Activism 101
What is Activism?
Taking action to support a cause or bring about social, political, or community change.
What 1960 student-led protest movement began when four Black college students sat at a segregated Woolworth's lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina?
The Greensboro sit-ins, started by the Greensboro Four.
Which amendment protects the right to vote regardless of race?
The 15th Amendment.
What campus organization could students join if they want to advocate for civil rights and social justice?
An organization such as the NAACP, a student advocacy group, or another social justice organization.
In 2013, this movement began to protest against the killing of Black Americans.
Black Lives Matter
What is the difference between an activist and an advocate?
An activist takes action to create change; an advocate publicly supports or argues for a cause. The roles often overlap.
Who co-founded the Black Panther Party with Huey P. Newton in 1966?
Bobby Seale.
What is the name for the process of registering to vote before participating in an election, where registration is required?
What is a town hall meeting used for?
Giving community members a chance to raise concerns, ask questions, and engage with leaders or decision-makers.
In 1968, sanitation workers in Memphis protested low wages and unsafe working conditions. What famous phrase appeared on their protest signs?
“I AM A MAN”
True or false: You must attend a protest to be an activist.
False. Activism can include community organizing, contacting lawmakers, educating others, volunteering, and many other actions.
Who was the Black educator and activist who founded the National Council of Negro Women in 1935?
Mary McLeod Bethune
What is Civil Disobedience?
Civil disobedience involves deliberately breaking a law or refusing to comply with it to challenge injustice, generally nonviolently.
What does it mean to lobby a government official?
Communicating with an official to influence a policy, decision, or proposed action.
Students organize a protest, but decision-makers do not respond. What is another strategy they could try?
Request a meeting, submit a petition, present research, contact local media, or build a broader coalition.
What is grassroots activism?
Bottom-up approach where everyday people in a local community organize and take collective action to influence social, environmental, or political change
Which voting-rights activist famously testified at the 1964 Democratic National Convention about the violence and discrimination Black voters faced in Mississippi?
Fannie Lou Hamer
What documentation is required if you would like to do a planned demonstration in your city?
Permits
What is the difference between a petition and a boycott?
A petition asks decision-makers to take action; a boycott involves refusing to buy from or participate in something to encourage change.
In 2018, students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School helped organize a national gun-violence prevention movement. What was the movement called?
March for Our Lives
What is the difference between raising awareness and creating systemic change?
Raising awareness helps people recognize an issue; systemic change addresses the policies, institutions, or structures that contribute to it.
What is SNCC and where was it started? (Hint, at a NC University)
Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, a major American political organization that drove grassroots activism during the civil rights movement of the 1960s. Shaw University
Can a public university generally punish a student solely because administrators dislike the student's political viewpoint?
No, because public universities are bound by First Amendment protections
Your campus organization wants administrators to know that 300 students support a proposed change. Which tool could help demonstrate that support?v
A petition or student survey with documented results.
Tomorrow at 5:30 pm at North Carolina A&T, what will be having starting at Dudley Hall and to the Civil Rights Museum downtown?
Student organized march to call for the Justice of Nolan Wells