http://www.englin.net/2009/11/three-things-maximize-your-coalition%e2%80%99s-efforts/#utm_source=feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=feed Fri, 02 Jul 2010 18:42:40 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8 hourly 1 http://www.englin.net/2009/11/three-things-maximize-your-coalition%e2%80%99s-efforts/comment-page-1/#comment-619 Margot Friedman Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:29:27 +0000 http://www.englin.net/?p=1022#comment-619 The most successful coalition I ever participated in was the Title IX Coalition that brought the Bush Administration to its knees when it tried to dismantle women and girls' rights to participate equally in sports. It was perhaps the only 100% victory for the progressive side during the Bush years. I've often thought about why that coalition was so successful and others fail so miserably. (The Title IX Coalition was written up in a Packard study of best practices in communications.) This may not be a PC thing to say, but I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that everyone, with a few exceptions, was female. I don't recall anyone bringing ego into the room. Everyone was genuinely there to help other women and girls keep their educational opportunities. The other thing, as this article suggests, was that each organization brought a unique skill to the table. For example, the National Women's Law Center brought legal and policy expertise. AAUW had a great field operation. And the Women's Sports Foundation provided excellent leadership, as well as special skills such as access to celebrities for Hill events like Geena Davis and Holly Hunter. As this article suggests, everyone in the coalition readily deferred to the special skills of everyone else. There was incredible respect and no backstabbing. I don't know how you create that if the people don't feel it themselves. The most successful coalition I ever participated in was the Title IX Coalition that brought the Bush Administration to its knees when it tried to dismantle women and girls’ rights to participate equally in sports. It was perhaps the only 100% victory for the progressive side during the Bush years. I’ve often thought about why that coalition was so successful and others fail so miserably. (The Title IX Coalition was written up in a Packard study of best practices in communications.) This may not be a PC thing to say, but I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that everyone, with a few exceptions, was female. I don’t recall anyone bringing ego into the room. Everyone was genuinely there to help other women and girls keep their educational opportunities. The other thing, as this article suggests, was that each organization brought a unique skill to the table. For example, the National Women’s Law Center brought legal and policy expertise. AAUW had a great field operation. And the Women’s Sports Foundation provided excellent leadership, as well as special skills such as access to celebrities for Hill events like Geena Davis and Holly Hunter. As this article suggests, everyone in the coalition readily deferred to the special skills of everyone else. There was incredible respect and no backstabbing. I don’t know how you create that if the people don’t feel it themselves.

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