Over the past weekend I received notices of multiple new Meetup groups focused on Resist. I did a search within a radius of 50 miles from Boston and came up with 21 different groups with a total of about 1500 members. Plus one Indivisible Meetup with 216 menbers.
In contrast, there is one Tea Party Meetup with 672 members
Here are the cities and towns with Resist Meetup groups:
Quincy
Worcester
Plymouth
Somerville
Jamaica Plain
Boston
Salem
Brighton
Cambridge
Brookline
Roslindale
Allston
Medford
Waltham
Watertown
Arlington
Malden
Waltham
Lowell
Framingham
Beverly
Please share widely!
Looks like the classic problem. I only looked at couple of those near me. Only to see they aren’t really anything nor really local. They are created by folks in NYC – one has no events and the other lists just the March for Science in April as an event.
There’s always a tendency to create tons of new groups rather which diffuse things all over the place or for someone to create a bunch of things all over but they have no connection to the places they are creating them for so they appear on paper but tend to disappear.
I think I’ll reach out to the see if I can actual do something with my local one so it has some connection locally more and maybe organize and actual event/discussion based in the community.
I took a moment to look at the members in my local Boston neighborhood group. I’m always amazed/bemused at how many people sign up for things like this who don’t even live near there and clearly aren’t going to ever go/be involved. (let alone the percentage that look to be fake accounts/potential bots….)
Hazards of online group formation…
As you point out:
I keep asking myself why these people do not contact their local town Democratic Committee?
I’m not blaming them for their ignorance. I am wondering why our state committee or town committees, or national committee is not trying to be the tip of the spear on this?
Sometimes in my more cynical moments I suspect doing it this way becomes resume fluffing for some younger activists.
Reaching out to actual groups that are in place in local areas not resume sexy. Saying in a campaign you created a new network of groups – even if they actually do nothing and disappear promptly looks way better on the resume.
On the reaching out note, in general some of it might be perception as well. Like most folks the first thing you would do is look at the web presence. I can’t speak to all the Democratic Parties by I will say the Mass Dems’ website could use a little re-org and focus on letting people know ways to actually be involved. This is not to pick on them but let’s just do a quick comparison to another one.
Mass Dems site how to join, get involved, etc. not remotely prominent. And I know it is just alphabetical by the way the interests and values are set up – but the first blurb is business and the first line is “Massachusetts Democrats understand that we are the pro-business party…” Which by the way if you do on line searches that line is the first real descriptor that appears in search links.
I’m not criticizing the value of business but it definitely creates a certain impression. There really isn’t anything on the main page in the body that encourages or seems to welcome involvement – other than a big contribute button at the bottom. It definitely creates an impression of just a fund raising, top down group and not one you’d actually could be involved with. Mind you, I’m not saying this is the only reality – but it sure the heck is the image in the page.
For contrast I went with the Virginia Dems site since I grew up there when I was young. One of the first things you see there is join/sign up. Which is also the last you see on the bottom. Instead of the first blurb on issues being something specific to just one group that might be more off-putting to everyone else. They have a more general statement: “The Democratic Party of Virginia is united in its efforts to elect Democratic leaders of character, integrity, ability, vision, and commitment to delivering results for Virginians.” Very generic, mind you, but nothing negative.
What’s more interesting to me is while yes there are contribute now links at top and bottom, they are are last on each of their menu bars. The first is in each is “Get Involved” which links to a sign up form which not only lists the standard sign up stuff and volunteer stuff but affinities/groups of interest (note that Business Owners is there but not given extra prominence partly because of the way they name the groups alphabetically.)
More interesting to me is that yes they have a link to local (district/etc.) groups just like the MA one – they have a under the Your Party menu a page about affinity style groups with a statement encouraging involvement and each group has chair, e-mail and often webpage, social media links and nice blurb. And to my eye they cover a lot of outstanding groups and ways to connect folks to something. It’s well worth scrolling through IMO.
I don’t know if in reality they operate any better or worse – but I do know that looking at the later I’d definitely get the sense of being more welcome, having ways to connect, etc.
Admittedly, just one factor, and my own insane .02 perhaps but nonetheless…
On one level you of course join the party by registering to vote with that party designation. As for joining the official committees there are official procedures for those that involve more than just signing up. That said, the current website does seem to have much of what you mention right across the top of the front webpage. There is a Your Party tab with subtabs for contact info for your local state committee members and town chairs. There is a Get Local tab with subtabs for events, registration, and email updates. There are Media and Take Action tabs for you to help spread the word. Right now there is also a caucus tab where you can find yours, some of which have already happened, but plenty more still to come. Given that these tabs are not only at the top of the front page, but stay at the top as you navigate the site I’m not sure how much more prominent they can be.
It may be easy for you to figure out how to use the site, but I think outsider input on how accessible joining these bodies are is refreshing and needed right now.
Maybe it’s the teacher in me, but there is only so much hand-holding and spoon-feeding I can deal with. Just take a minute or two to play with the links if you are that interested. If you are looking for a big “JOIN” link I would actually be concerned that could be misleading.
started by people in Granby. I was amazed at the turnout. One of my friends hosted it at her house.
You can find it on Facebook by searching “WmassIndivisible.”
South Shore Progressives, Represent US, Voter Choice MA, PM Chapters in Andover, Newton and the DFA Statewide Director. Happy to get folks in touch-just email me.
Positive governance while accurate has no curb appeal.
n/t
How about “Democrats”…….or “Working Class Democrats”…
… “Telling the Truth.”
Seriously.
“If the Republicans will stop telling lies about the Democrats, we will stop telling the truth about them”
…back in your BrooklineTom days on Soapblox?