Stages of Movement Development

Strategy Questions:

Who should you work with at first?
Where will you find initiative takers, who will take responsibility, and accept the job of moving things along?
How do these people see themselves?
What changes do people need in the way they look at themselves?
What ideas about themselves need to change in order to be consciously revolutionary?
What are the changes they need to make in their view of the world?
What kind of analysis needs to be developed? (Intellectual backfill)
How can complexity be clarified? Dogma avoided?
How detailed does the vision of a new society need to be?
How are our short-term goals, medium-term goals and the vision related?
What methods of consciousness raising makes sense for the kind of people you want to work with?
Especially regarding their cultural and economic background, etc.?
What kind of strategy approaches will be useful?
What new information can inform decisions regarding strategy?

Considering people's historical experience with organizational structures, especially people of color, women, and other historically marginalized groups, what forms of organization makes sense?
Looking ahead to stage five where strong organization is necessary, can the form withstand growth?
How will the new organization provide the social goods of the institution it seeks to replace?
What is the role of alternative institutions and building the revolutionary movement?
What is the role of rank-and-file movements in labor? Of radical caucuses in the professions? Of action groups which develop campaigns? Of support groups?
How can organizational units link? Informal networks? Hierarchical arrangements? Other?
Which allies need to be reached out to at this stage?
How can honest and reliable relationships be built between revolutionist and nonrevolutionary organizations and institutions, so each can help the other?
How can feedback and room for dissent be built into organizations so as not to become rigid or become dominated by elites?

Who is the "audience," the people who, when watching the drama of confrontation, can be won over to the side of revolution?
What are the central ideas you want the actions to communicate?
What are the tactics, or methods, of confrontation which will communicate the central messages?
Who or what is the opponent of these confrontations?
What support do people need to get through this state successfully, so they will not back down, become intimidated, or get isolated?
Conflict tends to polarize. How can the side effects be minimized?

Whose cooperation is the system dependent on?
Who can provide the mass space for noncooperation?
What noncooperation tactics may be appropriate (strike, boycott, tax refusal, slow-downs, etc.)?
How will noncooperation be coordinated?
How will the movement's understanding of what is happening be communicated across to people in general, especially when the elite is trying to confuse the issue?
How can the movement reach out to opponents, and help individuals in the ruling class and bureaucratic command posts cross over to the revolution or at least be supportive in some ways?
What is the role of the movement in providing services in the middle of economic and social dislocation? For example alternative economic institutions.

What are the legitimate functions of the old order, the things which have been done which actually need doing even though in different ways? (for example, growing food, and providing transportation).
How will the movement meet these legitimate functions?
How can people show their acceptance of new institutions?
What will happen to the old power-holders?
What are the actual tactics of power transfer?
What are the international connections in this process?
How can we avoid the revolution freezing into new rigidities?
How can we sow the seeds for continuing flexible growth of the new institutions?
How can the empowerment of people continue to be deepened and strengthened after the excitement of getting rid of the old order wears off?

(Andrew Rose adds) "These queries could be asked in relation to all sorts of 'movements' such as:

Food Not Bombs (serving food directly outside using our kitchens, directing food to people rather than trashing)
end the war on drugs
correctional institutions that benefit society, rather than increasing racism and hatred
providing universal health-care
housing the homeless, feeding the hungry
protecting the environment
democratizing mass media
reducing corporate control of public institutions
eliminating monopoly capitalism
creating alternatives to nationalism, patriotism, jingoism, and violence
reducing militarism, abroad and at home
promoting non-violent conflict resolution and social-emotional skills in education"