Speaking to a hostile audience
In September 2017, Hawk Newsome, President of Black Lives Matter New York, took the stage to address the crowd at a Trump rally. This was not a receptive audience, to put it mildly. But in deference to free speech, the organizers had given Newsome just two minutes to get his message across. By the end of those two minutes he was vigorously applauded, and many people in the crowd invited him to visit their homes. How on earth did he pull it off?
Newsome's technique had three elements, metaphorically speaking: beachhead, high plains, and landmarks. The beachhead was his fleeting opportunity to engage this audience. The high plains were the principles to which he professed allegiance. The landmarks were the things he called out in those principles.
Newsome's opening statement is simple and direct: “I am an American.” You can see this affirmation immediately disarms the crowd. It neutralizes their instinctive hostility. Many had been predisposed to dismiss the speaker, but in proudly declaring his patriotism he becomes one of them. He receives his first round of applause.
Then Newsome expands on the deeper significance of his shared identity. He says, “The beauty of America is that when you see something broke in your country, you can mobilize to fix it.” That’s how he draws attention to the landmarks on the high plains. Americans are no-nonsense pragmatists, he says. They are hard-working and self-reliant people who fix things. He speaks the crowd’s language, and they applaud even louder.
At this point Newsome tries to garner their sympathy, describing some of the injustices he and his organization are attempting to address. But it’s too soon, and he begins to lose them. So he returns to the high plains. This time he says: “I am a Christian.” Once again, they can't help but cheer. He strengthens his affinity with them by saying, “I don't think my Bible is any different from yours when it says ‘love thy neighbor’.” He is carefully re-building his connection to the crowd.
But he must now overcome an obvious suspicion. They are wondering whether he truly respects law and order, another core tenet of their belief system. So he calls out the elephant in the room, saying “We are not anti-cop. We are anti bad cop.” He goes further, saying bad cops need to be removed like bad plumbers, lawyers, or politicians. The crowd applauds again, accepting this distinction and appreciating the knock against political corruption.
Newsome concludes by returning to the themes of self-reliance and patriotism. He says, “We don’t want hand-outs. We just want our God-given right to pursue life, liberty, and happiness. If we really want to make America great, we do it together.” The crowd loves it. There are hugs and handshakes with the organizers on stage. He has completely flipped the script for many onlookers.
Speaking to a hostile audience is common in business, too, though it tends not to be as fraught as this scene. How can you use your own beachhead to get to the high plains and call out the landmarks you see there? How can you take the conversation to a level that shrinks division and expands a sense of common purpose? Many of the same principles apply.