New

 York  Forum  for  Freedom  

Leadership  Retreat  2010  
 
Hosted  by  the  Columbia  University  Libertarians,    
November  20,  2010  
 
Boardroom  501  
2920  Lerner  Hall,  Columbia  University  
New  York,  NY  10027    
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
I.  Student  Organizations  
 
Representatives  from  the  following  student  organizations  introduced  themselves  
and  spoke  about  recent  issues  faced  on  campus.  
 
• Columbia  University  Libertarians:  established  group,  looking  to  expand  
leadership  and  increase  the  involvement  of  members  in  event  organizing  
• Young  Americans  for  Liberty  at  Baruch  College:  recently  established  group,  
working  on  gaining  more  members  as  this  is  a  commuter  college    
• New  York  University  College  Libertarians:  established  group,  working  on  
changing  the  perception  of  what  it  means  to  be  a  libertarian  
• Stevens  Institute  of  Technology  Champions  of  Liberty:  recently  established  
group,  needs  to  find  more  leaders  to  transition  leadership  
• Young  Americans  for  Liberty  at  Fordham  University-­‐Rose  Hill:  established  
group,  working  to  increase  student  interest  in  the  ideas  behind  politics  and  
on  outreach  to  liberal/leftist  students  
• Young  Americans  for  Liberty  at  Fordham  University-­‐Lincoln  Center:  looking  
to  start  a  chapter  for  spring  semester  
• Young  Americans  for  Liberty  at  University  of  Buffalo:  established  group,  
looking  to  transition  leadership  
 
 
II.  Best  Practices  for  Campus  Pro-­Liberty  Organizations  
 
 
A.  Branding  the  ideas  through  your  group  

Often,  students  have  mistaken  notions  about  what  being  a  libertarian  means.  The  
ideological  baggage  might  include  things  like  images  of  Galt  shouting  about  rights  or  
libertarians  as  racists  and  generally  cold,  heartless  people.  This  misperception  
needs  to  be  overcome.    

i) Talk  about  the  ideas,  not  politics  to  start  with.  

ii) Do  not  just  completely  dismiss  the  other  side  as  wrong.  Use  their  
framework  to  open  a  discussion.  Terminology  like  paleoconservative  or  
classical  liberal  might  be  a  useful  starting  point.  “Socially  liberal  and  
fiscally  conservative”  might  also  work.  
iii) Make  issues  less  abstract.  Do  events/discussions  centered  around  single  
issues  that  are  popular  on  campus,  like  anti-­‐drug  war  or  anti-­‐war  issues.  
Example:  Fordham  YAL  created  a  flyer  with  a  marijuana  leaf  for  their  
Gary  Johnson  event,  showing  him  as  a  Republican  against  the  drug  war  
iv) Often,  it  is  easy  to  pick  up  members  from  socially  liberal  members  of  the  
College  Republicans  to  start  the  core  of  a  student  group.  But  to  grow,  you  
need  outreach  to  liberals  as  well.  Use  the  historical  record  and  figures  like  
 prominent  abolitionists,  Thomas  Sowell,  and  Walter  Williams  to  combat  
common  misperceptions.    
Because  of  the  likely  ideological  foes  at  our  schools  in  New  York,  we  should  
generally  try  doing  more  events  that  focus  on  liberal  concerns  like  racism,  the  
drug  war,  and  corporate  subsidies.  
 

B.  Communication  
Be  very  aware  of  how  you  are  communicating  with  your  members  and  club  officers.  
i) Do  not  lecture  at  group  meetings.  It  is  ok  to  start  off  with  a  brief  talk,  but  
try  to  engage  everyone.  Be  a  moderator.  
ii) Good  emails  are  important.  Do  not  just  send  a  brief  message,  but  include  
info  about  your  recent  events,  links  to  articles  you  will  be  discussing,  or  a  
link  to  an  article  published  my  one  of  your  members  or  general  
newsworthy  item.    
iii) Use  Facebook  wisely.  When  you  create  an  event,  invite  everyone  in  your  
network  to  it.  A  simple  RSVP  for  an  event  means  nothing.  You  should  
send  out  at  least  2-­‐3  reminders  about  your  event,  and  include  relevant  
and  updated  information  in  it.  
iv) It  is  difficult  to  run  a  blog  effectively.  If  your  group  runs  a  blog,  make  sure  
you  are  can  maintain  it  with  a  few  posts  a  week.  Have  members  send  
submissions  to  you  if  you  are  worried  about  content  staying  within  the  
boundaries  of  your  organization.  
v) Dedicate  a  block  of  time  to  officer-­‐only  meetings  to  hash  out  the  details  
for  your  upcoming  events  and  relevant  responsibilities.  In-­‐person  
meetings  are  essential.  
 

