Speak Up!

While all issues will look different – whether they’re examples of sexism or any other institutional problem – all issues that make killer first campaign goals have certain things in common. Above all, they’re really specific. While I want to lobby to

‘end sexism’ (because, wouldn’t that be great?), it’s too large an issue and too unwieldy to create practical change. There’s no silver bullet that can defeat sexism overnight. Sexism is far too vague and large a problem for any one person to bring it down singlehandedly. So we have to break it down.

A specific and effective campaign goal might be to end a particular law or policy that exacerbates sexism or legitimizes sexist views.

ThAt’s rIgHt –

tHaT’s wHaT mY TaMpOn

TaX cAmPaIgN tArGeTeD!

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We were specific about one area of legislation that unfairly taxed menstruating people.

Now, sometimes, there’s no pleasing some people. We got asked what good one little campaign goal like tampon tax was when sexism at large still exists. This is frustrating, but you will definitely encounter such people on your

campaigning journey, so I want you to be prepared with a kick-ass answer! If someone challenges you like this, for example, they say, ‘What use is lobbying to tighten street harassment laws? Why don’t you try to ban sexism?’

Try not to roll your eyes. Ask them if

they would suggest we stop researching

cures for breast cancer, or any individual

cancers, because instead we should really be

trying to cure death? Chances are, they will agree that such a suggestion would be ridiculous and impossible. Similarly, we can’t cure society of sexism without treating the issues that cause it.

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I like to think

of sexism as if it were a tree.

Yes, that’s right! If sexism is

a tree, then as campaigners, we

are mighty tree surgeons! To take down the tree of sexism and get to the roots of the problem (quite literally!) we need to tackle its branches one at a time. Each branch represents a specific example of the wider problem of sexism. Once all of these examples are solved, and we have subsequently hacked at each branch of our sexism tree, then we will be left with nothing but its trunk! The tree would be no more. We would have won!

Whichever wider problem you are helping to solve, whether it’s sexism, racism, anti-Semitism or something entirely different, you too are acting like a mighty tree surgeon. You are working

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towards cutting down

your problem as if it were

a tree. Each super specific campaign

you run will do an amazing job in cutting down

a branch of your chosen tree of problems. Soon

they will all be taken down to the ground!

Just like campaigning trans activist/author Charlie Craggs says:

Ending tampon tax was a killer first campaign goal/perfect branch for me because it was really specific. Ending tampon tax was about axing a particular tax policy. It was tangible. It was something I could pinpoint and I felt confident that I could help to dislodge it.

‘We might not be able to

change the world on our own

but if we all do our bit to

change the world, the world

will change.’

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What will your first campaign goal be?

YoU cAn cHaNgE aNyThInG,

aNyWhErE In tHe wOrLd.

What are you passionate about? What example of the institutional problem that annoys and shocks you do you want to bring to an end once and for all? There is so much to choose from here. It might be helpful to draw your issue as if it were a tree so that you can see all of its branches. Then you can choose which one to pick first!

Perhaps you might want to change Wimbledon’s tennis dress code, which for some bizarre reason currently encourages female tennis players to wear skirts rather than shorts (they’re athletes and they play tennis to win, not to be sexualized – am I right?), or maybe you want to lobby for the creation of a legal definition of ‘stalking’ (yep, that’s right, the law deals with stalking so badly

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that it STILL isn’t strictly legally defined). Perhaps your local train station is not accessible for disabled people or maybe your local park is filled with statues of men with no female representation at all and you want to fix these things. Well, you can! Whatever your goal,

aNyThInG Is pOssIbLe

when you put your mind to it. Always

remember that you can do anything and that

no problem is too big to be tackled by

a mighty change-maker and tree surgeon,

just like you!

3) WrItE It dOwN!

I suggest you keep notes throughout this toolkit. Not only will this help you organize your campaign, but it will keep you focused and be an awesome record of all your hard work. If your motivation is ever flagging, you can look back through your notes to see how far you’ve come!

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The goal is your inspiration. The goal is your driving force. Always keep it close to your heart. Never forget what you’re aiming for.

You’ll find my action tips for activists over the next four steps. Here are your first ones:

ActION tIpS fOr ActIvIsTs

1. Think big, think broadly, think about the

institutional problems that annoy you

in the world. Think about which

problem you want to help change

(e.g. ‘sexism’)

2. Narrow that down to identify your

campaign goal. Make that goal specific,

make it tangible (e.g. End Tampon Tax)

and . . .

