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Objective: SWBAT explain the role of interest groups in influencing public policy
SWBAT describe the different kinds of interest groups
Vocabulary:
1. Public Interest Group: a group that seeks to institute certain policies that benefit people in the
US
2. Labor Union: organization of workers who share the same type of job
3. Trade Association: another name for business interest groups- American Bankers Association,
American Trucking Association etc.
Upsides to Interest Groups:
1. Raise awareness of public issues
2. Represent people based on ideas instead of geography
3. Gets information out to members and government officials
4. Encourage political participation
Downsides to Interest Groups:
1. Hard to tell how many actual members they have
2. Many groups do not actually represent all members’ views
3. Some groups use bribery, money and threats to get their points across
Types of Interest Groups:
1. Groups that promote causes- ex. Friends of the Earth
2. Groups that promote the welfare of certain groups- NAACP, AARP
3. Religious Groups
From Interest Group Websites: Below is the information from the “About Us” sections of
various Interest Group Websites. Read them, and then write down what their mission is, and who
you think their main supporters are.
Example:
Interest Group: NAACP
About Us: From the ballot box to the classroom, the dedicated workers, organizers, and leaders
who forged this great organization and maintain its status as a champion of social justice, fought
long and hard to ensure that the voices of African Americans would be heard. For nearly one
hundred years, it has been the talent and tenacity of NAACP members that has saved lives and
changed many negative aspects of American society.
Mission: To get equality for African Americans
Supporters: I think their supporters are mainly African Americans and possibly other minority
groups who have also struggled for equality
Your Turn…
1. Interest Group: Sierra Club
About Us: The Sierra Club's members and supporters are more than 1.3 million of your friends
and neighbors. Inspired by nature, we work together to protect our communities and the planet.
The Club is America's oldest, largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization.
Mission:
Supporters:
2. Interest Group: American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
About Us: The American system of government is founded on two counterbalancing principles:
that the majority of the people governs, through democratically elected representatives; and that
the power even of a democratic majority must be limited, to ensure individual rights.
Majority power is limited by the Constitution's Bill of Rights, which consists of the original ten
amendments ratified in 1791, plus the three post-Civil War amendments (the 13th, 14th and
15th) and the 19th Amendment (women's suffrage), adopted in 1920.
Mission:
Supporters:
3. Interest Group: AFL- CIO
About Us: We will build a broad movement of American workers by organizing workers into
unions. We will recruit and train the next generation of organizers, mass the resources needed to
organize and create the strategies to win organizing campaigns and union contracts. We will
create a broad understanding of the need to organize among our members, our leadership and
among unorganized workers. We will lead the labor movement in these efforts.
Mission:
Supporters:
4. If you could create your own Interest Group what would its focus be? What would it be
called?
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