10.4 Institutional tactics and engagement with political systems

Social movements use various institutional tactics to influence policy, including lobbying, litigation, and electoral politics. These strategies aim to shape laws, challenge unfair policies, and gain insider influence within political systems. Movements must carefully balance their goals with the risks of co-optation or backlash.

Engaging with formal political systems presents both challenges and opportunities for movements. While they may face structural barriers or risk losing autonomy, movements can also achieve concrete policy gains and build long-term institutional power through strategic participation in electoral politics and legal advocacy.

Institutional Tactics of Social Movements

Lobbying and Litigation

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• Social movements utilize a range of institutional tactics to shape public policy, including lobbying, litigation, electoral politics, and working with allies within political institutions
• Lobbying involves direct communication with policymakers to advocate for specific policy changes or to block unfavorable legislation
  • Movements may hire professional lobbyists or train members to engage in grassroots lobbying efforts (writing letters, making phone calls, or visiting legislators' offices)
• Litigation involves using the court system to challenge laws or policies that are contrary to the movement's goals
  • This can involve filing lawsuits, submitting amicus briefs, or supporting strategic test cases (Brown v. Board of Education, Roe v. Wade)
  • Litigation can be costly and time-consuming, and court decisions may be limited in scope or subject to reversal by higher courts or legislative action

Electoral Politics and Institutional Allies

• Electoral politics tactics include endorsing candidates, mobilizing voters, running movement leaders for office, and forming political action committees (PACs) to support campaigns financially
  • Movements may seek to influence party platforms, primary elections, or general elections (Tea Party movement, Bernie Sanders campaign)
• Movements may also cultivate relationships with allies within political institutions, such as sympathetic legislators or agency officials, to gain insider information and influence policy from within the system
  • These allies can provide valuable intelligence, sponsor legislation, or help to block unfavorable policies (Congressional Black Caucus, environmental advocates within the EPA)
• The choice of institutional tactics depends on factors such as the movement's resources, goals, political opportunities, and the receptiveness of the political system to the movement's demands

Social Movements and Political Actors

Relationships with Political Parties and Interest Groups

• Social movements often have complex and dynamic relationships with established political parties, interest groups, and other institutional actors
• Movements may align with political parties that share their ideological goals, seeking to influence the party platform or to gain access to party resources and networks
  • However, movements may also challenge parties that are unresponsive to their demands or that actively oppose their goals (Civil Rights movement and the Democratic Party, Labor movement and the Republican Party)
• Interest groups, such as labor unions, professional associations, or advocacy organizations, may be important allies for social movements, providing resources, expertise, and political connections
  • However, movements may also compete with interest groups for influence or may challenge groups that prioritize institutional stability over social change (Occupy Wall Street and labor unions, Black Lives Matter and traditional civil rights organizations)

Interactions with Other Institutional Actors

• Other institutional actors, such as government agencies, courts, or media organizations, may be targets of social movement activism or may be used as vehicles for advancing movement goals
  • Movements may seek to influence agency rule-making, court decisions, or media coverage to shape public opinion and policy outcomes (ACT UP and the FDA, marriage equality movement and the courts, anti-war movement and the media)
• The relationship between movements and institutional actors is shaped by factors such as the alignment of goals, the balance of power, and the degree of institutional openness to movement demands
• Collaboration with institutional actors can provide movements with resources and legitimacy, but it can also lead to co-optation, compromise, or demobilization of the movement's grassroots base
  • Movements must carefully navigate these trade-offs and maintain their independence while working within institutional channels (women's movement and the Equal Rights Amendment, immigrant rights movement and comprehensive immigration reform)

