On Inclusive Campaign Literature

In my previous post I talked briefly about a poll I undertook on LinkedIn. While working on a local campaign here in Peterborough (UK), I observed how inaccessible some of the canvassing material seemed to be. The poll asked if campaign literature should be made more inclusive by making them available in alternative formats such as braille for the visually and signed political broadcasts, for the hearing impaired. The results were overwhelmingly favourable with 77% of voters saying that they thought this was an "important and interesting" idea.

I understand that braille can be expensive so I am exploring more imaginative, affordable avenues such as podcasts: If the visually impaired are unable to see,  they may be able to listen to what political candidates have to say instead. You might be interested in having a look at the comments made at the bottom of the graph http://polls.linkedin.com/p/78690/jiekb. Take particular note of the arguments made by Jeffrey Smith on the one hand and myself on the other. Perhaps you have something to add to this debate?

That same week I had also put out a poll which asked whether in multicultural societies, various social and protected groups should have campaign literature made specifically for them. My argument is intended to be neither patronising, negative or discriminatory. As a man who has himself been profoundly deaf since a young age, I am aware we have different issues and interests which may not be able to be sufficiently addressed by 'one size fits all' round robin literature. In Peterborough, we have a growing Asian community. Should they be able to have their own say? There were race riots in the City just the other week. Should we not be reassuring them by telling them how we will sort it out? Should they not be included in the debate about solutions? What about the disabled. Are we not the ones who know for sure how accessible a local shop, public building or transport is? I'd be interested to hear your thoughts about this controversial topic.

Take a look at the following link  http://polls.linkedin.com/p/78382/xxdwo.

Views are definitively polarised in the opposite direction to my poll on alternative formats. Out of over 100 LinkedIn members  83% voted 'No'. Someone from a political think tank commented how this approach may lead to hypocrisy with political parties making different, contradictory pledges to various groups. The same person added that while benefitting from a brief bump in public opinion, the media and the opposition will soon jump all over you for the reasons just laid out. I accept that this is a risk which should be taken into consideration. Yet this need not be the end of the argument.

Once again using immigration, a subject of great divisiveness in the UK, this conflict may be avoided by keeping the politics of race out of the question - reach out to immigrants - say we embrace difference; we embrace diversity; that at the same time we are united by a common Britishness. Applied correctly, immingration makes us richer as a nation. To natural born citizens, we don't then have to say we're against immigration. Make it clear that we do not condone neither will we tolerate, racism, but say that it must be carefully managed for reasons of cost. We're a small island with limited resources. Walking around the nearby town of Boston, I remember observing immigrants selling the Big Issue, a magazine sold by the homeless on street corners. Is this really  the best thing for either us or them? Is it sensible policy to import unemployment at extra cost to the state?

One thing is important - subjects like this need to be talked about - we shouldn't avoid these questions because they're controversial or hard so lets talk...

Equality, Inclusion and Other Business

Before I begin this week’s blog, I must apologise for not publishing an installment for the past few weeks. Regretfully my trusted laptop for the last year sadly passed away. I have therefore had to wait for my new netbook before resuming my writing. The good news is that I’m back, so without further adieu, let’s begin.

I have been at Stewart Jackson Campaign HQ for six weeks now and I must say that I am really starting to feel at home there. I am grateful for the trust that they have shown in me and only hope that I can continue to serve them after the election. There have been whisperings in back corners that this will be sooner than previously thought. Our economic recovery remains a fragile one and political analysts are raising the spectre of an early election before any public backlash against the government can ensue. Yet the Conservatives, who once commanded a 16 point advantage, have seen their lead drop to just 5 points and I predict that the government will continue to wait and see if this drops any further.

We have continued to reach out to voters with further campaign literature being sent out in the last week – that means plenty of address labels to stick on! I have also, after a long slog, completed inputting the current batch of electoral data.

Finally, I have revised my strategic communications plan, adding further research and some extra ideas, making my graphs look more professional and things like that. I think it’s a lot stronger as a result. Speaking of my communications plan, I published a poll this week which asked

“Should campaign literature be made more inclusive with the use of braille and sign language on political broadcast?”

Go to the link http://polls.linkedin.com/p/78690/jiekb for more information. It would be very insightful to hear your thoughts.

I was rather surprised by the amount of interest that people took in it, with one professional from Connecticut writing in to say that she thought it was an "interesting and important question" and has posted the link to her Twitter page. It just goes to show how significant the issue of equalities is to people at the moment.

As I was saying before, I really appreciate the efforts that Stewart, Matthew and the team have made for me and I am glad that they are pleased with my work. I rather like the idea of being a Communications Assistant/Online Political Analyst after the election. I’ll discuss this further with them nearer the time – they have enough on their plate at the moment than to worry about little old me. I envisage maintaining a newly revamped website, attending Stewart’s engagements, taking photographs and publishing the stories online. I could monitor social networking sites and articles on Stewart in local newspapers, analysing them and writing responses. Perhaps I could do some research on a particular field i.e. the issue of access and equalities in Peterborough? Sounds like an interesting job for me.

I am currently waiting for the England v Ireland rugby match to start. England have yet to lose in this tournament having beaten both Wales and Italy in recent weeks and are on course for a Grand Slam win… One thing is for sure, Ireland will be tough and England, being England, won’t make it easy for themselves or their viewers…

I'm already biting my nails

Meeting Stewart Jackson MP

Things continued to gather pace this week.. made slightly easier by the cups of tea and plate of biscuits which regularly turn up on my desk. I've begun working at Stewart Jackson MPs Campaign Centre five days now rather than the three days I used to. I think the election officially starts in 14 weeks and there is still so much to do. I spent much of my time laying the ground work for what could be a close campaign.. I made ready three boxes of surveys for distribution and have completed the electoral data input that I wanted done this week. Talking of Stewart, I met the man himself today. I shook hands, said 'a pleasure to meet you' and went about my business. A rather pleasant, down to earth man I thought.

So glad its the weekend.. Time to recuperate and catch up on some sleep.. What bliss :-)