Procession for the Future Launches March 2,3,4 in Portland, OR   
By Backbone Team
 

02/07/2008

Marches Forth! in Portland on Tuesday, March 4th
Related Workshops and Events March 2, 3, & 4.

The Backbone Campaign and our movement partners present the Procession for the Future, a creative organizing tool to inspire, educate and train youth and concerned citizens to be more effective activists in this crucial election year AND beyond.

The Procession for the Future is a touring parade, using high production value art and spectacle to animate our aspirations and deliver a compelling progressive vision for the country. Following each Procession, these festival art pieces will transform into a theme park for education and activist training.

Students and community members drawn by the creative imagery will be guided by progressive pixies rainbow of policy stations collecting a bird-dogging platform to hold candidates accountable to progressive priorities. Following this trip across the policy spectrum participants will have the opportunity to attend free trainings on the most exciting tactics used by some of the nation's leading activist organizations.

It won't be the same without YOU. Build a noise-maker, learn a rhythm, animate an inflatable puppet, hear great speakers, March Forth! on March 4th in the Procession for the Future, learn new tactics and meet others doing great work in your community.

Below is the overall schedule and list of imagery we'll have for the Procession, followed by the trainings we have arrangements to bring so far. You can download a draft poster here or click on the image to the right.

Please contact Linda Wiener, lindaw@backbonecampaign.org or
Brad Vehafric, vehafric@pdx.edu to get involved or endorse.

See you soon (March 2, 3 & 4)

March Forth!

Bill Moyer
Backbone Campaign

PS - Yes we know the wonderful band March Fourth, this is not directly related. That said, we highly encourage you to attend their show on each of the nights above. See their website.



Detailed Schedule:

March 2, 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM, Art Workshop
Art for Social Change Workshop & Parade Rehearsal
Location: PSU - Smith Memorial Student Union Building room 294 and 296.

 March 3, 7:00 PM, Panel Discussion
We the People - Building a Movement for the Future We Want, Featuring: Antonia Juhasz, Rev. Lennox Yearwood, David Cobb and more.
Location: PSU - Smith Memorial Student Union Building room 228.

March 4, 11:00 AM - Evening, MARCH FORTH!
Parade, Theme Park, Activist Trainings
  • 11 AM Meet at parade staging area in Pioneer Square Park
  • 12 Noon Procession for the Future launches on 1 mile parade through Downtown Portland arriving at PSU at 1 PM
  • 1-1:30 Rev. Yearwood and others address the crowd. Ring Master orients participants & intros theme Park Guides.
  • 1:30-2:45 Activist Theme Park and Music
  • 3:00-4:30 Training Session #1 Bird-dogging by Ruckus Society, Corporate Campaigning by Corporate Accountability in the Smith Memorial Student Union Building
  • 4:45-6:15 Training Session #2 NVDA 101 - by Ruckus Society, Freeway Bannering Building by Backbone Campaign in the Smith Memorial Student Union Building
These are the images we will bring to Portland:
  1. Giant Preamble - Election Integrity and Democracy
  2. Lady Liberty - Immigrant Rights
  3. Inflatable Doctor - Universal Healthcare
  4. Sun & Windmills - Renewable Energy
  5. Polar Bear, Bees, Frogs - Climate Stabilization & Ecological Diversity
  6. Fair Trade Farmers - Fair Trade
  7. Peace Crane - Nuclear Disarmament
  8. 11' Earth Globe - Universal Human Rights
  9. Penta-Gone - Dismantling the Military Industrial
  10. Chain Gang - Truth & Accountability
  11. Think Outside the Bottle - Water for All
  12. Veggie Mama -Sustainable Agriculture
These are the issue areas where we are looking for imagery and will at the very least have beautiful banners:
  • Books Not Bars - Ending the Prison Industrial Complex & Criminalization of Poverty
  • Dismantling Racism/Oppression
  • Universal Access To Education
  • Housing & Transportation as a Human Right
  • Lady Justice for equal Justice for All
  • Election Integrity and Democracy could have other images in future.

Art & Sound for Social Change Sunday, March 2, 11AM- 4PM
Presented by Puppet Farm Arts of Minneapolis and the Backbone Campaign
This workshop will focus on the use of spectacle imagery to communicate a message and attract earned media. We will demonstrate a variety of building techniques from inflatables, to backpack puppets, and more. During the music for demonstrations we'll teach multi-part rhythms, and instrument building. This will end with a rehearsal for manipulating the many icons to be deployed on March 4th.

Bird-Dogging Candidates - Tuesday, March 4, 3:00-4:30, Activist Training section #1
Presented by Ruckus Society
Bird-Dogging is a key tactic to pressure elected officials into taking more progressive stances on the issues we care about -- and into taking those stances publicly, so that they can be held accountable. Bird-dogging is always an effective tactic, but becoming increasingly effective during campaign season, and especially during primary campaigns when candidates are particularly concerned about taking the right positions.

Non-Violent Direct Action Training - Tuesday, March 4, 4:45-6:15, Activist Training section #2
Presented by Ruckus Society (From the description of the workshop at the US Social Forum)
This training provides an interactive introduction to Nonviolent Direct Action and Civil Disobedience. Participants identify the benefits of using NVDA, explore what makes an action effective, and clarify their personal beliefs about what nonviolence means. This workshop will help groups prepare for an upcoming action. It'll start by looking closely at the action scenario, making sure the group has solid plans for direct action roles, decision-making processes, safety, and messaging. After assessing the action, the group uses role-plays to practice de-escalation skills and street tactics.

Corporate Campaigning: Challenging Corporate Abuse & Limiting Corporate Power - Tuesday, March 4, 3:00-4:30, Activist Training section #1
Presented by Corporate Accountability
History and tactics of corporate campaigning. (more description later)

Freeway Bannering - Tuesday, March 4, 4:45-6:15, Activist Training section #2
Presented by the Backbone Campaign
Build a giant, changeable, reusable banner for safely and legally getting your message out at overpasses. Materials provided, donations accepted. (more description later). See this page for example.