Resistance

At Fandom Forward, we focus on resistance actions that connect and bond activists in new ways and help us respond to each challenge with energy, imagination, and - most importantly - love. Here’s some of our campaigns:

DA Fights Back (2018)

Over two years during Fandom Forward’s #NevilleFightsBack campaign, wizard activists have contacted lawmakers, wrote letters, signed petitions, and made phone calls — but we felt like something was missing. Those actions are important — and they can also feel a bit lonely. We realized what Neville really needed to make a difference: friendship, love, and community. He needed Dumbledore’s Army.

#DAFightsBack was our answer to the need for joyful connection and resistance in dark days. We focused on actions that connected and bonded activists in new ways and helped us respond to each challenge with energy, imagination, and — most importantly — love.

Stop the Snatchers: In July 2019, I.C.E. announced major immigration raids in ten U.S. cities: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Houston, Denver, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Baltimore, Chicago and Atlanta. We knew fan activists didn’t want to sit on the sidelines, camping in the Forest of Dean while stories of families being torn apart filter through the radio. So, we took action in the following ways, encouraging fan activists to: 1) Join local immigrant-serving organizations where they live. 2) Read and share this thread from United We Dream with clear actions and resources for undocumented folks and their allies. 3) Attend a Lights for Liberty rally.

At LeakyCon Dallas and LeakyCon Boston, we rolled out a new workshop: Stop the Snatchers, where we brought activists from RAICES, Never Again Action, and the Boston Immigration Justice Accompaniment Network to help fans learn how to take action and join the fight for immigrant rights and safety in their community. Nearly 200 fans attended these hour-long workshops. Get a taste of the magic with the audio recording of our conversation with RAICES.

Hogwarts House-themed actions: In 2019, we also developed four distinct actions aligned with the Hogwarts Houses so that everyone felt encouraged to get involved in immigrant justice. Gryffindors planned and attended protests and submitted letters to the editor, Ravenclaws researched to help us create a database, DA Fights Back Near You. Hufflepuffs then used that database to find and support immigrant-led and immigrant-serving organizations near them.

Neville Fights Back (2016)

December 2016 saw the launch of Neville Fights Back, a movement dedicated to resisting bigotry and hate. This campaign encouraged individuals to stand up and defend what they believed in. From education to immigration, healthcare, and saving library funding, it also encouraged people to stay informed about what was going on in their communities. As a worldwide campaign, it touched a lot of lives. Groups and communities across the globe banded together to form their own Dumbledore’s Armies and take action to protect trans kids in schools. Fandom Forward regularly shared resources and new actions to keep the resistance alive at Hogwarts, such as: volunteering, donations, protests, educating others, and contacting lawmakers.

Net Neutrality: When the FCC called for a vote to slash net neutrality rules, allowing ISPs like Verizon to block apps, slow websites, and charge fees to control what you see you do online, our protection on the Internet was threatened. To combat this risk, Fandom Forward encouraged resistance through protests at Verizon stores across the U.S., contacting Congress and telling them to block the FCC’s vote and save net neutrality, and rally a network of friends, family, and internet users and help them learn why Net Neutrality is so important.

Healthcare: As members of the United States Senate voted in favor of legislation that takes the first steps to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA, also known as “Obamacare”), Fandom Forward helped make voices heard by providing resources to call representative and urge them to protect the program. We also joined the World Health Organization's #ShowYourFace campaign by sharing selfies and actions people in countries around the world to take to fight hepatitis globally. We also encouraged writing Letters to the Editor stating what should be done to make health care accessible to all

Climate Change: When the the U.S. withdrew from the Paris Climate Accord, the first international climate protection act of its kind, we pledged to be like Neville and inspire others to defend the only home we have. We placed bowtruckles with protest signs in our local communities and shared #BowtruckleFacts and launched our Fantastic Beasts Climate Change toolkit to share with friends and learn what changes we can make together to help protect our planet.

#ProtectTransKids: As transgender students continued to face new and old threats, with their rights denied and guidelines meant to protect them blocked or rolled back, Fandom Forward helped communities across the country fight back. We encouraged people to Take it To McGonagall by calling at least one leader in their school community - a teacher, administrator, parent, or student - to ask what their school was doing to protect trans students. We shared resources such as the #I’llgowithyou media kit, and made sure our Mauraders Map of gender neutral and trans-inclusive restrooms stayed updated.

Keep a Friend in the Fight: There’s no one way to thank an activist for everything they do, but we all probably have an idea of how you can brighten the day of the people you know best. Fandom Forward asked fellow activists to pick someone in their life who has been fighting to make a difference and do something to remind them that they are loved, that their work matters, and that through that work, love will win.

Education Action: When the U.S. Senate needed to vote to confirm or deny Betsy DeVos as the new Secretary of Education, Fandom Forward provided information about how activists in key states could call their senators and tell them to vote against having a Headmaster who values political power over accessible education for all.

Immigration Action: When President Trump signed executive orders creating new immigration restrictions that target Muslims and hurt refugees and ordering construction of an expensive wall on the U.S./Mexico border, it was crucial that Fandom Forward act to dispute these orders that were based in fear, racism, and bigotry, and the failure to understand the nuances of global migration. We shared three actions to shift the conversation away from this hate and prove the weapon we have is love. On social media, activists joined Define American in writing #ToImmigrantsWithLove to show the world why immigrants and refugees matter in each of our lives, communities, and country. Fandom Forward also shared Muslim Advocates' "Click Here to End Hate Speech" toolkit so people could take action to counter hate speech. Lastly, we asked promoted the petition asking Melania Trump to share her own immigration story.

National Call In Day: National Call In Day was a day where organizations from the Moment of Truth coalition encouraged their supporters to call their elected officials to ask a simple question: “How will you protect religious and racial minorities, immigrants, women's health, and the LGBT community from the dangerous policies being advocated by the Trump Administration?"