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Advocating for change

If you Google the definition of advocacy, you will find something along the lines of the following:

"Public support for or recommendation of a particular cause or policy."

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But good advocacy is more than that. It is a powerful way to get change to happen, and it has particular features that make it effective.

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Structurally, advocacy is more than just "arguing your case." Advocacy also articulates what change needs to happen, and how people can make that change. This is called a "call-to-action," and it will need to be a part of your own advocacy text.

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Advocacy also has a range of language features, some key one's are listed below, and you should definitely include a range of language features in order to successfully build your advocacy text.

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In order to be successful, you probably need to choose something where a debate on the topic has occurred. This will make your information gathering a lot easier. 

Below are some issues and policies that you might explore based on

class conversations:

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  1. Euthanasia - briefly legalised in the Northern Territory, but overturned by the Federal Government, should a person in Australia have the right to choose when they end their life?

  2. The "A Mistake of Fact" law - operating in Queensland, this means if someone is raped, but their rapist was drunk, he or she can use their inebriation as a legal defense against their actions. Is this an appropriate legal precedent?

  3. Climate Change inaction - given that so many comprehensive reports, studies, and the weight of the scientific community are now definitive in their judgment that we may already be past the tipping point in terms of preventing climate change, can industries that contribute to climate change continue to be morally or ethically justified?

  4. Abortion - is this an issue about a woman's right to choose what she does with her body, or is it an issue about saving an unborn babies life? Who has the right to decide?

  5. The Cashless Debit Card Policy - introduced into particular lower socio-economic areas in Australia, this card restricts how people can spend their Centrelink allowance. Does the government have the right to restrict how citizen's spend their money?

  6. Tougher Trespass Laws for Animal Rights activists - the government is proposing new policies to introduce jail terms for animal rights activists who enter farmers properties to expose alleged cruelty to animals? Is this the right move?

  7. Ice/drug laws - is the government's current treatment of the ice epidemic as a criminal matter working? Should it move the consumption of drugs away from the criminal system and into the public health system, which would release significant funding and enable to label this a public health emergency.

  8. Gender as a spectrum- Safe schools, gender neutral toilets, reassignment surgery on Medicare, and more stringent rights for people, (including students), who identify as being on a spectrum. Are we taking enough action in Australia? Are we going too far with gender?

  9. Religion - the government is considering new policies that would make sweeping changes to "religious freedoms" and make it more difficult, and potentially illegal in some cases, to criticize/protest religion. Is this the right move?

  10. Waste - Australians, on a per-capita basis, are both the single-biggest producers of waste, and have the biggest carbon footprint in the world. Is this something that needs to change?

  11. Cost of living - Petrol prices, stagnant wage growth, government allowances that are below the poverty-line, rising cost of food, public transport, healthcare. Are we in an emerging crisis where people can no longer get a "fair go" in Australia?

  12. One Nation - What do One Nation represent? Are they a legitimate party reflecting everyday Australians attitudes, or are they a dangerous by-product of a rising tide of Far-Right extremism around the world?

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Other issues that would make great advocacy topics:

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Refugees in Australia; Free education; Homelessness; Donald Trump; Nuclear power as a renewable energy; Mental health in Australia; Abolishing schools; Veganism; Male suicide; Feminism

Getting started:

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Do enough research so that you know the arguments for and against.

 

Remember that advocacy requires you to take a strong position and advocate for change. Research is only useful as far as it makes you seem more credible and persuasive.

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Things in the research that can make your argument more

credible and persuasive:

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  1. Powerful quotes from experts/celebrities/influential figures

  2. Key facts that can help you articulate your issue effectively

  3. Data/statistics (remember you can be VERY selective in the data you choose, and how you represent that data)

  4. Arguments people have made that support your position

  5. Arguments opponents have made that are oppositional to your position (remember you are looking to poke holes in that argument if possible)

  6. Proposed solutions to the problem - to help you construct your own "call-to-action."

Language techniques

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Remember! This is an English assignment, and as such we are looking for specific techniques:

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  1. The use of inclusive language: "We all... Our goal... We must..."

  2. Powerful adjectives that are used judiciously: "The impact of this will be devastating... We cannot allow this horrendously unfair law..."

  3. The use of meaningful repetition for effect: "It is bad for you, it is bad for your family, it is bad for Australia."

  4. The use of expert opinion and/or quotes from influential and/or famous people for effect: "Leonardo DiCaprio says, “As we progress into the 21st century, anyone who considers themselves realists will have to make the environment a top priority. The truth is our planet's alarm is now going off, and it's time to finally wake up and take action. ""

  5. The use of anecdotes, (a short amusing or interesting story about a real incident or person) to endear the audience to your cause: "Sometimes your biggest weakness can become your biggest strength. Take, for example, the story of one 10-year-old boy who decided to study judo despite the fact that he had lost his left arm in a devastating car accident..."

  6. Appeal to emotions by using strongly emotive words and phrases: "I entreat... The situation is hopeless... They are innocent and helpless... The defenseless victims were attacked under the cover of night... The future of every life on this planet is dependant."

  7. Metaphor as a rhetorical way to conjure emotion/imagery. Take this excerpt from Dr. Martin Luther King for example: "One hundred years later the life of the Negro is still badly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later the Negro lives on a lonely island of poverty in the middle of a vast ocean of material poverty."

  8. Statistics & facts: "LGBTI young people aged 16 to 27 are five times more likely to commit suicide, and transgender people aged 18 and over are nearly 11 times more likely to commit suicide."

  9. Modality: "Could/should versus must/will." Do you want to plant a seed, or do you want to demand action?

  10. Colloquialisms to reach the "everyday" Australian: "Fair dinkum... Aussie battler... Mate... G'Day..."

  11. Hypotheticals: "Imagine a future where women have lost the right to control their bodies completely..."

  12. Rhetorical questions: "Some day our children and our children's children will look us in eye they and they will ask us, did we do all that we could when we had the chance to deal with this problem and leave them a cleaner, safer and more stable world?"

  13. Overstatement and exaggeration and generalisations: As long as they don't distort the truth in a way that turns your argument into a farce. 

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You can download this list as a checklist, here:

Structure guide & assessment sheet:

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Structure guide:                                     Assessment sheet:

Advocacy Technique checklist

Advocacy speech examples:

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