The role of public relations in ethnic advocacy and activism: A proposed research agenda

Abstract

This essay proposes a research agenda for exploring public relations’ role in ethnic advocacy and activism, as a way to build the field’s knowledge of ethnic public relations. To highlight the potential contribution of public relations to ethnic organizations, and to describe the particular challenges that ethnic public relations faces in societies that sometimes marginalize ethnic groups and issues, this article describes two advocacy efforts by Latino-serving organizations, one in favor of immigration reform and the other in response to the offensive statements against Mexican immigrants stated by politician and entrepreneur Donald Trump. Additionally, the authors propose a research agenda for exploring how public relations is used by ethnic organizations to advance their goals.