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Speaking persuasively to women about marijuana
- 1. Speaking Persuasively to Women About Marijuana Lauren Padgett
- 3. Beyond the Lobbying Basics Differences in gender socialization ○ Women are socialized to nurture, men are socialized to be decision makers ○ Polarization of power begins in early education ○ Yale study showed that male executives who spoke more than their peers were perceived with 10% higher ratings of competence from subjects who observed them. Female executives were rated 14% lower, by both male and female subjects
- 4. Beyond the Lobbying Basics Roles and Perception in the workplace ○ Difference in perception of women translates to Congress ○ Men interrupt women frequently, but women interrupt other women just as often ○ Institute a no-interruptions rule for your lobby meetings, especially when you disagree
- 5. Beyond the Lobbying Basics Roles and Perception in the workplace ○ Some studies on charitable giving show an “empathy gap” among genders, but everyone responds well to a good story! Tell yours, and back it up with the facts. ○ Be knowledgeable, but avoid overexplaining. ○ “Are you familiar with what this bill will do?” ○ “Do you have questions for me?”
- 6. Effective Messaging to Women Regulation Works! ○ Drug dealers don’t check ID, but Colorado stores can boast perfect compliance ○ Teen use has been declining in Colorado since 2010, opposite of the national trend. Research found no statistical evidence of increased probability of teen use ○ Adults using legal marijuana get a safe product-- “just like a glass of wine!”
- 7. Effective Messaging to Women Refocusing Tax Resources ○ Colorado collected between $50-$60 million in tax revenue, $10 million of which went to schools ○ Saved roughly $145 million that the state once spent on enforcing marijuana prohibition ○ Frees up police to focus on serious crime
- 8. Effective Messaging to Women Messaging to the “marijuana middle” ○ Men are more pro-legalization than women ○ Women make up 56% of the marijuana middle, and were likelier to change their opinions after hearing a persuasive argument ○ 64% of women polled by Third Way expressed support for a federal waiver as long as regulations were strong ○ Medical marijuana polled better than adult use
- 9. Effective Messaging to Women So, what do I actually say?
- 10. Effective Messaging to Women What Doesn’t Work ○ Decrying the War on Drugs as a whole: it lumps marijuana in with harder drugs ○ Fixing state-federal conflict: voters polled didn’t believe that the DOJ would actually prosecute state- compliant patients, nor that a new president would roll back reforms ○ “States should be responsible” instead of “States have a right”
- 11. Effective Messaging to Women Women and Medical Marijuana ○ Women are a rapidly growing market for medical marijuana ○ Make the majority of medical and financial decisions for their families ○ Are more likely to use alternative medicine ○ Are more likely to be diagnosed with a chronic illness
- 12. Effective Messaging to Women In conclusion... ○ Use inclusive, non-condescending messaging ○ Know the real benefits of regulation ○ Most Americans would support federal policy allowing states to regulate marijuana- bring your legislator on board by telling a great story!
- 14. Sources AAUW Educational Foundation (1992). The AAUW Report: How Schools Shortchange Girls. http://www.aauw.org/files/2013/02/how-schools-shortchange-girls-executive-summary.pdf Neufeld, Adam et al (2004). Study on Women’s Experiences at Harvard Law School. http://www.law.harvard.edu/students/experiences/ExecutiveSummary.pdf Hancock, Adrienne B. and Rubin, Benjamin A. Influence of Communication Partner’s Gender on Language. Journal of Language and Social Psychology, 34(1), 46-64. http://www.regulatemarijuana.org/regulation-works http://asq.sagepub.com/content/56/4/622.short http://www.campaignforyouthjustice.org/documents/FR_YACJS_2012.pdf http://www.politifact.com/rhode-island/statements/2015/jan/11/james-aubin/advocate-says-colorado-received-60-million- taxes-a/ http://www.thirdway.org/report/the-marijuana-middle-americans-ponder-legalization
Editor's Notes
- I challenge the idea that there’s any major difference in how you need to speak to women in the first place. The arguments that work for women are the same that work from men, but women tend to be less pro-legalization than men. But I want to point out some differences in how women are socialized so that you have context for the tips I’ll be giving you. Studies funded by AAUW found that in early education, girls are shown less attention in the classroom than boys, and young girls of color get even less. When boys call out answers, teachers listen but tell girls to wait to be called on. That data’s from 1992, but a 2004 Harvard study found that even in Harvard’s own law classrooms, of students who spoke up in class men were 50% more likely to volunteer a comment during class, and 144% more likely to speak voluntarily at least 4 times. This continues in the workplace, (Yale study), plus women are more likely to be assigned “office housekeeping” tasks
- Yale study used archival data to measure how women on congress were perceived, and looked for a relationship between time spent talking on the floor and perceived power. They found a positive correlation between speaking time and power for men, but no relationship for women. Women in the Senate have a reputation for being the ones behind the scenes getting bills passed. GW study found no difference in interruptions based on speaker’s gender, but rather that of their conversation partner.
- In polling, appeals for compassion are what drives medical marijuana reform
- How to frame age-restricted sales: tell your story! Hands up exercise. 2010: Colorado begins regulating medical- even partial regulation seems to reduce teen access and use. You can slip that one in when lobbying for the CARERS act. Focusing on the safety of children was a major driver of support in Washington
- Tax money collected isn’t much compared to Colorado’s state budget of $27 billion, but the tax money is a bonus- the real victory will be eliminating the illegal market. Voters DO want tax money earmarked for schools and it polls well, it drove support for 64, but be wary of overselling the Colorado example. The tax money for schools comes from wholesale growers selling to rec stores, while the SALES tax goes into a general fund. Rather, stress that ending marijuana prohibition allows police to tackle more serious crime. This polled well in WA and CO, among those who wavered it was the most-cited reason why they changed their minds.
- Who is in the “marijuana middle?” Women, moderates, and people over 50. Third Way polled various demographics on a federal “safe haven policy” for states who legalize medical marijuana. For many Americans, marijuana isn’t an issue of absolutes- it’s very nuanced and personal values play a big role. In general, the policy conflict was clear and most respondents favored a federal safe haven for existing state laws.
- What do these messages have in common? They’re simple, fact-based, non-combative, and they focus on the “we.” PS- SSDP made 15,000 phone calls in colorado!
- While WE know that mass incarceration is not a family value, moderates polled by Third Way saw sentencing reform as a totally separate issue from marijuana. People recognize that the state-fed conflict isn’t workable, but framing it in terms of bad things that could happen didn’t produce the sense of urgency that researchers expected
- Shift your legislator’s perception of mmj patients