous occassions RAB members directly approached various members of the media right in their offices with information. There was some coverage - but certainly not enough." 

It's good that you approached them -- but did you give them something interesting / photogenic to write about or take pictures of?  The media tend to assume that numbers of people and intensity of protest correlate with public interest.  That means they want to see people picketing, waving signs, and yelling, the more people the better, together with heartfelt individual, nontechnical testimonials from sympathetic-looking people.  I've never yet met a member of the local media who could read and understand a technical document, even if they had time to before their deadline.  There are about 5 people in the national media who can; good luck getting one of those people with a local issue like a Superfund site.

I agree that organizing local communities is easier said than done.  That's why what most groups really need is a good organizer, and why if you are an extrovert it's better to try to develop your organizing rather than research skills.  Sadly, it's harder to help people with that from a distance than it is to help them with research.  But try the Center for Health, Environment and Justice (Web page at http://www.chej.org ).  They are the organizational descendents of the people who organized Love Canal, and they should be willing to help you with advice over the phone, contacts, and written material.

I've never yet seen someone from outside the community who could play the "bad cop" role effectively for a local issue.  That role requires the backing of a number of people who are actually present and involved, otherwise you ignored as a lone troublemaker or an outside agitator.   If you don't have two local groups, then sometimes a national one can be called in to serve as the "good cop", because all that requires at minimum is one person with environmental credentials, to follow the official process.  Just make sure that you get the ground rules straight with the national group first; they should agree to consult with you regularly and only make compromises that you approve of.

Researching and understanding information is necessary so that a local group can understand what is going on, but it is not sufficient to actually win.