Thinking more about the Tulsa/TikTok thing...

I don’t have my copy of Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals handy (it’s in the office. The office is closed), but it’s pretty spectacular how many boxes this checks in his list of what makes for a good tactic.

(1/x)

(Paraphrasing, of course)
-A good tactic stays within your comfort zone, while going outside your target’s comfort zone.

-Ridicule can be an activist’s most powerful weapon.

-A tactic that drags on too long becomes a drag.

(2/x)

-a good tactic threatens your target’s actual source of power.

-a good tactic should be fun for the people engaging in it.

-A good tactic should build your capacity for future actions.

-a good tactic should leave your targets and opponents unsure of what you might do next.

All that being said, though...
(4/x)

When I teach my class on this stuff, the biggest takeaway in week one is that a tactics are moments, not monuments. Power comes from long movements & campaigns for justice.

This was a brilliant tactic, and we should applaud it/study it/feel glee.

But it’s also just one moment.

So spare me the hot takes that are tut-tutting the unintended consequences, but also the hot takes that declare “social media is good for democracy again!” or “this is the end of the Trump campaign!”
(6/x)

It was an awesome tactic.

It’s gonna be a long, horrendous slog until November.

What’s next?
(Fin)