3. Write it down!

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StEp TwO

Be FoCuSeD

DecIsIOn MaKeRs

You’ve reached our second step to making changes! You’re on your way to building your very own campaign, but to make sure you’re confident and passionate about your issue there are a few pieces of prep that need to be taken care of first.

It’s time to find out who you are targeting. This step is all about identifying who your decision maker(s) are. Your decision maker(s) hold the power to implement the change that you want to see. They are the people, person, organization or governing body that you will need to lobby. They are the ones you ultimately need to persuade to make your change.

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This may seem pretty straightforward but trust me, it is not always as simple as it sounds. Here’s how I discovered who my decision makers were, just to showcase how tricky it can be!

ThE TaMpOn TaX

dEcIsION mAkErS:

Once I found my issue of tampon tax I started to wonder who my decision makers were. I figured I would have to try to instigate a national change, but I had no idea how tax worked. Was there some

form of national tax lord I should be lobbying?

You won’t believe this, but I found there really was a national tax lord that I needed to lobby! This being’s official title is the Chancellor of the Exchequer and in 2014 his name was George Osborne. He was my decision maker.

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To increase my chances of getting any kind of a response from the chancellor, who is presumably perpetually very busy, I did three things at once: I sent a letter to my local MP asking for his support and advice, I contacted the chancellor directly asking if he would change our taxation policy on period products, and I promoted an online petition via social media to gather as many signatures as possible. This all paid off! I got responses from both my local MP and the chancellor’s office (we’ll talk about this in Step Three).

Once we hit 10,000

signatures on the

petition, politicians

started to take

notice of us.

The first to contact

change.org to support our petition was

the amazing Stella Creasy MP, and others soon followed, including the badass Paula Sherriff MP. I was lucky enough to be able to meet with both

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of these superwomen,

who gave us unwavering

support and advice

throughout the campaign.

I still meet with Paula

Sherriff today to plot

future campaigns! Both

of these MPs changed the course of our petition.

Their support was invaluable. Similarly, if an MP

ever asks to meet with you about your petition, then go for it!

BuT rEaChInG OUr dEcIsION

mAkEr wAs nOT QuItE aS

eASY aS THaT. Oh nO.

In 2015, I discovered that tampon tax was not just a UK issue. The European Union (EU) influences certain rules in all member states and regulates some taxation across all 28 EU member countries.

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In 2015 this included the UK,

and it included the tampon

tax. My heart broke. For over

a year we had been trying to

influence the WRONG decision

maker! I wondered whether I had

let down all of the amazing people who

had signed my campaign and believed that together,

we could end tampon tax? I worried that I had

wasted everyone’s time. I felt like a failure.

Then I thought of

something my ninja

twin had told me.

She said that:

I soon realized that I needed to embrace this news and follow the new direction we had to move in.

I began to target my new decision maker, the EU. This change in direction boosted our support base. Maybe these new supporters thought that because

‘Whenever I felt

I had failed I just

needed to move in

a new direction.’

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this was such a weird and complicated issue we needed more support. And

they were right, we did! Soon wE hIT 200,000 sIGNATuRES! This made a HUGE difference. Finally

George Osborne announced his

support for team End Tampon Tax! He was unable to axe tampon tax in the UK, as we discovered this was actually under the EU’s jurisdiction, but that doesn’t mean he gave up. Oh no. Instead he did something AMAZING! In his Autumn Statement of 2015, the chancellor launched the Tampon Tax Fund, which has given £15m (the same amount the government earned annually in tampon tax revenue) a year to female-focused charities ever since. This has funded lots of important projects, including a brilliant drive to improve gynae cancer research by charity, The Eve Appeal. It has changed lives.

ThAt’s PReTtY kIcK-aSs!

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Then, something even more BADASS happened.

ThE tHeN PrImE mInIsTeR

dEcIdEd tO sUPPoRt Us.

No wAy, rIgHt? YeS wAy!

HeRe’s hOw:

In 2016, the EU referendum was called. The prime minister was under pressure to prove that the EU is progressive and helpful. He must have thought ‘What better way to prove this than by ending tampon tax?’. YES, David Cameron, our thoughts exactly! So he went to the EU and proposed a motion to all 28 of its member states. This motion would allow all EU countries to lower their taxes on period products to their lowest national taxation rate, which means 0 per cent for the likes of the UK. It passed with the unanimous support of all member countries.

ThIs day was EpIc!

