10 Ways You Can Support a Cause You Believe In
1. Find Your Cause
If you think about your values long enough, you’ll find something that might need to change in the world for the better. Be it fighting for specific rights, changing local ordinances, or even total systemic reform, there’s often many ways that you can fight for even the most niche interests. It just needs to be found first.
2. Learn the History
Once you’ve got something you want to follow, or even if you’ve been behind it for a long time, it’s good to educate yourself on the history behind what you’re fighting for. Knowing what changes have been made in the right direction, or what changes have been made to stop progress will help fuel the future of the movement and give you more solid ground to stand on. While many movements will have specific books or readings that pertain to their history, the search can start by looking at research data from sources like the Pew Research Center, or read online news from sources like the New York Times or BBC, to get an idea of what’s current. From there, you can reach out to people in the movement – professors in the articles or people speaking on behalf of groups – to learn more about its philosophy and origins.
3. Spread Awareness Using Social Media
Social media is a fantastic way to get the word out on things happening: protests, petitions, fundraisers, community events, and more depend on people spreading information as far as possible. It’s also a great way to amplify prominent voices – especially if you agree with what they have to say. However, don’t blindly post about causes without understanding fully what they’re about, as it can be counterproductive to the movement.
4. Attend or Organize a Protest
Get the masks ready and take some water! If you’re able to organize or attend a protest, you’ll contribute to the public display of your beliefs and even give them more credibility. The bigger the crowd, the more people will pay attention.
5. Sign Petitions
If you can’t physically show up for a cause, you can always sign and spread petitions so that there’s a hard copy of the collective voices asking for change. They’re often delivered to politicians or important figures and give a tangible number of people who want to see an action happen.
6. Educate Others
Once you yourself have invested enough time into what you believe, it’s good to keep other people just as educated. Something as simple as a post or twitter thread full of resources, or as complicated as creating and following a lesson plan that includes assigned readings can be helpful to add more people behind the movement.
7. Get people involved
Spreading awareness of events or petitions is one thing, but convincing other people to join can prove to be difficult. Start with friends and even family members by creating a space where they can learn and come to you for help with understanding, but then ask them to do the same with their peers.
8. Write to politicians in charge
Government can be slow to change, but pressuring those in power is always one of the best ways you can get things done. Using emails, letters, petitions, or even all three can force them into paying attention to what you want them to hear. Their stances as officials can be an open door for constituents to push for change, and their actions can (and probably will) affect their futures as leaders.
9. Be active in your community
As fun as it is to be a homebody, it’s not always enough to only work from the sidelines. If there are community events like town halls or free concerts, you can wear your best cause-related t-shirt and pass out handbills to people or speak to your local leaders directly. You can join or even create a specialized organization so that you can have a local group of support for your cause that can come together when possible.
10. Be supportive however possible
If you have the means to, you can consider donating to fundraisers that align with your cause. If there’s a protest going on, you can be on the ground and provide masks, waters, snacks, or even medical assistance to your fellow activists. One way Austinites have recently shown support was by donating to a GoFundMe seeking Justice for Mike Ramos, and signing a petition that accompanied it as well.
