Can't our marches look more organized?!

The question of “message discipline” at protest marches is something we’ve pondered closely. A consistent message would better demonstrate Progressive solidarity. On the other hand, the emotional investment obtained by creating a personal, individual message is critical to sustaining a movement. In fact, the DeadElephant.ORG campaign was in part conceived as a way to get the benefits of both.

What we offer is a consistent visual symbol - the GOP elephant upturned and dead - with a very broad selection of slogans addressing a wide range of neo-conservative ideals. Having many messages available lends a degree of personalization and surprise. The tone of ironic parody, and the perversion of key neoCon slogans and symbols, is also consistent and has contributed greatly to the “catchiness” of the campaign.

The Right is very effective at message discipline, as that is inherent in conformitism. Think of the success of the yellow “support out troops” ribbons, and the Right’s comfortable use of the American flag in their messages. It would be impossible, we believe, to have such message discipline within the anti-comformist Left. However, we might be able to create “symbol discipline” by showing one consistent omnipresent symbol. Any such symbol - a meme really - would have to arise organically, and will express most directly our Progressive goals. Until the neoconservative movement is utterly discredited, we offer the symbol of the DeadElephant. Please consider it a communal prayer.