Tell a human story.
This is the first lesson from the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights’ toolkit on how to effectively communicate human rights, in September 2018.
The toolkit sums up the core points communicators and practitioners across the equality and human rights fields need to talk about human rights in a more accessible way.
The toolkit advises:
- Don’t waste your energy on those who won’t be persuaded. Target the so-called ‘moveable middle’ – the 40% or so who are neither strongly for, nor against, human rights
- Recognise the emotional and dramatic elements within your material that will prompt positive reactions
- When reaching out beyond the usual human-rights crowd, don’t assume that getting people on your side means you have to trigger values you do not agree with
- Choose a messenger whom people outside of your bubble will embrace – someone they can relate to and trust.