Effectiveness of Institutional Tactics

Assessing the Impact of Lobbying, Litigation, and Electoral Politics

• The effectiveness of institutional tactics in achieving social movement goals varies depending on the specific context and the goals of the movement
• Lobbying can be effective in shaping specific policy proposals or in blocking unfavorable legislation, but it may be less effective in achieving broad systemic change or in overcoming entrenched opposition from powerful interests
  • Successful lobbying efforts often require sustained pressure, coalition-building, and strategic targeting of key decision-makers (gun control movement after Parkland shooting, climate change movement and carbon tax proposals)
• Litigation can be an effective tool for challenging unconstitutional laws or policies and for establishing legal precedents that advance the movement's goals
  • However, litigation can be costly and time-consuming, and court decisions may be limited in scope or subject to reversal by higher courts or legislative action (school desegregation cases, abortion rights litigation)
• Electoral politics can be effective in placing movement allies in positions of power and in shaping the political agenda, but it can also lead to compromise and moderation of movement goals in the pursuit of electoral success
  • Movements must balance the need for pragmatic coalition-building with the desire to maintain ideological purity and grassroots enthusiasm (Green Party, Democratic Socialists of America)

Measuring Success and Adapting Strategies

• The effectiveness of institutional tactics may also depend on the movement's ability to mobilize public support, generate media attention, and maintain pressure on political decision-makers
  • Movements may need to employ a range of tactics and adapt their strategies over time in response to changing political opportunities and challenges (Black Lives Matter shifting from street protests to policy advocacy, #MeToo movement moving from social media to legislative action)
• The ultimate success of institutional tactics may be measured not only by the achievement of specific policy goals but also by the ability to shift public opinion, build movement infrastructure, and create a more favorable political environment for future activism
  • Movements may need to take a long-term perspective and invest in leadership development, grassroots organizing, and narrative change alongside more immediate policy objectives (marriage equality movement building cultural acceptance, immigrant rights movement shifting public attitudes)

Engaging Formal Political Systems

Challenges of Co-Optation and Backlash

• Engaging with formal political systems presents both challenges and opportunities for social movements
• One challenge is the risk of co-optation, as movements may be pressured to moderate their goals or tactics in exchange for political access or influence
  • This can lead to a loss of movement autonomy and a weakening of the movement's ability to challenge the status quo (labor movement and the Democratic Party, environmental movement and cap-and-trade policies)
• Another challenge is the potential for backlash or repression from political elites or countermovements that oppose the movement's goals
  • Engaging with the political system can make movements more visible and vulnerable to attack (civil rights movement and white supremacist violence, abortion rights movement and anti-abortion terrorism)

Structural Barriers and Opportunities for Influence

• Formal political systems may also have structural barriers that limit the ability of movements to influence policy, such as the role of money in politics, the influence of powerful interest groups, or the separation of powers between branches of government
  • Movements may need to develop sophisticated strategies to navigate these barriers and build power within the system (campaign finance reform movement, voting rights movement)
• However, engaging with formal political systems can also provide opportunities for movements to achieve concrete policy gains and to build institutional power over time
• Participating in electoral politics can help movements to shape the political agenda, to build alliances with other political actors, and to gain access to decision-making processes
  • Movements may need to balance the desire for ideological purity with the need for pragmatic coalition-building (Tea Party movement and Republican Party, progressive movement and Democratic Party)
• Engaging with the legal system can provide opportunities to challenge unjust laws and policies and to establish legal protections for marginalized groups
  • Movements may need to develop long-term litigation strategies and build alliances with legal advocacy organizations (marriage equality movement and Lambda Legal, disability rights movement and the ACLU)
• Building relationships with allies within political institutions can provide movements with insider knowledge and influence and can help to create a more favorable political environment for future activism
  • Movements may need to cultivate relationships with sympathetic legislators, agency officials, or other institutional actors (AIDS activist movement and Anthony Fauci, criminal justice reform movement and "progressive prosecutors")
• Ultimately, the decision to engage with formal political systems requires a strategic assessment of the potential risks and benefits, as well as a clear understanding of the movement's goals and principles
  • Movements must carefully navigate the trade-offs between institutional access and grassroots autonomy, between short-term policy gains and long-term social change (Dreamers movement and DACA, Fight for $15 and minimum wage legislation)