The research we conducted as a group indicated that out of the 307 train stations on the Sydney network, only 131 provided stress-free access. That is access for the disabled and special needs individuals such as elderly people and parents with children on prams. The need for improvement of facilities to aid the disadvantaged compelled our group to find a way of achieving that, and we partnered with Sydney Alliance, who shared similar goals with us. Sydney Alliance, is a non-governmental organization that advocates democracy and fairness. The advocacy occurs through citizen empowerment all across the country; they air their grievances, and in turn engage those in leadership to bring social change (Sydney Alliance 2010).
The social action that we conducted was a petition, and it involved collecting signatures from various people that had been affected by the shortage of such facilities in the stations. The relevance of this social action is that the number of signatures would convince the concerned leaders that indeed there existed a need that required immediate attention. The table talk that we conducted on behalf of Sydney Alliance gave the people a chance to air their grievances, give their views on the issue of transport and also participate in the discussion. The petition was later presented to the minister for transport, and this helped in raising awareness regarding the lack of accessibility for the vulnerable people.
The petition aimed to facilitate the installation of the remaining lifts needed in the stations. The reason we chose this social action was because it helped in identifying the need for improvement of facilities to help the disadvantaged. Moreover, our experience in working with the disability service sector and a passion about improving and advocating public transport accessibility for disabled people served as motivation. Working with a social change organization also made our work easier, since an already established organization is quick to react to arising issues.
A successful petition or campaign is one that involves careful planning. Planning is vital in the accomplishment of any activity because it clearly outlines the goals that need to be achieved, hence saving time and minimizing chaos. Planning boosts confidence and at the same time enhances commitment. (Homan 2011). Our group understood what the issue was and sought means to solve it. Without planning, it would have been impossible to raise the awareness of the disadvantaged people. Social action campaigns aim at raising awareness regarding various concerns, and they consist of people rallying with the purpose of compelling the government to make changes (Rubin HJ & IS Rubin 2001).
Joining the Alliances campaign was critical in the establishment of accessibility of public transport for every individual. Joining the campaign made it easier to convince the government that the issue was serious, with evidence from a multitude than sending an individual to do a representation. The campaign helped in raising the concern because over 500 signatures were collected, meaning the problem was serious and that the government needed to take action. The minister had promised to avail 29 more stations by 2015, but the campaign aimed to serve as an accelerator (Transport for NSW 2014).
People have argued that the petition as a social action is time-consuming and, therefore, ineffective to some extent. However, in our case, it succeeded. Simply because we could interact with individuals and empower them by providing a platform where they could get heard (Minieri, J & Getsos, P 2006). It enabled our group to bring awareness to the minister for transport regarding the challenge that disabled people and other disadvantaged individuals go through for lack of elevators needed in the train stations.
References
Homan, M. S 2011, Promoting Community Change: Making It Happen in the Real World, 5th edn, Cengage Learning, Belmont, CA.
Minieri, J & Getsos, P 2006 ‘Building Community Power’, In Tools for Radical Democracy. How to Organize for Power in Your Community, Jossey-Bass, New York, pp.1-33.
Rubin, HJ & Rubin IS (rev.) 2008, Empowering through Building progressive organization in community organizing and development, 4th edn, Pearson / Allyn and Bacon, Boston, MA, pp.91-105.
Sydney Alliance, 2010, Sydney Alliance, viewed 17 October 2014, <http://www.sydneyalliance.org.au>.
Transport for NSW, 2013, Transport for NSW Disability Action Plan 2012-2017, viewed 17 October 2014, <http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/content/transport-nsw-disability-action-plan-2012-2017>.
