Due to a winter storm that hit the Fayetteville area, this event has been postponed.  The American Majority Arkansas office will notify attendees of rescheduling information.

Our nation was founded by ordinary citizen activists desiring a government that was accountable to the people.  Today, ordinary citizens across our nation are tired of the status quo and ready to engage for the betterment of their communities.

American Majority Arkansas is pleased to announce an Activist Training will be conducted on Monday the 8^th of February in Fayetteville, AR to provide citizens with the tools necessary to become effective activists

The training will take place at the Ozarks Electric Building (Community Room) located at 3641 Wedington Drive in Fayetteville from 6:00 to 9:00pm.   Registration opens at 5:30pm.  The cost is $5.00 if you pre-register online by February 4th and $10.00 at the door.  Space is limited.  Pre-registration is strongly encouraged.

Topics* to be covered during the Training include:

• Building Coalitions and Reaching Your Community (ideas and practical steps to engage your community and organize a coalition of volunteers)
• Government 101 (how government operates, how legislative and executive bodies work, how to get involved)
• Holding Government Accountable (how to hold leaders accountable once they are in office)
• Effectively Communicating Your Views (how to write effective letters to the editor, opinion editorials and blogs, using social networking tools and wiki projects)

Full training materials, samples and supplements will be provided to help you apply what you learn to your organization, candidate, cause or community.  Refreshments and dinner will be provided.

Registration is available online by clicking here.  If you have any questions or would like additional information, call Laurie Masterson at 501-258-6353or e-mail laurie@americanmajority.org.

American Majority is a non-profit and non-partisan organization whose mission is to train and equip a national network of leaders committed to individual freedom through limited government and the free market.

* Topics are subject to change.

Due to a winter storm that hit the Rogers area, this event has been postponed.  The American Majority Arkansas office will notify attendees of rescheduling information.

Our nation was founded by ordinary citizen activists desiring a government that was accountable to the people.  Today, ordinary citizens across our nation are tired of the status quo and ready to engage for the betterment of their communities.

American Majority Arkansas is pleased to announce an Activist Training will be conducted on Monday, February 8 in Rogers, AR to provide citizens with the tools necessary to become effective activists

The training will take place at the Coke Building located at 1800 S 52^nd Street  in Rogers from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm.   Registration opens at 11:00 am.  The cost is $5.00 if you pre-register online by February 4 and $10.00 at the door.  Space is limited.  Pre-registration is strongly encouraged.

Topics* to be covered during the Training include:

• Building Coalitions and Reaching Your Community (ideas and practical steps to engage your community and organize a coalition of volunteers)
• Government 101 (how government operates, how legislative and executive bodies work, how to get involved)
• Holding Government Accountable (how to hold leaders accountable once they are in office)
• Effectively Communicating Your Views (how to write effective letters to the editor, opinion editorials and blogs, using social networking tools and wiki projects)

Full training materials, samples and supplements will be provided to help you apply what you learn to your organization, candidate, cause or community.  Refreshments and Lunch will be provided.

Registration is available online by clicking here.  If you have any questions or would like additional information, call Laurie Masterson at 501-258-6353 or e-mail laurie@americanmajority.org.

American Majority is a non-profit and non-partisan organization whose mission is to train and equip a national network of leaders committed to individual freedom through limited government and the free market.

* Topics are subject to change.

Note: This event has been POSTPONED. Please contact michael@americanmajority.org for rescheduling information.

Our nation was founded by ordinary citizen activists desiring a government that was accountable to the people.  Today, ordinary citizens across our nation are tired of the status quo and ready to engage for the betterment of their communities.

American Majority Minnesota is pleased to announce an Activist Training will be conducted on Saturday, February 27th in Maple Grove, Minnesota to provide citizens with the tools necessary to become effective activists

The training will take place at the Maple Grove Community Center located at 12951 Weaver Lake Road in Maple Grove from 9:00AM to 11:00AM.  Registration opens at 8:30AM.  The cost is $20 if you pre-register online by Thursday, February 25th and $30 thereafter and at the door.  Space is limited.  Pre-registration is strongly encouraged.

Topics* to be covered during the Training include:

• Building Coalitions and Reaching Your Community (ideas and practical steps to engage your community and organize a coalition of volunteers)
• Government 101 (how government operates, how legislative and executive bodies work, how to get involved)
• Holding Government Accountable (how to hold leaders accountable once they are in office)
• Effectively Communicating Your Views (how to write effective letters to the editor, opinion editorials and blogs, using social networking tools and wiki projects)

Full training materials, samples and supplements will be provided to help you apply what you learn to your organization, candidate, cause or community.

Registration is available online by clicking here.  If you have any questions or would like additional information, call Michael Yost at 651-343-5558 or e-mail Michael@americanmajority.org

American Majority is a non-profit and non-partisan organization whose mission is to train and equip a national network of leaders committed to individual freedom through limited government and the free market.

* Topics are subject to change and often include additional subjects not listed above.

This year, American Majority will be launching its Patriot 2.0 training program, Gulp…..