C.  Events  and  activities  

There  are  many  ways  you  can  make  your  student  organization  an  effective  and  
engaging  forum:  
i) Club  discussions  regarding  specific  issues.  Keep  in  mind  that  you  set  the  
frequency  and  length  of  meetings  so  that  each  one  will  be  attractive.  
People  will  not  attend  your  meetings  if  they  feel  it  is  a  waste  of  time.  
Utilize  weekly  SFL  webinars  or  news  items  to  start  the  discussion.  
ii) Invite  speakers  to  campus  for  a  lecture  or  a  panel  discussion.  
iii) Debates  with  other  clubs  can  be  interesting,  but  you  need  to  be  very  
prepared  
iv) Creative  events  linking  liberty  to  other  controversial  or  interesting  issues,  
like  organ  markets  or  private  space  exploration.  Example:  Paul  Cantor  
writes  about  Austrian  economics  and  aesthetics.  
 v) Performances  with  pro-­‐liberty  artists,  musicians,  or  plays.  
vi) Trips  to  various  venues.  These  can  include  SFL  conferences,  local  lectures,  
or  the  taping  of  tv  shows,  with  a  social  event  afterwards.  
vii) Tabling  events.  Use  Operation  Politically  Homeless  kits,  request  resources  
from  SFL,  and  have  free  food  and  materials  out.  Be  assertive  at  your  table,  
but  don’t  get  into  arguments  with  people.  The  goal  is  to  talk  to  many  
people  to  increase  your  clubs  visibility.  
viii) Charity  events.  Doing  something  like  a  clothing  drive  will  combat  the  
perception  that  you  are  a  cold  and  heartless  libertarian.  
ix) Crash  the  events  of  local  groups  and  other  student  groups.  
x) Movie  nights  
xi) Socials  
Don’t  hesitate  to  plaster  your  campus  with  flyers  for  your  events.  Flyering  is  
effective!  

 
D.  Fundraising  

i) Get  donor  lists  from  outside  organizations  or  your  alumni  list  
ii) Spend  all  of  the  budget  your  school  allocates  to  your  group.  Co-­‐sponsor  
events  with  your  Political  Union  or  Student  Government  to  use  their  
funds  
iii) Make  an  announcement  asking  for  donations  at  large  campus-­‐wide  
events  
iv) Raffles.  Use  clever  ideas  like  getting  your  club  information  on  the  back  of  
the  raffle  ticket  to  auction  off  things  with  your  club  info.    
v) The  tried  and  true  works.  Do  a  bake  sale,  or  buy  pizzas  and  resell  slices  
near  crowds  or  big  school  events.    
vi) Team  up  with  local  businesses  to  get  discount  cards  for  students  
vii) Apply  for  SFL  protest  grants  
 
 
E.  Transitioning  leadership  
i) You  need  to  find  intelligent,  educated,  and  passionate  members.  
Approach  students  who  have  shown  interest  by  attending  many  
meetings.  Underclassmen  are  sometimes  hesitant  and  unsure  about  being  
a  leader,  so  you  will  have  to  approach  them  and  give  them  some  
confidence  that  they  can  do  a  great  job  if  they  apply  to  be  a  club  officer.  
CC  them  on  leadership  emails  and  informally  include  them  on  event  
organization  meetings.  
ii) Create  a  liaison  position  for  freshmen  so  that  they  can  be  involved  with  
the  group’s  leadership  from  the  beginning.  Have  them  sit  in  on  officer  
meetings.    
 iii) You  should  have  elections,  but  also  create  an  application  and/or  
nomination  process  and  interview  candidates  so  that  all  the  candidates  
will  do  a  good  job  in  their  roles.  
iv) Create  an  Executive  Board  Handbook  that  includes:  names  and  contact  
info  for  administrators  and  vendors,  instructions  for  managing  the  list-­‐
serv,  passwords,  photos  and  reports  of  past  events,  and  upcoming  
deadlines  for  the  club  
 
F.  Involvement  with  other  campus  groups  

i) Co-­‐sponsorships  are  key.  You  can  use  other  groups’  resources  and  
membership  lists  to  advertise  your  events,  as  well  as  reach  an  audience  
distinct  from  your  normal  one.  
ii) Ask  if  you  can  make  a  presentation  about  a  specific  issue  from  the  
libertarian  point  of  view  at  another  group’s  meeting.  
iii) School  papers  are  always  looking  for  content.  Write  a  pro-­‐liberty  article  
and  send  it  to  them.  Try  to  get  a  club  member  to  also  be  part  of  the  paper  
staff.    
 
