ENACT: The Educational Network for Active Civic Transformation

On Advocacy and Democracy

"On Advocacy and Democracy"

by Jay Kaufman ’68, MA ’73, ENACT’s Distinguished Legislative Mentor

Democracy demands engagement. Being informed and struggling with the issues of the day in the public square is every citizen’s civil right and every citizen’s civic responsibility. This is the secret sauce, the fundamental principle at the heart of democracy and democratic governance. We, the people, are the heartbeat of a vital and vibrant democracy. It works best when we engage as advocates for the causes that matter. We are the authors of democracy’s successes as well as its failures.

So, what is effective advocacy? Here are a few thoughts based on my 24 years serving in the Massachusetts House of Representatives, hearing from advocates and lobbyists on issues large and small.

First: you matter.

I was struck – and disappointed – by how few people actually took the time to offer thoughts on the issues of the day. You get points for just showing up.

That said, having good data and making a compelling case are important, but these speak to the mind. If you want to have impact, you need to speak from and to the heart – from your heart and to the heart of the person in front of you.

Whether you’re addressing a legislator, a governor, a president, or a staff member, let them know that you care and why you care. What about the issue you’re addressing is personal? How does it affect you or a family member? What moves you?

Second: a moral compass is good, but don't forget to navigate.

If you are engaging with legislators and other government officials, know that their ethics requires them to make progress, not necessarily embrace your idea of the perfect. In public life, one of the cardinal sins is making the good the enemy of the perfect.

In Steven Spielberg’s brilliant movie “Lincoln,” we see President Lincoln in conversation in the White House cellar with Congressman Thaddeus Stevens. In Tony Kushner’s script, Stevens attacks Lincoln for what he regards as Lincoln’s equivocation on the issue of slavery, accusing him of lacking a moral compass.

I carry a copy of the words Kushner puts in Lincoln’s voice in response:

A compass, I learned when I was surveying, it’ll point you True North from where you’re standing, but it’s got no advice about the swamps and deserts and chasms that you’ll encounter along the way. If in pursuit of your destination, you plunge ahead, heedless of obstacles, and achieve nothing more than to sink in a swamp, what’s the use of knowing True North?

I learned pretty much the same lesson from a modern Congressional bright light, Barney Frank, who served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts from 1981 to 2013. Congressman Frank offered that, if you’re a preacher or an advocate, your job is to stand on the mountaintop, hold to your principles, and speak truth to power. If, on the other hand, you’re in public office, your job is to advance the causes you care about as far as you can. Some progress is better than no progress. But, if all you’re doing is speaking out on the mountaintop and not doing the hard work of making progress, you’re acting unethically.

Unethically. This word struck me when I first heard him say it and strikes me still as both insightful and important. Smart and effective advocacy entails knowing and accepting that the ethics of advocacy and the ethics of governing are related, but not identical.

Third: never underestimate the power of inaction.

Given the deliberative nature of democratic governments, watching the legislature in action is often to see inaction. Sadly, in my 24 years in the legislature, I saw critical questions unaddressed and important actions left untaken. Fixing our schools? What’s the rush? Addressing climate change? No hurry! Amending our tax laws to eliminate, or at least reduce, inequities? Maybe next year.

Advocates engage with issues of importance to them and are often forced to confront that their sense of the importance of an issue isn’t shared in the halls of power. Or at least it isn’t shared enough to overcome the instinct to take it slow, if at all.

Advocating for a bill is the work of many sessions and many years. It is rarely quick. It requires persistence and resilience.

This nation’s founders were used to being confronted by new edicts from London, not knowing what might be coming next. To avoid this, they prayed at the altar of division and deliberation. There were to be debates and compromises, and then a repeat process of debates and compromises, and then yet more debate and compromise. While this layering was a good antidote to the rule of George III, it resulted in a system that lends itself best to inaction, caution, or incremental change. Our system of governance is not set up for quick turns, even when they are needed.

I know of only one instance in which I was party to a giant leap. Equal marriage was unimaginable three decades ago. Yet, starting with a decision of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court and followed by legislative action (first in Massachusetts and then elsewhere), it has become the law of the land within one generation. Arguably the most basic unit of social organization, the family, has dramatic new meaning today, thousands of years of history and all of our cultural traditions notwithstanding.

This is stunning. And it stands alone. Would that climate change, our history of racial prejudice, or the large and threatening gap between the poor and the wealthy could be addressed so well and so rapidly.

Fourth: know the opposition.

While it is necessary, appropriate, and even a sacred calling to honor your ideas, ideals, and convictions, don’t allow loyalty to leave you inattentive to those with very different ideas, values, or perspectives. Know the opposition and know it well.

Know how they feel, what they think, and appreciate that their convictions may be as deep as yours. It is easy to be devoted to your cause and see it as the true way, the only way. Failure to notice that others may not share your ideas or enthusiasm may leave you vulnerable to counter arguments and attacks for which you are unprepared.

There’s an old adage that applies here: keep your friends close and your enemies closer. The advocates and lobbyists I appreciated most during my time as a legislator were those who could – and did – make the case of their opponents, and then show me their weaknesses, or at least provide me with a way to understand that opposition.

Last, but not least: take care.

The work of advocacy and active citizenship is challenging. The forces of opposition, delay, and defeat are weighing on you all the time. Some of your allies will disappoint you. What some call victory you may see as surrender, an unacceptable compromise. It is easy to get disheartened.

You need to be prepared for a sustained effort, and there are two essential keys to your stamina and effectiveness: partners and sanctuary.

Advocacy and citizen engagement are team sports. You need allies to help you make the case and share your conviction. You also need confidantes who will speak to you frankly, offering encouragement and criticism as needed. Allies are with you for the cause. Confidantes are with you for you.

And you need a place to go to think, relax, renew and replenish yourself. This can be taking time to go to a concert, to read a book, to visit a museum, to pray, to play. It matters not what you do but it matters absolutely that you do. The fight can be draining, and you need to recoup and come back strong. You need that, and we all need you in full strength doing your share in this grand experiment we call democracy.

A final thought:

Just over a year from now, on July 4, 2026, we’ll celebrate the 250^th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and the formal launch of our grand experiment in democratic governance. We knew then – and know now – that eternal vigilance is the price we pay for liberty. We were – and still are – in search of a more perfect union. Today, our democracy is under siege. We, and we alone, can save it, perhaps even enhance it. Failure to act is not an option, at least not a good option. There’s too much at stake. It falls to those of us who have studied and understand advocacy to lead us in these uncertain times. Let’s get to it.

Jay Kaufman ’68, MA ’73 serves as ENACT’s Distinguished Legislative Mentor. He is an essayist, writing about public life and leadership in these challenging times. He served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1995 through 2018, and founded Beacon Leadership Collaborative, a non-profit providing leadership education, mentoring, and professional development for those in and aspiring to public life.