As we trained around the country last year, the same questions and comments were being made, “Can the government track me through Facebook?” (“Ma’am, your life is not that interesting.”) and “I don’t use social media because it’s for Liberals!” (“Sir, with that reasoning, I could be a liberal, and you should leave now before brainwashing begins.”) There was even a few, “How does the CIA’s facial recognition software work?” (“Once I get my top secret clearance, I’ll let you know.”) Needless to say, these statements left most of us bewildered and shaking our heads wearily. This also got me thinking – why are Conservatives so far behind the technology curve? Why did we not embrace social media sooner?

After months of talking about it with trainees and asking others in the field, here is what I have come up with…

Politically, Liberals Believe Social Platforms Can Affect National Change
At the core of liberal philosophy…or progressivism, or whatever the title is they give themselves to avoid the inevitable term of ‘Socialist,’ is the belief that freedom did not come from nature or God, but instead is a product of the state. Essentially, the state is a reflection of the people and the people a reflection of the state. So when a communication platform comes along that embraces the many-to-many model, it would seem a natural fit for groups looking to mold society by either influencing enough people to mimic national support or coordinating mass pressure on public officials to influence the people. For these reasons, the Left was an early adopter of such technology.

Politically, Conservatives Will Not Embrace Social Platforms for Individual Decisions
My mother and father are good examples of why new media has not been adopted readily by the conservative base. As my father has said many times before, “If I know someone, they are in my cell phone.” As he would argue, “I have so much to do locally, why do I need to talk to someone half way around the world?” and to some extent, he would be right. Conservatives tend to believe that individuals are capable of making personal decisions best suited for themselves and their families. Creating a massive, online movement via Facebook to change the local sewer standards in one’s town doesn’t make much sense under conservative philosophy. As the mindset goes, “If conservative politics is local, where is the political advantage in starting a Facebook Page?” For these reasons, the Right is a late adopter to such technology.

Now What?
But, where does this leave us? I would argue that the time for excuses and debating over the issue has passed. The decision has been made for us. Understandably, emerging technology and dramatic change can be scary, but with increased communication comes increased influence; over 80% of those under 30 find the majority of their information online. Don’t you want to engage the next generation of leaders on issues? I equate conservative involvement in national politics to the old saying, “If a tree falls in the woods and no one is around, does it make a sound?” I am here to tell you that yes, yes it does make a sound, a very loud, crashing ‘boom.’ The same goes for bloated, over-reaching government. Because you do not participate does not mean it will not grow and it will not find you; you either do politics, or politics will do you. And if you are doing the politicking, you’re on the offense. If politics is doing you, you’re on the defensive, and you can only play defense for so long before losing.

It is time to understand what the Left is doing and rise to the occasion, if not for you, then for your children. Conservatives maintain the majority status in America and unless our voices are echoed online, we will fail to influence, mobilize and win in coming years. To me, this is unacceptable. It is time to leave our comfort zones and take our Sunday conversations online, helping win the battle for hearts and minds in communities unknown and with allies yet to be realized.

There are a lot of groups out there these days trying to get off the ground purported doing the Lord’s work for the advancement of freedom. Not all of them make it. Some of them are questionable. I pray very hard these days for God to give me some sense of discernment between the groups worth standing on the bridge with and those not worth it.

I won’t always be right and sometimes will be had. That’s life.

But over the past year I have fallen in love with one new group that has yet to disappoint and that frequently excites me. It’s American Majority. Those of you who attended the RedState Gathering last August know them well. They helped sponsor the event and made a presentation.

Slowly and carefully, American Majority is raising up a new batch of conservative leaders at the local level. Their goal is not to find the next conservative for congress, but to find the next conservative for the school board, the town council, the county commission, etc. They intend to rebuild the conservative farm team.

And they do fine work. They are a solid group I’m pleased to promote and partner with whenever I can.

[UPDATE:] Cross posted at Redstate.com

Drew Ryun of American Majority provides a detailed podcast on how to win your precinct.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Drew Ryun of American Majority provides a detailed podcast on how to micro-target your community.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

American Majority together with the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii is pleased to announce a full day of Activist Training to be held on  Saturday, February 6 in Honolulu, HI.

The goal of this training is to empower citizens to make a difference in their communities by learning the strategies used by professionals and political parties. In addition, attendees will receive training in modern tools of information and technology and have the chance to network with other like-minded individuals and organizations.

The event will be held from 10:00am – 3:00pm at the Navy-Marine Golf Course (Sam Snead Clubhouse) located at 943 Valkenburgh Street in Honolulu.

This special training is only $10 per activist.*

*Lunch and training materials are included in the cost of registration.  Online pre-registration is strongly encouraged to ensure that your seat is reserved!  Space is limited and is expected to fill quickly.

Presentations that will be offered include:

• Implementing Freedom: How to utilize your time on a campaign
• Grassroots Action: How to build, manage, and use an effective organization
• Patriotism 2.0: New media activism
• Precinct Power: Organizing at the precinct level, voter registration, and hard-wiring precincts

To register, please click here. For more information, please contact American Majority at info@americanmajority.org or call 540-338-1251.