This activity involves small group work. It encourages people to think through their ideas and opinions and present them clearly in a letter written co-operatively.

We all have opinions, ideas and feelings that we would like to share but sometimes it is difficult to talk about them. Writing a letter can be a useful way to say what you think.
 

Issues addressed

• Those related to the theme the group is working on

Aims

• To promote empathy and understanding about differing points of view on a particular issue
• To encourage participation by members of the group who find it hard to speak in front of others
• To start discussion about solidarity, equality and mutual respect

Preparation / Materials

• Pens and paper (or computer, tablets); access to a photocopier

Instructions

1. Part A: Identify two or three participants and ask them to write a joint personal letter addressed to the group. The letters should end with an invitation to reply, for example, “What do you think about it?”, “Can you help me with this?”, “What is your opinion?”
2. Part B: At the beginning of the next session, ask the writers to read their letter to the whole group.
3. Part C: Ask people to get into small groups to write joint replies.
4. Part D: At the end of the session, or the next time the group meets, ask the small groups to read out their replies, and then move on to the debriefing.

Debriefing and evaluation

Start the discussion by asking what people learned about the process of letter writing, and then go on to talk about the issues raised.

• What was it like writing a joint letter? Was it useful to have others to help you get your ideas straight and to work out what you wanted to write?
• How easy was it to reply to the original letter? Were the issues more complex than you first thought?
• How easy was it to keep the tone of your letters friendly and constructive when writing about a topic you feel strongly about?
• If you are not yourself a direct target of an injustice, can you still speak out effectively?
• Who has the right to speak on behalf of a group? Is it OK to say, “speaking as a member of the X community …”? Would it not be more honest to say, “speaking for myself …”?
• Continue the discussion with the whole group about the issues which were raised in the letters.
• It is easy to find posts about every issue on social media. Does the tone on social media differ from that in the letters you wrote in this activity? In what way? Why might this be? What are the consequences?

Tips for the facilitators

This activity provides an excellent opportunity for people to think clearly about what they feel or want to say about an issue. It provides a mechanism for participants who have difficulties expressing themselves verbally to contribute to the group discussion. In this way, the activity helps generate positive group feelings and promotes personal understanding. It may also be a useful technique when dealing with conflicts within the group.

This exercise works with any type of group, but it functions particularly well with international groups. Consider whether or not to remind the group that the tone of their letter is important. They are writing to a “friend”, but they may in fact not know everyone very well. Your choice of the first writers should be made so as to take into account the diversity within the group.

The theme for the letters should be related to the issue you are currently working on. For example, if the issue is “violence”, then the starting point could be a recent event such as conflicts between different youth groups, a violent attack on somebody, a police raid on a Roma camp, and so.

While participants should be told to make the letters as personal as possible, it must be left to them to decide to what extent they do so. “Personal” in this context means that the participants should somehow be able to identify with the issues, or that they are particularly pertinent to them.

One difficulty that may arise is that some participants may feel that they “cannot write”. By working in small groups, they will hopefully feel encouraged and supported.

Reading the letters out aloud may not be easy for some. A solution may be to ask the groups to read out each other’s letters. It may also be helpful to hand out photocopies of all the letters so that every member of the group can read them.

Suggestions for follow-up

Take action: Write letters about something which concerns you. Send them to the appropriate authorities, politicians or local papers. An easy option is to add your names and comments to an online campaign. Make sure your views are known and help make changes in your society.

Move on to another activity: Writing letters isn’t easy because you have to be clear in your mind what you want to say! Participating in an activity such as ‘Where do you stand’' may be helpful because listening to others’ opinions is usually useful for clarifying your ideas.