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A few days later, David Cameron made a speech in the House of Commons. He announced the END of tampon tax! Despite all of the many setbacks we faced and complications over finding our decision makers, we had finally WON! For the first time EVER, a UK prime minister uttered the word ‘tampon’ in Parliament – the unrivalled highlight of my life so far – and we knew we were on the road to success.

What I learned from this was that mistakes aren’t always as scary or campaign-shattering as they might appear at first. Much to the contrary, mistakes can be fixed and they might even end up strengthening your campaign. Campaigns evolve. They can change if you find you’re lobbying the wrong decision maker.

YoU jUsT fInD oUt wHo tHe

rIgHt dEcIsIon mAker Is

aNd gO aftEr tHeM. RuN!

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That was our (somewhat bumpy) journey to finding our decision makers. To find out who your decision maker is, you’ll need to decide what kind of campaign you want to run. There are three buckets that campaigns will generally fall into and each needs a different approach, because each will have different decision makers. These buckets are: political, social and commercial change. Here are a few ideas on how to find your campaign focus:

1) pOlItIcal CamPaIgNs

Political campaigns are badass. They seek changes to policies, laws and technical things like funding. To find out who your political decision makers are you need to ask yourself what level of political change you’re seeking: local, national or (let’s think big here!) international.

LOCal

Lots of campaigns that make local things happen benefit entire communities. Local changes are incredibly impactful. They’re important. If you’re

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pursuing local changes, such as a change

in detention policy within your school or

more mental health support for your

community, then your decision maker will probably be a local governing organization, like your school governing body or local council. They are the ones who hold the ultimate power to instigate your local change.

NatIONaL

If you’re making a campaign that will change a national law or policy (just like my End Tampon Tax campaign), then you will usually lobby the government. More specifically a particular government minister might have the ultimate power to make your change. For example, it was the Chancellor of the Exchequer who technically ended tampon tax for us (after our round-Europe detour!). Try to find the right department for your campaign, whether it’s the Department for

Education, the Government Equalities Office,

the Home Office or an entirely different

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department, and then target the minister

responsible for this area of government.

InTeRnAtIONaL

Finally, international political campaigns (like those that want to change international laws) tend to change the world on a slightly more removed

level. Changing international law often does not directly change people’s lives immediately. But it does allow for other campaigns to utilize these changes and influence their national laws which will change lives. Don’t be discouraged: if you’re hoping to change an international law then

you’re enabling others to change their lives. You’re still doing amazing things.

If you’re going to implement international changes, then you’ll probably be lobbying an international organization, such as the UN, NATO or the EU. These bodies can be really complicated. However, they will all usually have ministers or individuals that lead departments dedicated to

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certain changes. For example, I found out that I needed to lobby the European Commissioner for Finance to instigate the tampon-tax-ending change to EU law that secured my campaign’s UK victory. Similarly, if you find the department that relates most directly to your campaign then you can identify your decision maker(s) too.

ToP tIp: If you ever worry that you’re not

capable of making your change, think of my papa’s

favourite saying: ‘if you think you are too small

to make a difference, try sleeping in a room with

a mosquito.’ Speaking from experience of living

in mosquito-filled Portugal, it’s true!

Political changes don’t have to be large. They can be everyday actions. This could include conversations with your friends and family about taboo subjects that really shouldn’t be taboo (like periods!), hush-hush topics like mental health and self-harm, or even something entirely different – like countries introducing new laws in support of the LGBTQ+

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community, including India, which decriminalized gay sex just last year! Talking about these topics is so important. It spreads awareness of them. It gets people thinking about the problem you’re interested in solving.

Even ‘liking’ pages on Facebook,

‘following’ a change-maker in

your field of interest on Twitter or

‘reposting’ an article about the

problem you’re tackling on Instagram makes a big difference. You’re spreading your message.

You’re supporting other tree surgeons/change-makers. Vocal campaigners empower other campaigners. Ripples become waves.

YoUr eVeRyDaY

aCtIoNs cAn mAkE

a HuGe ImPaCt.

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2) ImpaCtfuL sOcIaL cHaNgEs

Some campaigns aren’t dedicated to changing a particular policy or law. They aren’t directed at altering anything tangible. Instead they want to change the ways that we think about something in particular. They are awesome too. For example, some campaigns promote messages of self-love and body positivity (see Chapter 4 for more information!). They want to change the way women in society are viewed and in doing so they hope to

eMPowEr amazInG wOmEn lIkE yOu!

If you’re hoping to instigate a similar change in mindset, then your decision maker will usually be the general public, or perhaps a particular group of people, such as girls. But you CAN make this tangible. Think specifically about what you want.

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