<aside> 💡 Campaigns adjust their tactics to engage broader and broader constituencies in actions that become increasingly disruptive and costly to their targets, and that take place at multiple points of intervention and across many public “stages.”

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Our tactics should exert leverage on our target(s). Where we take action — or the “stage” for our tactics — can greatly impact their effectiveness. When brainstorming tactics, consider how the scene, setting, and “stage” will impact them.

Tactics become stale when they target the same leverage point over and over. For example, most local elected officials expect and can withstand protests at the point where local policy is decided on, usually City Hall. But those protests generally only reach a small number of their constituents already “tuned in” to the decision-making process.

And the reverse can be true as well: some campaigners attempt to influence public opinion or the behavior of a specific constituency, such as likely primary voters, by relying entirely on paid advertising (billboards, TV ads, etc.).

The most effective campaigns adjust their tactics to engage broader and broader constituencies in actions that become increasingly disruptive and costly to their targets, and take place at multiple points of intervention and across many public “stages.”

When selecting scenes for our tactics, we can assess different “points of intervention” (from Beautiful Trouble):

• Point of production - Action at the point of production is the foundational insight of the labor movement. Workers organize to target the economic system where it directly affects them and where that system is most vulnerable. Strikes, picket lines, work slowdowns, and factory takeovers are all point-of-production actions.
• Point of destruction - A point of destruction is the place where harm or injustice is actually occurring. It could be the place where resources are being extracted (a strip mine) or the place where the waste from the point of production is dumped (a landfill). By design, the point of destruction is almost always far from public attention — made invisible by remoteness, oppressive assumptions, or ignorance — and tends to disproportionately impact already marginalized communities. Intervention at the point of destruction can halt an act of destruction in the moment, as well as dramatize the larger conflict.
• Point of consumption - The point of consumption is the location of interaction with a product or service that is linked to injustice. Points of consumption actions are the traditional arena of consumer boycotts and storefront demonstrations. The point of consumption is often the most visible point of intervention for actions targeting commercial entities. Points of consumption actions can also be a good way to get the attention of corporations when lawmakers aren’t listening.
• Point of decision - The point of decision, where the power to act on a campaign’s demands rests, is often the most self-evident point of intervention, and therefore one of the most frequently targeted. Whether it’s a slumlord’s office, a corporate boardroom or state capital, or an international summit meeting, many successful campaigns have used some form of action at the point of decision to put pressure on key decision-makers.
• Point of assumption - Assumptions are the building blocks of ideology, the DNA of political belief systems. They operate best when they remain unexamined. If basic assumptions can be exposed as contrary to people’s lived experience or core values, entire belief systems can be shifted. Actions that expose and target widely held assumptions and can therefore be very effective at shifting the discourse around an issue and opening up new political space. Point of assumption actions can take many different forms, such as exposing hypocrisy, reframing the issue, amplifying the voices of previously silenced characters in the story, or offering an alternative vision.
• Point of opportunity - Sometimes calendar events present unique chances to draw attention to your cause. These can be religious or commemorative dates, national holidays, or a scheduled visit or speech by a significant figure (such as a CEO or elected official) to your locale. Identifying a point of opportunity and timing your interventions accordingly could increase visibility and put additional pressure on decision makers.

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