G.  Beyond  the  student  group  

If  students  are  aware  of  opportunities  for  being  involved  in  promoting  liberty  after  
graduation,  they  will  be  more  likely  to  dedicate  time  to  their  student  organizations.  

i) Send  updates  to  members  about  deadlines  for  pro-­‐liberty  internships  

through:  Koch  Foundation,  State  Policy  Network  
ii) Check  out  LibertyGuide.com  for  job  listings  
iii) Offer  to  write  recommendations  for  active  leaders  
iv) Go  to  SFL  conferences  where  pro-­‐liberty  organization  representatives  
will  be  present  
 
 

 
 
 
 

 
 
III.  New  York  Forum  for  Freedom:  Goals  and  Structure  
 
 
The  New  York  Forum  for  Freedom  will  be  a  unified  effort  by  students  in  the  New  
York  area  to  promote  liberty.  We  will  be  a  communications  and  coordination  
hub  for  pro-­liberty  educational,  leadership,  and  networking  opportunities  for  
students.  Our  two  primary  goals  are  to:  
 
1)  Communicate  events  on  our  campuses  to  student  groups  in  our  network  
2)  Communicate  and  organize  local  educational,  leadership,  and  social  events  for  
our  members  
 
 
A.  Events  
 
i) Evenings  at  FEE  
ii) New  York  Junto  monthly  meetings  –  crowd  is  usually  a  mix  of  older  
Objectivists  and  investors.  We  can  pick  and  choose  some  of  the  great  
speakers  to  attend.  
iii) Stossel  taping  –  usually  once  a  week.  Focus  more  on  student  issue  
episodes  
iv) SFL  conferences  
v) Regular  leadership  forums  with  reps  from  schools,  once  a  semester  
vi) Local  social  events  
vii) Internship  listings  for  FIRE,  MPI,  FEE  
 
 
B.  Structure  
 
For  the  time  being,  we  will  forego  a  formal  constitution  and  instead  operate  
according  to  the  following  principles:  
 
i) Each  student  group  in  the  network  will  identify  one  representative  from  
their  organization.  This  person  will  be  responsible  for  keeping  other  
student  leaders  informed  about  their  club  events.    
ii) One  Chairperson,  to  be  chosen  from  amongst  the  student  group  
representatives,  will  be  responsible  for  keeping  an  eye  on  local  events,  
communicating  to  members  of  the  Facebook  group,  creating  new  
Facebook  events,  coordinating  trips  on  behalf  of  the  NYFF,  and  generally  
responding  to  communications  directed  at  the  NYFF.  
iii) By  spring  2011,  one  of  the  campus  representatives  should  be  elected  as  
the  Chairperson  to  take  over  all  activities  for  the  next  year.    
iv) New  student  groups  wanting  to  join  the  NYFF  will  be  unanimously  
approved  of  by  all  other  student  group  leaders  in  the  network.    
 v) Official  NYFF  events  should  be  approved  by  all  student  group  
representatives.  
vi) The  NYFF  leadership  meeting  will  be  held  in  the  fall  of  every  year,  where  
member  student  organization  will  send  representatives  and  reaffirm  
their  membership  
 
 
C.  Getting  started  logistically    
 
i) We  will  rename  the  New  York  Liberty  Alliance  Facebook  group  to  the  
New  York  Forum  for  Freedom,  taking  on  a  name  that  has  been  utilized  by  
local  networks  in  Philadelphia,  DC,  and  Texas.    Facebook  will  be  the  
primary  means  of  communication  to  students  in  our  network.  Campus  
representatives  of  member  student  organizations  will  be  added  as  
admins  to  the  Facebook  group  
ii) We  will  create  a  website  and  have  content  including:  
a. Calendar  of  local,  campus,  and  NYFF  events  
b. Leadership  resources  for  new  student  groups  
c. Materials  for  student  groups  to  use    
d. Contact  information  for  local  student  leaders  
e. A  list  of  friendly  organizations  
iii) We  will  establish  an  email  account  for  the  NYFF  
 
 
D.  Now  what?  
 
i) Create  website  and  email  address  
ii) Rename  the  Facebook  group  
iii) Deadline  to  determine  student  organization  representatives  will  be  12/1  
iv) Research  events  for  December  2010  –  May  2011