Community Circle- A Model for Focused Socially Distanced Demonstrations in the Time of Covid-19
A concept in development by Lowcountry Up is Good, Inc. PAC & William J. Hamilton, III
Draft 5/12/2020 12:57 PM
Other documentation regarding the Community Circle can be found on www.goodsharing.net. A google photo album of images is online at https://photos.app.goo.gl/8AnAhKFLGqshtgKR6
This circular format for outdoor protest and demonstrations creates drama and focus while maintaining social distance between isolated groups of people. Groups of participants are space out ever 12.9 feet around a circle with a diameter of 98.6 feet. Music, speakers and other presentations emanate from the circles center. The 24 positions around the circle are called stations. Participants are encouraged to bring flags, signs, tables and chairs to decorate their station and increase it’s visual impact.
The circle is laid out using a 50 foot tape measure (which costs about seven dollars) and a steel tent stake or spike. The spike is inserted through the loop at the end of the tape measure and the organizer walks out due North to 49.3 feet from center. Two tent stakes are prepared with a rope 12.7 feet long between them. Starting at North, put down a marker flag. Then, one stake is inserted into the ground and you walk, holding the tape measure until the short rope is tight from the first stake at station one. Put down a marker flag for station two and leave the stake at station two in the ground. Return to North, station one, pull up the stake, leave the flag and walk with the stake attached to the short rope to station three, where you put down a marker flag, temporarily plant the stake before returning to station two to pull up that stake and carry it, with the rope attached to station four, where you being repeating the process. You should restart the measuring process at West, South and East to keep the ordinal station propertly positioned. The careful laying out of a circle which corresponds to the temperature of a healthy human body, the hours of the day and the cardinal points of direction makes the circle deliberate.
If you aren’t certain that you will have 24 groups at your demonstration, lay out an inner circle with 12 stations, 24 feet out from center, again 12.7 feet apart. Use this second, smaller innercircle for a smaller gathering. You’ll be able to use the same short measuring rope.
If you are fortunate enough to fill a larger circle and need more stations, you can add them behind and between your existing stations on the outer circle. Just take your measuring rope and scribe and arc back from both adjoining stations, where those arcs intersect (or just use the measuring rope and a tape measure to create and equilateral trianble, put a between station, adding them around the circle as a new outer ring.
We put a temporary flag pole in the center of the circle, but a speakers, stand, umbrella or tent can also be used. Whatever goes at the center should be colorful and command attention while still allowing presenters to move around and make contact in all directions. You can either run your PA from the center, or run PA cabling to and from a tent or table at station one or outside the circle. If you are able, a camera on top of the flag pole, set up so it can be rotated from the ground, can provide a dramatic point of view. It’s important to have the pole and camera rotated so the circle’s circumference remains in view as it’s rotated with a consistent angle to the ground, all the way around.
Increase Impact Per Participant
Encourage participants to dress up their station so the demonstration appears colorful and busy. Chairs, tables, flags and signs all help. Groups should try to position a small yard sign or banner in front of their station. Try not to block your, or anyone else’s view. If you wish to table with social distancing, use a six foot or longer table, long ways, putting your literature on the far, opposite end of the table. Use hocky pucks, paper weights or something similar to hold the paper down. Put one piece down at a time and replace them, using gloves after one is picked up. Chairs help keep everyone comfortable and make the event look bigger. Costumes and hats increase visual impact. Stations along the circle or sections of the circle can be themed to increase impact. At our initial effort, community and neighborhood organizations filled the circle from South to West, Social Justice and Union orgnaizations from West to North, government, cultural and business organizations from North to East and Environmental Justice organizations from East to South.
Everyone should wear masks so this event can welcome the medically vulnerable. Participants should come with the people they live with. If there are meeting friends they’re not isolated with at the event, those friends should go to a different station. Once you have arrived at your station, you should not go beyond reach of your marker flag. With a spacing of 12.7 feet and a reach of about three feet, it should be impossible for anyone attending to wander within six feet of someone at a different station.
Microphones should be sanitized between users. They should be covered with a new clean, synthetic sock or other cloth covering between uses as well. Since microphones go near the mouth and nose, this is an avenue for transmission which must be carefully monitored.
Those who cannot attend should be encouraged to participate via social media. We call this the “outer circle” which extends to the largest circle of all, the world we share. A dedicated volunteer should monitor the live stream and see that still images and video documentation of the event takes place. We were able to get a drone to shoot video of our first attempt. The real world circle extends outward beyond those present online and forward into to time through communication and documentation.
Maintaining Social Distance Amid Distraction
Two or more volunteers should be assigned to walk around the circle helping people maintain social distance. As the event progresses and people’s comfort level rises, they’ll tend to relax their vigilance and will need support. We must remember that departing from standards can be lethal, particularly to our older, valued leaders and volunteers. We can’t benefit from their presence unless everyone works together to keep them safe.
If bathrooms are available for the event, they’ll have to be sanitized completely between each use. This is a complex, demanding and critical task. Bathrooms or porta potties are dangerous places for virus transmission. In most cases, the demonstration should be kept short enough so that people can go to the bathroom at home. No more than 90 minutes. Everyone should be encouraged to go to the bathroom before they arrive.
Everyone should also be encouraged to bring their own hydration. Shared coolers or containers are another avenue for transmission. If people reach into shared coolers for beverages or access a shared dthermos or container, the container, spigot or handle may become contaminated. Save concessions are possible, but add an order of complexity to the event which requires trained, dedicated staff.
Security must be accounted for. Attempt to find a location surrounded by a fence or barrier which will reduce the costs and effort to secure the area. If counterprotestors appear, your security force, which should include off duty police officers if possible should be sure they remain outside the fenced area and more than 50 feet from participants in your event. You cannot allow the opposition to disorder your event and cause social distancing measures to fail.
Evolving This and Other Models
The community circle was one of four models Lowcountry Up is Good, Inc., has been testing to enable community outreach during the time of Covid-19. We’ve also done two roadside banner pitches, a sidewalk mask distribution with a costumed “masked avenger” and are observing a planned socially distanced campaign cookout. During each of these efforts we’ve observed that socially distancing tends to erode during setup and tear down of the events. Every object needs to be assigned to a single person who handles it. Passing objects, which have to be carried between people, even when gloves are used, contributes to the changes of transmission.
All activity outside of isolation has risks. We cannot promise that these measures, which are still evolving, will eliminate the danger or transmission completely. However careless government, conducted without regard to science or social justice has already killed eighty thousand Americans. There are risks to staying home as well. We welcome suggestions and ideas to improve the community circle and other models for sociallys distanced social witness.
For more information contact
William J. Hamilton, III
wjhamilton29464@gmail.com
(843) 870-5299
https://www.facebook.com/lowcountry.up.is.good.PAC/