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by Raynard Jackson
January 20, 2016
Last week I was reflecting on how to better help the Republican Party get more Blacks engaged in the party and ended up taking a mental stroll down memory lane.
In my freshman year in college at Oral Roberts University, my freshman textbook for my English class was Language in Thought and Action. The author was former Republican U.S. Senator, S.I. Hayakawa from California. He was a university professor and linguist by training.
This book is must reading if you want to truly understand the art of communications and how to better ensure that the message you want to deliver to a person or group is properly received.
Herein lies the problem with the Republican Party when it comes to the Black community.
Republicans are horrible at messaging, especially when it comes to the Black community. In the rare event that the party or a campaign hires a Black person, in most cases these hires have absolutely no understanding of messaging and communications.
One of my favorite quotes from Hayakawa’s book is, “meanings are in people, not in words.” Republicans constantly talk about being the big tent party and the party of Lincoln. Well, that is not what the Black community is hearing by the words and actions of the Republican Party.
I have told this to Republicans ad nauseam, but they have yet to learn this lesson.
For example, when Blacks of a certain age hear Republicans use the term “conservative,” what they hear is Strom Thurmond or Jesse Helms (who were both members of the U.S. Senate and were strong segregationists during the Civil Rights movement). As soon as Blacks hear the word conservative, they shut down because no one ever takes the time to define the word and its meaning in the 21st century.
Another example is when Republicans obsessively talk about giving more power back to the states. Well, to many Blacks this evokes a painful memory and a painful history that they would rather not relive.
I thoroughly understand what Republicans are saying about giving more power back to the states, but “meanings are in people, not in words.”
In effective communications, it’s not what you say that is important; but rather how your words are received by your targeted audience.
Just imagine a Republican standing before a Black audience today and constantly using the word Afro-American or Colored when referring to Blacks.
When Republicans today attempt to communicate with Blacks, they are using the functional equivalent of words like Afro-American and Colored.
The party and its candidates for various offices are totally wasting money and time with the current approach of communication they are using.
In any effective communications strategy, there must be two elements: an awareness phase and then a call to action.
The awareness phase asks the question what is it that I want to communicate to my audience; what is the takeaway message I want to communicate to my audience; and why am I talking before this audience?
The call to action phase asks the question, now that you have heard my speech, heard my radio spot, or read my comments to you, what is it that I now want you to do?
If you use the two above elements to analyze any Republican communication to the Black community, you will begin to understand why there is no mass movement within the Black community towards the Republican Party.
So, in order for Republicans to begin to effectively communicate with the Black community, they must first define their terms of engagement. When they use the term conservative, what do they mean; how do they define states’ rights? Why should Blacks be open or even listen to the Republican Party and its message?
I challenge Republican to answer these questions without talking about Abraham Lincoln, slavery, or mentioning Civil Rights; or using meaningless phrases like the party of smaller government, less government regulation or individual freedom.
In other words, what is the relevance of the Republican Party to the Black community in 2016?
Notice when Republicans engage with the Black community, there is never a call to action. There is never an email address given to contact a specific person; there is never anyone asking the Black community to “join” the Republican Party by doing this or that. In other words, no one asks for the sale.
If the actress Halley Barry gives you her phone number so you can stay in touch with her and you have many great phone conversations; but you never ask her out to dinner, what have you accomplished?
I had lunch last week with a Black A-list football player who has coached a major Republican presidential candidate’s son. I asked him has this candidate ever asked him to campaign with him and he said no.
You have got to be kidding me. They talk frequently and he has all of this candidate’s private numbers. This is exhibit A in my frustration with the Republican Party.
— Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC is an internationally recognized political consulting, government affairs, and PR firm based in Washington, DC. Jackson is an internationally recognized radio talk show host and TV commentator. He has coined the phrase “straticist.” As a straticist, he has merged strategic planning with public relations. Visit his website at: www.raynardjackson.com.
Rod is one of our nation’s leading minds. He’s smart, original, and very committed—a combination that one rarely finds.
Rod Martin and [former Howard Dean campaign manager] Joe Trippi are America’s two foremost experts on online politics.
Rod Martin is a Reaganite-Thatcherite conservative…[and] a man who has spent much of his life ministering to and working for the benefit of others. I know Rod as an advocate for freedom, a leader who understands the real changes we need in Washington, and who has the drive and ability to make those changes happen.
Rod Martin is the kind of dynamic leader who has the knowledge, ability and experience to lead us successfully into the 21st Century. His vision for America is compelling.
Rod Martin literally wrote the book on excellence. Humble yet brilliant, a man of love and compassion, with penetrating clarity he illuminates the world around us, and we are both stirred and enlightened.
Rod Martin is a born leader and an outstanding political mind. Anyone who takes him on is going to have a serious fight on their hands.
Rod Martin is a man of uncommon vision and character. Ever since I first worked alongside Rod in the early days of PayPal, I’ve been struck by his powerful vision for the future. Rod understands the intersection of technology, politics and culture in a way that few others do.
Rod Martin wears with uncommon grace an uncanny ability to link his vigorous faith to the practical challenges of both the business world and the political arena. Yet the respect he shows for others carries a warmth and modesty that are both too rare among those who are strong advocates of feisty positions.
America badly needs more leaders who really get the future. We need more Rod Martins.
Rod Martin is a modern day philosopher-statesman. He is a capitalist intellectual, a conservative iconoclast, a gentle adversary and a kind prophet. He inspires us towards a fresh national vision built upon the original founding principles.
Rod Martin is not only effective and efficient, but he is also perceptive, wise and gracious. He gets things done. He is a great friend and a great ally.
Rod is one of the sharpest, most gracious men I know, and one of the most gifted political thinkers today. His ability to analyze issues and communicate thoughtful insights on them have earned him the respect of people across the political spectrum.
I am proud to have been Rod Martin’s friend for a quarter century, and I can tell you that he is one of the finest men and most outstanding leaders in our church and in our country today. He has a knack for turning everything he touches to success.
Rod Martin is a cornucopian entrepreneur and eutropic thinker whose influence radiates through an array of companies, institutions, movements and churches. A renaissance American, he is also a prolific friend of freedom and faith around the globe.
If Rod Martin represents the next generation of leaders, America has nothing to worry about.
A leader and a servant, in public life and in private, Rod Martin strides at the top of his profession, and has nowhere to go but up. He is in the truest sense of the word ‘outstanding’.
Rod Martin is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished thought leaders today. He is a wonderful mentor, a humble role model, and a deep inspiration for the next generation of scientific innovators and entrepreneurs.
Rod’s achievements pale beside his character and his brilliance. He sees what others can’t. He leads when others won’t.
Rod Martin is one of America’s finest young minds.
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