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7. How Do You Choose? Some time you must make a decision as to which of a variety of possible targets you will move in on. Shall it be lunch counters or movies, churches or beaches, jobe or voting? How does one make a choice of etrategy such as this? The previous six points have outlined some of the factors which go into such a decision--basically, a consideration of these factors should give you an idea of your strengths and weaknesses. But a strategy can- not only be based on a realistic view of your strength and the opponent's condition. It must also be based on at least two other things: the national picture, and local needs. If, this year, the national thrust of the entire civil rights movement is on voter registration and political action you would not want to divert your local movement and hence weaken this national effort. At the same time, the strategy which you choose must meet some local needa, must fill some local demand, otherwise the community will not be motivated to join in the struggle. In summary, strategy should be determined and modified by the degree of political awareness of the Negro community, the proportion of Negroes in the _ >tal community, the strength of the organization “(including leadership}, potential outside help where this is a positive factor, the economic situation (vulnerability) of the Negro and white communities, the national picture, and local needs. Good leadership should be able to develop a constructive and workable strategy based on the participation of the community in the strategy decision. 18 Chapter 2; Setting Up An Organization Once the civil rights worker has analyzed the community, and thought about a strategy, he should proceed to set up an organization. Forms of.organization, their structures, and their affiliations if any will depend on the job decided on, and the personnel available. The worker may want to join an existing group in order to influence it; he may want to set up an ad hoc, or temporary group composed either of individ- uals, or of representatives of other groups, or he may want to create a new group. In recent years most groups tend to be "single-cause" rather than many-purpose, with the exception of some student groups (in some cases, single-cause groups later develop into many-purpose groups). It is generally easier to join an existing group than to set up a new one, and toaffiliate rather 19