While it is never a good idea to repeat your opponents’ arguments, as this only reinforces them through repetition, it CAN be a good idea to take their arguments or attitudes, and push them to extremes.
Here are some excellent examples of how this can work:
BOOK BURNING PARTY
The “book burning party” campaign exposed the ruthlessness of those who wanted to destroy a library.
ENERGY WASTING DAY
The Energy Wasting Day campaign brings a caricature of what we do and are when we don’t reduce energy consumption. Please note that we feel this campaign indulges in fat-shaming. The fat guy is a symbol of over-consumption in this video, but there might have been better ways to symbolise this.
PENGUIN PROTEST
In Turkey, during the famous Taksim Square protests, instead of covering this mass movement of citizen democracy, CNN Turkey showed a documentary about penguins. Penguins became a surprise symbol for media censorship and the absurdity of some media coverage. People wore penguin masks and referenced penguins on social media to expose the absurdity of the government’s response to protests and the media’s lack of plurality.
TEXAS DILDO PROTEST
In 2016, Texas passed a law allowing students to carry concealed weapons on most areas of campus. Meanwhile, the Texas penal code and the University of Texas’s rulebook say that engaging with any sort of obscene content in public is prohibited and punishable by a fine. Thus, there is a hilarious juxtaposition of inconsistent legal nonsense.
UT student Jessica Jin is organizing based on this inconsistency. Jin is hosting a Facebook event (subtitled #CocksNotGlocks) urging UT students to start strapping dildos on their backpacks in August 2016. As of Monday morning, the event had 3,900 confirmed attendees, 768 maybes, and dozens of trolls insulting the cause.
“The State of Texas has decided that it is not at all obnoxious to allow deadly concealed weapons in classrooms. However, it DOES have strict rules about free sexual expression, to protect your innocence. You would receive a citation for taking a DILDO to class before you would get in trouble for taking a gun to class,” the Facebook event reads. “Heaven forbid the penis.”
A University of Texas students attend a protest against a state law that allows for guns in classrooms at college campuses, in Austin, Texas, U.S. August 24, 2016. At the rally, students at the University of Texas openly displayed sex toys, an act considered illegal under local indecency laws. © REUTERS/Jon Herskovitz TEMPLATE OUT
How could this tactic work for LGBTIQ people?
The first step is to identify your opponent’s logic.
Are they advocating for a world where everybody acts by the same rule? This could lead to a mock campaign that would instruct everyone to wear exactly the same clothes.
Are they fear-mongering that sexual and gender diversity would “confuse people”? Launch a counter-campaign that pretends that they are asking for everyone to keep their genitalia visible in public at all times.
Any other creative idea? Share it on the Creative Campaigners Community on Facebook.
