Benefits And Risks Of Protest

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Protesting is an important civil right and a good way to increase awareness and gain support for important issues. Ideally, protesting can influence key decision-makers such as people in government or organisations. Protesting can take a variety of forms including rallies, petitions and boycotts. Benefits and risks of a protest Once you have set up your campaign, done your research and contacted decision-makers, councillors and political representatives, you may want to consider organising a protest. A protest can strengthen your campaign, attract press coverage and raise funds. The event needn't be confrontational, and can help open dialogue between your campaign and anyone opposing it. But you should think carefully too. It may not be the right way to make your point or to achieve what you want, and you may put people off. Common Purpose, an organisation promoting socially responsible leadership, has a list of pros and cons of protests. Benefits l Public speakers and meetings can provide a high level of debate l A good speaker at an event can engage drifting support l Protests are good opportunities to hand out leaflets and engage new support l Protest events can bring media coverage of your campaign l A sizeable march demonstrates strength of feeling l Large numbers are not needed to make stunts and vigils effective l A vigil can be held anywhere, including outside the door of your target Risks l You might attract unwanted troublemakers seeking a forum l If the weather is bad, people may not turn up l If you are picketing an organisation's headquarters there may be strong opposition l If you have poor turnout, you may demonstrate that you only have limited support for your aims l You may need police permission and they might not oblige l If you organise a noisy
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