So you have a cause or initiative that you are passionate about and want to seek help from your government for your cause? Well, here’s what you need to know – as a constituent in the good ole U.S. of A., you really do have a right to have your voice heard. No, I’m not saying you can pick up the phone and call President Obama to state your case. There is a certain protocol to advocating for changes.
If you’ve read Part 1 to this post, you’ll know that I recently had a chance to advocate for change in support of an initiative called Shot @ Life.
5 Key Steps to take to Become an Advocate for Change in your Community:
1. Contact your local House Representative or Senator (see instructions below). As their constituent, they are actually willing and wanting to hear from you!
2. Send them a personalized note sharing the details of your cause. Here is a Sample letter to Congress for your reference.
3. Ask to schedule a meeting. You may not be able to meet with your representative directly, but a member of their staff will also be adequate for stating your case and communicating the information. Here’s also a Sample scheduler request for your reference.
4. Make sure you have an “ask.” In other words, make sure you have a specific request to communicate to your Representative (a specific funding request, support of a specific bill, etc.)
5. Follow up is key! Even if you meet with a staff person, be sure to follow up with that person as well as your actual representative to both thank them for their consideration and to recap what was discussed.
Note: You will likely have to do all of this more than once. Turnover is high on Capitol Hill and you will want to make sure your cause does not fall by the wayside. The Shot at Life Initiative actually does an annual lobby day to make sure it’s important to make sure it’s on the top of the minds of whoever is on the staff at the time.
What if my cause is not supported?
Not every cause or initiative will be immediately supported. Just like any other organization, there is some red tape and considerations of budget and other agendas can hinder support. If that’s the case, follow the squeaky wheel rule. Find or form a group of supporters to demonstrate numbers, have everyone writing letters and lobbying for your cause.
How to Contact Your Member of Congress
1) Call the Capitol Hill main line: 202-224-3121
2) Ask to be connected to your Senator’s or Representative’s office.
3) The front office will answer the phone. Tell the staff member who answers the phone that you have an opinion on [whatever topic you are sharing (i.e. global health)] that you would like to share with the member of Congress and ask if you can leave that opinion with the staffer.
4) Deliver your talking points to the staffer.
For the Shot at Life Campaign, we delivered the following:
a. Vaccines against diseases like polio and measles are one of the most cost-effective ways to save the lives of children in developing countries. However, despite significant progress, one in five children still lack access to life-saving immunizations.
b. The US government has a long history in being a leader in global health and global vaccines. From working with partners like UNICEF and the World Health Organization to procure and deliver vaccines, to the direct efforts of USAID and CDC to provide vaccines to children in developing countries, decades of bipartisan support from Congress has paved the way for major progress and lives saved .
c. State the ask: “With these points in mind, I ask that you please [INSERT ASK]
5) Ask if he or she requires any follow-up information. Most Congressional offices track phone calls by area code. Some may ask for your name, some may not.
6) You may also ask if the member has a current stance on [topic]
7) Thank the staffer for his or her time.
8) Follow up.
While it’s not always easy to become an advocate for change, I promise you, it is so worth it! Just follow these steps and remain diligent for your cause and when it’s all said and done, just repeat after me…
[Tweet “I did something good for the world today. I did something outside of myself.”]
This is a great resource for people looking to change things in their community!
Great info for people who want to make a change. So cool that you are doing this.
My bff always talks about change, ill make sure she read these tips.
Wow! That would be great, especially when you’ve been experiencing an issue for the longest time, it would be nice to do this for your neighborhood. Thanks for sharing all these pointers and tips. I know change doesn’t happen quickly but it’s good to do something about it.
What a impoertant topic you shared. Glad to know some. Thanks!
This is wonderfully helpful information. I think a lot of people want to be more active in their communities but they don’t know where to start.
Wow I didn’t know you could actually do this. I thought you had to petition and raise money first on your own t turn the heads of anyone in your local government, shows what I know. Thanks for sharing. I’d love to advocate for kids in the foster care system to have free college anywhere!
It’s hard especially if there are no support. It’s also harder to make people support when they really don’t have the passion for it.
Great useful info. Thanks for posting this up. Can certainly help a lot of people.
Such an informative post and this will help lots of people wanting to change something in there area! X
Love all your tips! This is such a great resource. We all need to make a change in our communities.
I’m so glad there are people willing to take initiative and make change. Great tips! I hope people use them.
Such a great post! It is time to start doing and not just complaining !
Wow, this is a great and useful post! I think a lot of people want to get involved in their communities. Thanks for sharing!
kudos to you girl. this is awesome. its great that you are standing up for someethin you believe in.
Thank you so much!
i am firm believer that nothing will change until you are willing to take the action. i have previously reached out to the government to ask for change and it is important to teach others how to do that too
I am an advocate for social change and it makes me so proud to be able to help others.
Good for you for sharing this information with everyone. There are a lot of people who don’t realize that you have to have your voice heard to get action.
It really is important to do your civic duty to help change your community. It can be tiring, but also rewarding.
Great post! More people should be making the change they want, instead of just talking about it.
stand up , do some good and make our voice heard. We can join in the choir singing our sing alone as long as we get our opinion heard.
This is great info for anyone with a passion to become an advocate for change. Great post!!
I didn’t know how to become an advocate – thanks for shedding some light on the process.
This is a great post. More people should be holding their representatives accountable. It’s important to do so.
This is such helpful information. There are some issues I would love to be an advocate for, but I’m not sure if the congress people who are in power where we live would be very receptive.
I am grateful for those who have the time to support and become an advocate.
This is great post, love the step by step information on contacting your representative You never know, I might one day become an advocate for change as well.
thanks for the information very helpful will sharing this for those people who wants to be an advocate too
We have such great opportunities to make change, thanks for providing these steps!
These are all such great tips for people who want to become an advocate for change! Thanks for sharing such a helpful post! Pinned it!
Interesting article becoming an advocate should start in your own community. Its hard if there is no support but if keep at it someone will notice. Support for change I am all about it!
So important topic. Glad to learn new! Thanks for sharing.
I tell people often if they are going to send a letter, they need to follow up to truly allow the issue to hit home. They have so many requests coming in.
This is very helpful information. Thanks for sharing it!
That is a great resource I enjoyed reading this. I will send this to my sister
Great post. Helping and giving back to the community is absolutely inspiring. Thanks for sharing.
These are some great pointers! I really do try to help a lot in my area. I show up to as many things as I can to help make our twin great.
This is very informative, you have basically done it for them haha very good. I am in the UK so not something I will be doing but always interesting to learn about how these things work.
Great tips! Standing up for what you believe in is so important.
These are great tips! I think its so important to stand up and voice your opinions and what you would like to change.
Wherever we are living we should all seek to be change agents