Home Pro-Democracy Narrative Cohorts Issue Area Cohorts

Issue Area Cohorts

Civil and Human Rights

Human and civil rights strengthen our lives, our communities, and our democracy.

In 2026, a cohort of national organizations working on civil and human rights collaborated with the Pro-Democracy Narrative Playbook to customize the Freedom Matters narrative to create a new narrative and message framework that advances support for democracy and civil and human rights.

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Environmental and Climate Justice

Everyone deserves clean air, safe water, healthy neighborhoods, and freedom from toxic threats. And this can only be achieved in a democracy with real accountability and transparency.

In collaboration with the Pro-Democracy Narrative Playbook: Climate Justice Alliance, Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, Frontline Resources Institute, Moving Forward Network, NDN, North Carolina Environmental Justice Network, We Act for Environmental Justice, and We the People of Detroit customized the Freedom Matters narrative to resonate with organizations and practitioners working in the environmental and climate justice space.

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Higher Education

Higher education strengthens our lives, our communities, and our democracy.

Democratic values, principles, and institutions are key to advance and protect our freedoms, and higher education institutions in the United States are one of the places where communities gather, ideas get tested against reality, and the crucial work of building a more equitable society actually happens. Collaborating with an array of national organizations that work in the higher education space, we customized the Freedom Matters narrative to create a message framework that bolsters support for democracy and higher education.

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Higher Education Strengthens Lives, Communities, and Our Democracy: An Affirmative Narrative for Turbulent Times

Drawing from ongoing research on higher education and democracy narratives, Spitfire Strategies and Metropolitan Group prepared this communications brief for the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAC&U). It is intended to help campus leaders communicate in ways that advance public trust in their institutions and in colleges and universities as a whole.

Limits on Power

Play by the Rules

The work of democracy is unfinished and ongoing. But, protecting freedom and making progress on the real-life issues people care about most depends on more than good intentions—it depends on a system where everyone plays by the same rules. Checks and balances, accountability, and respect for democratic norms help ensure that power is exercised fairly, decisions are made transparently, and no individual or group can place themselves above the public interest. This work was supported in part by Issue One, a leading crosspartisan political reform group working to bolster U.S. elections, build a healthier digital information environment for our democracy, strengthen ethics and accountability, and limit the influence of big money over politics.

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Local Government

Local government improves our lives, our communities, and our democracy.

Because local governments are closest to our daily lives, they offer a powerful opportunity to build trust and solve problems together. Cities and towns are where people can have the most voice, shape decisions, and hold leaders accountable. We collaborated with leaders from cities and civic organizations around the country to craft a new pro-democracy narrative that strengthens public trust in local government and advances democracy.

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Public Health

Advancing the public’s health is part of creating a free and fair society. And it depends on all of us.

Democratic values, principles, and institutions are key to advancing and protecting our freedoms, and public health plays a critical role. We partnered with the American Public Health Association’s Campaign for the Public’s Health and Eyes on Health to customize the Freedom Matters narrative to build public-will for the public’s health and bolster democracy.