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May 1, 2018-2018

United Kingdom

Doll Protest to get Potholes Fixed in Wroughton

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ACTIVISTS/ACT.GROUPS/DESCRIPTION OF THE GROUP

Neville Daytona

TARGET

Swindon Borough Council

WIDELY HELD BELIEF

City must fix potholes so that citizens do not have accidents.

CASE NARRATIVE

Issue and Opponent: Potholes have become a frequent nuisance for many road users in southwest England after heavy snow and bad weather. Mill Lane Road, in Swindon UK, is no exception. There was a crater on the road with a barricade for months and it got worse during the rain. The Swindon Borough Council has repaired the pothole several times but it keeps reappearing due to a problem with the motorway bridge. Dilemma Action: In April, Neville Daytona, a local, decided to take the pothole problems in Swindon, one at a time, by vertically depositing a rustic doll in the pothole. The first doll disappeared but Daytona decided to put another. He said he decided on dolls because he thought it would be funny for drivers to see a big head in the middle of the road. This move garnered the attention and support of locals, and it ultimately prompted the Swindon Borough Council to respond directly. Outcome: Highways England, the department in charge of the maintenance of the roads released a statement saying that the pothole and the underlying issues causing its reappearances were to be fixed.

PRIMARY STRUGGLE/GOAL

Accountability / Corruption

DA TACTICS USED

Slogans/caricatures/symbols

CASE NARRATIVE WRITER

SUCCESS METRICS

11 / 12

(CONC) Concessions were made

(EREP) Dilemma action got replicated by other movements

(MC) Media Coverage

(MSYMP) Media coverage was sympathetic to the activists

(OR) Opponent response

(PS) Dilemma action built sympathy with the public

(PUN) Punishment favored the activists

(REFR) Dilemma action reframed the narrative of the opponent

(RF) Dilemma action reduced fear and/or apathy among the activists

(SA) Dilemma action appealed to a broad segment of the public

Laugtivism

PART OF A LARGER CAMPAIGN

0 / 3

RESOURCES

Project documentation

Dilemma Actions Coding Guidebook

Case study documentation

Dilemma_Actions_Analysis_Dataset

CC BY 4.0 Deed, Attribution 4.0 International

SOURCES

Drive Tribe. “Drive Tribe,” Retrieved July 23, 2023. (https://drivetribe.com/p/legend-launches-doll-protest-to-JNam8c0RyOTCrSSzafZ4g?iid=WgHe26YMS0OypTN_AswThg).

Burnett, Stephanie. 2018. “Dolls’ heads pop up in UK potholes in repair plea,” Euro News. Retrieved July 23, 2023. (https://www.euronews.com/2018/05/02/dolls-heads-pop-up-in-uk-potholes-in-repair-plea).


https://www.expressandstar.cosident-uses-dolls-heads-to-highlight-pothole-problem/. Accessed April 15, 2022.

Burnett, Stephanie. 2018. “Dolls’ heads used to lobby Swindon pothole repairs,” BBC News, May 1. Retrieved July 23, 2023. (https://www.euronews.com/2018/05/02/dolls-heads-pop-up-in-uk-potholes-in-repair-plea).


https://www.swindonadvertis4.creepy-dolls-heads-popping-swindons-potholes/. Accessed April 15, 2022.

https://metro.co.uk/-bizarre-pothole-protest-barbie-dolls-7518124/. Accessed April 15, 2022.

ROD, MINCHIN. 2018. “Potholes Dolled up in Long Wait for Repairs.” Western Daily Press. Retrieved July 23, 2023.


Nicole Stinson. 2018. “‘Backed into a Corner’ Furious Resident Uses DOLLS to Fill up Potholes.” Express Newspapers PLC. Retrieved July 23, 2023.

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