Activism is about achieving results. If you are going to spend your valuable time being an activist, you should utilize a strategy that is effective in producing results. A single activist can achieve results by using a procedure that is effective.

There is more to being an effective activist than being right. Achieving results involves:

Some people think that activism consists of picketing, protesting and writing letters. Those things are helpful if they are done to demonstrate that there is public support for the solution being proposed by the activist and to put public pressure on the decision maker to resolve the problem in the manner proposed by the activist. However, if those things are done in the absence of the effective activism described above, they do little more than make you feel better. In other words, picketing, protesting and letter writing in the absence of effective activism is just feel-good therapy.

When addressing a state/church separation issue, first determine whether the situation is a legitimate state/church separation violation. The Supreme Court of the United States set forth a three-part test in 1971 in deciding the case of Lemon v. Kurtzman, 403 US 602 (1971). This test is commonly referred to as the "Lemon Test." In order for an action by government to be constitutional with respect to state/church separation, the Supreme Court held that the action by government:

In addition, many state constitutions are even clearer and have more specific guidelines. You can view many of those provisions here: State Constitutions (bottom of this page)

Not every instance of religion in a government setting is unconstitutional. As an example, if a public square is used throughout the year for expressive activity, the government generally cannot exclude speech by private parties from the public square solely on the basis that the speech has a religious content, so long as it is made clear that the religious speech is an expression of a private party and not that of the government.

The most important parts of being an activist is being observant and being willing to do something about it when you come across an issue. As an activist, you are not expected to be a legal expert. When you come across a state/church separation issue that seems to be improper, there are plenty of people out there who have the experience to advise you as to whether the issue is a genuine problem and to consult with you on strategies for successfully challenging the impropriety. Doing research on cases pertaining to your situation takes a lot of time. Don’t make this a major research project. You don’t have to do all the work yourself. Contact people in your state or U.S. District who know what the issues are and where the line of separation is drawn in your area. It is important to contact these experts because it may be necessary to act quickly. In time you will develop enough experience to determine much more quickly if there is a violation and later why it is.

Here are some resources that you can check with to get a variety of perspectives on whether and how to address a state/church separation issue:

After you determine there is a violation, you need to determine who the decision maker was that is responsible for implementing it. Do not contact them by letter, email or fax because it will be completely ignored. This is what makes some activist groups ineffective. Always confront the decision maker personally either by phone, private meeting or public meetings such as School Board and Village Hall meetings. Explain to that person what your issues are. Explain why the situation is a problem and propose a solution. Ask for a timetable to get the problem solved and follow up to make sure it has been resolved. If those tactics don’t work, we then put the spotlight of publicity on the situation by informing the Newspapers, Radio Stations and Television Stations.

After you get really good at resolving these problems, the decision makers will typically offer to resolve the problem immediately, as long as you don’t call in the press. For example, most issues that Rob Sherman addresses these days don’t get publicized because of the reputation he has developed and they act on it to prevent public embarrassment. Rob has been labeled as a media hound by those who are jealous of his success. This is a misunderstanding of the purpose of being noticed. It is a powerful tool of intimidation that gives you the necessary leverage to be successful. Because we are not expert lawyers, we need to use alternative strategies like this. The strength of this strategy is the threat of public humiliation. For example, it could let residents know how their tax dollars are being wasted.

If you have been unsuccessful so far, we now want to bring this issue to everyone’s attention. Prepare to give a speech at your local town hall meeting and provide a written statement. Before the meeting, contact your local media outlets like radio and local newspapers to inform them of the upcoming event and what your issues are. Church/State issues are hot topics these days and it may surprise you to find the media eagerly waiting outside for your comments. Make sure your speech is short and concise because you may have a time limit. Make sure you arrive early to sign up for a slot to speak.

The Church and State topic is very controversial these days and controversy is one key element for what is considered newsworthy. It is crucial for you to develop a professional relationship with reporters. Before you call a reporter, make sure to create your own news release. A news release is similar to a newspaper story, having a strong headline and containing facts and quotes. Write your News Release as professionally as possible because it may be published word for word.

When possible, other background materials can also be helpful. The reporter will most likely ask for this information so have immediate access to a fax machine or be able to send it by e-mail. Be prepared to send this information on demand. Make sure you contact the appropriate reporter for this subject matter and develop a list of reporters. Click here to find local newspapers with a list of reporters for each. You may end up talking to several reporters before one takes the bait. To help prevent the likelihood of having your story ignored, practice your oral presentation. Develop a well focused, 30-second pitch that highlights the essence of your news story. Once you hook them, you can describe in more detail why you are calling and how you can provide them with more information. Of course if you are leaving a message, don’t forget to leave them your phone number. Develop a friendly relationship with reporters. If they write about your story or any other story that you like, call them up and thank them. They will appreciate it, and will be more likely to return your phone call the next time around.

If you are addressing an issue at a town hall meeting in a town which you do not live, you will be ignored. To solve this problem claim that you are there on behalf of a resident who is afraid of publicity because of the potential for social ridicule and harassment at the workplace. This is a very important tactic because it allows you to cover a large area. Once the issue gets publicized, someone else in that community may step forward. Keep your eyes open for any local letters to the editor that expresses support for your position and try to contact these people to ask if they would step forward or if they know anyone that would. The residency issue will most likely come up so be prepared to remind them and the press later that the constitution applies to our entire country and that they do not live on some kind of island somewhere. Also, let the press know that the focus non-residency was an attempt to dodge the real issue.

Next, we want to request a meeting with the mayor or some other elected official depending on the circumstances. Request a meeting in writing with specific times and dates and follow it up with a call to the scheduler or secretary to confirm the meeting. This meeting will give you an opportunity to show good character so be tactful, to the point and show up on time. You don’t want to come across as being militant or a cocky know-it-all. Be humble and keep your composure. Follow this meeting up with a thank you letter and provide any additional information asked for during the meeting. If all fails, keep persisting!

If you are serious about becoming an effective Church/State separation activist, these tactics will allow you to cover a large area, and gain some popularity. Once you become somewhat of a celebrity, people will try to contact you concerning Church/State violations in their area. So make sure you can be reached with ease. After a few successful battles, elected officials will begin to take you seriously. They will also think twice before allowing such violations.

After a while you are going to be hated by a lot of people in your area. This can be depressing to some. To help alleviate this, consider not limiting yourself towards violations that only affect atheists. If you find a violation that prohibits the Free Exercise of religion, tackle that as well. This will help your improve your public image as not being hostile to religion. You could also expand your activism towards a variety of other social issues in your community.

The advantage of being this kind activist is that it is faster. Organizations like American’s United and the ACLU are great but relatively slow. Being members of these organizations would require you to spend a lot of your time on chapter duties and members. To be an activist for AU you would have to organize a chapter in your area or join one that may be halfway across the state. These chapters would have to have a minimum of 5 members, which can be hard to find in some places. These members would have to put in a lot of time managing their chapter and raising funds. Just look at their list of responsibilities > Detailed list <

Another important advantage with this type of activism is that it opens the door to Educational Activism. Once you become popular, chances are good that you will be invited to speak on local radio talk shows, cable television shows and College campuses. Religious groups may also invite you to speak. This is good stuff for community sections of local newspapers, so again get noticed by informing them of the event.