Blog Post #9

Fundamentally, the Strategy of Counter-Persuasion: Framing Issues is a crucial strategy Institutions implement to prevent Social Movements from attaining their objectives. Institutions achieved this by “challenging a social movement’s vision of reality and attempt to discredit its leaders, members, and demands” (376). Ultimately, when an Institution frames a Social Movement’s issue they often explicate that the Social Movements beliefs are “ill-advised, poorly informed, and lacking merit” (376). Thus, debunking the Social Movement’s ideals and efforts to reform exceedingly.

An instance of the Government using Counter-Persuasion can be seen in 2002, when the Southern Poverty Law Center associated the Animal Liberations Front’s (ALF) involvement in the Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty Campaign with terroristic qualities. Moreover, in 2005, the ALF was listed by the United States Department of Homeland Security as a domestic terrorist threat. By associating the ALF to Terrorism, the Government framed ALF in a negative light. Hence preventing ALF from attaining the support needed to promote their agenda. Ultimately, even though many people might have supported the ALF’s endeavors, the Government made sure to sway their support fan base by discrediting the organization overall with an extremist label. No one wants to support an organization that one can potentially be arrested for supporting, and be labeled terrorists themselves. 

Work Cited: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_Liberation_Front