Add your action to our website! It’s easy to do and we’ll make sure our followers get to hear about it. Creating and linking to a Facebook event is a really good move as it will give you an idea of how many people to expect as well as free publicity as people see their friends signing up. Your action will then appear on our Uncut Action Map!
Spread the word
Some ideas for getting others involved:
- Check out the map and get in touch with others near you
- Tell friends, family, colleagues, the dog and the postman
- Put up posters in public spaces and in sympathetic shops
- Get in touch with as many local groups as you can: trade unions, sympathetic political party groups, anti-cuts groups, student unions, local campaigning groups… you never who might want to get involved
- Set up a Twitter account and tweet, tweet, tweet using the #ukuncut hashtag
- Email any lists you might subscribe to
Call the local press
Some actions have achieved amazing press coverage: Cardiff Uncut got on the front page of their local rag twice. This gives you an great opportunity to talk about the issues and it will also help to build your local group. Several days before an action call up your local paper and radio station: tell them what you are doing, make a good pitch and sell your action. Try and get them to come down on the day. Take photos which you can give them. If you need any help do email – there are people with experience to offer advice and we can help you find press phone numbers. A national protest movement in a local town can be big news!
Get props
You’ll probably want to take some flyers, some posters or placards and a banner. Letters to workers explaining that they are not the target of the action can also be effective.
Read up on your target. Why are you targeting them in particular? There are likely to be a lot of curious members of the public milling around – it’s important you’re able to answer their questions. At first they might feel you’re disrupting their shopping but we’ve had a great response from the public once they know what we’re doing and why.
Know your rights
Although the vast majority of UK Uncut actions pass off without incident, it’s still worth knowing your legal rights. The Activists’ Legal Project have a model ‘bust card’ that you might want to print and distribute with the number of a good local solicitor.
The Activists’ Legal Project and the Green & Black Cross offer further legal briefings and resources.
Turn up!
Be brave – even the smallest protests can have a big effect if they’re done right. You’ll meet some new people, get a lot of kind words from passers-by and hopefully have a great time. Most importantly, you can know you’ve played your part in the fight against the cuts.
Try to be inclusive and let everyone have a say in how the day progresses – Seeds For Change has advice on consensus decision-making which many groups have found useful.
Report back
From the day of your action, you can attach photo galleries and videos and write reports of your action on it’s page on this website.