Anyone see the rally er I meant protest. Or was it a rally? I forgot. I wanted to see it but they changed the time and went to support the FNRA.
1,000 members is impressive by Hawaii standards for a grass roots march where it's difficult to get 200 people for a pro-gun rally. Even 500 people would be impressive. There could be things we could learn from them to organize our rallys and drum up support in the future like having planning meetings with the community, unity in the firearms community, social media and word of mouth, getting larger non-gun organizations to back us, etc. To me our firearms community is fragmented, resistant to change, many owners don't show support, marketing and planning is bad, not using our resources, and we don't seek support from the general community. I see the same issues compared to the Hawaiian sovereignty movement. It would be good to get into one of these organizations and see how they operate.
I think think their rally was very successful in that they rounded up a lot of marchers (I didn't think anyone would participate), got good media attention, kept it peaceful, and were unified. I don't support their message but I think there is a lot we can learn from them if we keep an open mind.
Things I got out of it:
1. Unified message with specific demands
2. Getting outside support (Union 5)
3. Small protests held prior to get media coverage and draw interest for the rally
4. Open meetings were held for planning and prep
5. Tied rally to national issues
6. Good iconic route and venue for the march, good audience. (I know Trump hotel isn't actually owned by Trump, but most people don't know that).
7. Diverse backgrounds - women and children, locals and visitors, and politicians which gains credibility
8. Used non-locals to good effect, I think they tend to be more vocal and outgoing.
9. Using social media.
Things we can do for our rallys:
1. Work for unity and get all shooting clubs, stores, and organizations involved openly. Don't alienate pro-gun liberals.
2. Get outside support from the military, domestic violence groups, police union, etc.
3. Get media coverage prior and tie it into the rally. Have a shooting competition, gun show, or FNRA event and talk about gun rights and add a blurb about the upcoming rally.
4. Have open meetings and plan early. Get necessary permits.
5. Tie what we are doing to gun rights movements on the mainland (CCW)
6. Have a good route and venue. I think rally's at the capitol are a bad place since it's focused on the politicians. We have to focus our message out to the community which is more important.
7. We need more women and children involved (air rifle shooters), along with non-locals (military). Also celebrities (Onesai, Kimura, etc) and pro-gun politicians (Sam Kong) to add credibility.
8. Use social media and other marketing to promote the event. I know a lot of the gun community is old or anti-social media, but it's a very effective way to get people involved.
9. Get a journalism or communications major or professional to help with advertising.