The Center's carefully honed method of "deep canvassing" delivered the first empirically tested and proven process where a single conversation decreases prejudice in a long-lasting way. When the subject turned to potentially awkward initial encounters with voters, the Leadership Lab staff member Laura Gardiner and the longtime volunteer Nancy Williams (who is transgender) did some front-door role-playing. It likely wasnt because someone berated you. (You can read the full deep canvassing script here on page 47.). They urged voters to talk about anyone they knew who was gay or lesbian and, more important, to speak about their own marriages. Volunteers also encouraged people to talk about anyone they were close to who had an abortion. ", The conversations are short, usually 10 to 20 minutes long. Nancy, it seemed, was a supporter no need to worry about her. Then theres the duration and longevity of the impact. Caitlin Homrich-Knieling, Deep Canvass Coordinator at We the People Michigan in the United States talks about script development and how they come up with script as well as a useful tool called The Cone of Curiosity. They dont say if they are pleased or hurt by the response. For privacy information see the About page. "When we were nonjudgmental and vulnerable with them and when we exchanged our lived experiences about marriage and gay people, that's when we started changing people's minds," he says. A new study finds that it works. He continues to lead on integrating deep canvassing into powerful and leaderful field programs while hiking and shooting hoops in his free time. Since joining Peoples Action, Matthew has been a part of two of the largest deep canvass campaigns ever run. The mans daughter, though, would have none of it: She practically pushed him out of the way to tell Riley they were a 10. Were literally iterating this model every day with a handful of full-time paid organizers working as peers with hundreds of volunteers to figure out whats working, whats not, and what needs to be added, subtracted or changed from our processes. Have A Conversation. Do you have a script? "Canvassers asked people to talk about a time they were treated differently. This family is a 10!, Several of Rileys conversations proved poignant. The canvassers thought the conversations were changing people's minds, but Fleischer says he couldn't know if it was working without independent verification. One such activist is Vivian Topping, who decided, along with other LGBTQ activists and allies, to try deep canvassing in Massachusetts in 2018, when transgender rights were on the ballot. When we see racist behavior, we should call it racist and not be euphemistic by calling it racially charged. Arguably, theres a time and place for calling people out, particularly when it comes to powerful, influential people. Interacting with people different than me was a normal thing, and certainly not undesirable or scary. For instance, Donald Trump won Michigan by 10,000 votes. Eboni Taggart has over 15 years of experience in community-building, she has maximized the leadership skills of community members, teachers, youth, and parents to advocate for transformative systemic change on issues that impact their lives. UC Berkeley, Stanford study finds canvassing conversations reduce PDF Book Club Synopsis