U.S. Poverty Weekly Update June 9, 2015
U.S. Poverty CampaignsWeekly Update | June 9, 2015
In This Week’s Update:
|
|
|
Quick Action: Register for the RESULTS International Conference!
|
|
Got Two Minutes? Get Ready for the RESULTS National Meeting This Saturday at 12:30pm ETPlease join us this Saturday, June 13 at 12:30 pm ET for the RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Meeting. As we enter the summer of 2015, things are heating up in Washington. Tax policy seems to be on a lot of lawmaker’s minds and it’s our job to make sure they’re thinking about the right things. On this month’s call, we’ll talk about the racial wealth gap and the importance of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) in addressing wealth inequality with Rep. John Conyers (D-MI). We’ll even take a quiz to test our knowledge about the racial wealth gap. Join us for this important call. TAKE ACTION: Take two minutes to remind your local RESULTS group about the RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Meeting this Saturday, June 13 at 12:30 pm ET. Coordinate with your group where you will meet for the call. We use Fuze Meeting for these monthly gatherings; to join the meeting, login at http://fuze.me/28130766. If you cannot join online, you can dial in by phone at (201) 479-4595, meeting ID: 28130766#. Plan to log in or call in no later than 12:25 pm ET. If you have questions about Fuze or how to log in, please contact Jos Linn at [email protected]. The slides for Saturday’s meeting will available later this week on the RESULTS Home Page in the “Take Action” box in the top right-hand corner. Please download them and plan to scroll them yourself during Saturday’s meeting. |
|
Got Ten Minutes? Start a List of People Who Can Help You Take Action on the EITC and CTC (June Action)As mentioned above, a good part of this Saturday’s RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Meeting will focus on learning more about the racial wealth gap. Just to give an example of how bad the racial wealth gap is, in 2011 the median net worth for white Americans was $111,740, while the median net worth was $7,113 for African Americans was $8,113 for Latinos. That means that the average white household had 15 times the wealth than African American households and the 13 times than Latino households. It is clearly a problem that needs fixing (and has been for a long time). However, learning about the issue is not enough. We must take action if we want things to change. The EITC and CTC are two of our most effective tools in combatting rising inequality. Making the 2009 EITC and CTC improvements permanent is a top priority among many advocates and policy-makers. The Center for Global Policy Solutions (CGPS), one of the leading voices on the racial wealth disparities, has made making the EITC and CTC improvements permanent a key policy goal in their work to reduce the racial wealth gap (note: Dr. Maya Rockeymoore, the President and CEO of CGPS, will be speaking at the 2015 RESULTS International Conference; she also spoke on our June 2014 national conference call). This month, RESULTS urges you to enlist the help of others to address the racial wealth gap and protecting families receiving the EITC and CTC. By generating letters in your community to be hand-delivered to members of Congress, you send a strong message to Congress that Americans want them to put the needs of working families first. TAKE ACTION: Take ten minutes to work on the June Action. Set a goal of how many people you would like to write letters about the EITC and CTC. Then make a list of who you will ask to write letters. Your list of people should be larger than your goal, as not everyone will say yes. Share your list with your RESULTS group at this weekend’s National Meeting (or your next monthly meeting) and discuss ways you can reach out to people and urge them to take action. Once you start asking people to write, give people our new EITC/CTC Outreach Action Sheet to help with their letters. Plan to gather your letters together later this month or in early July to hand deliver them to your members of Congress at the RESULTS International Conference or your next meeting in your home district. The June Action has helpful tips for generating these letters, as well as more background on the racial wealth gap. If you have questions, please contact Jos Linn at [email protected]. |
|
Got Twenty Minutes? Give Us Your Feedback – Take the 2015 RESULTS Grassroots SurveyLast week, we unveiled our new 2015 RESULTS Grassroots Survey. Thank you to everyone who has already taken it. The feedback we get from you is essential in making sure that RESULTS can support you effectively and make your RESULTS experience as meaningful as possible. This survey also gives you the chance to help shape the future of RESULTS by weighing in on what our new organizational strategic plan should look like. TAKE ACTION: Please take twenty minutes to complete the new 2015 RESULTS Grassroots Survey. Go to: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MJYGK9B and take the survey today. This information is invaluable to RESULTS and will help us better meet your needs as a volunteer. |
|
RESULTS Coalition Allies Providing Great Resources to Help You, including Budget Webinar TODAY at 1:30pm ETLast week, the Coalition on Human Needs (CHN) and TalkPoverty.org presented a fantastic webinar on the importance of telling your story. As RESULTS gears up for the 2015 RESULTS International Conference, we are looking for ways to elevate the voices of the real experts in poverty, and support them to tell their stories. The Community Voices: Why Nutrition Assistance Matters webinar was the kickoff of a new campaign help those who are new to, or nervous about, sharing their experiences. In a climate where misinformation is rampant, it is critical we not only bring facts to the table, but also humanize our issues, putting a face (or rather, many diverse faces) to the problems and the solutions to poverty in America. Learn more about this webinar and new campaign in this RESULTS Blog post from U.S. Poverty Organizer Kristy Martino. Also, CHN is hosting a federal budget webinar TODAY at 1:30 pm ET to overview the recent budget passed by Congress back in May calls. It calls for deep cuts to everything from housing to health care to Head Start. During this webinar, you will learn exactly where things are and the impact of budget cuts from DC and local experts. We are likely to see a lot of activity around our issues in the coming months so plan to join this important webinar to learn what to expect. The webinar is today, June 9 at 1:30 pm ET. Register at the CHN website. For more information about our 2015 U.S. Poverty Campaigns, see our Current Campaigns Summary. |
|
Have You Registered for the RESULTS Conference Yet?The 2015 RESULTS International Conference is only five weeks away! Have you registered yet? Please plan to join us for RESULTS biggest and most inspiring event of the year. You can REGISTER TODAY on the RESULTS website. Be sure to book your hotel when you register (also through RESULTS) so you can get a room at the discounted rate. Also, if you want to come to the conference but need financial help getting there, please fill out our RESULTS U.S. Poverty Activist Scholarship Fund form. Fill it out now, as we only have a little scholarship money left. Finally, visit our Conference Resources page to find helpful information to help you prepare for this year’s conference, including our new 2015 International Conference Checklist. Note: For those of you planning to come, we will start scheduling Lobby Prep calls with you beginning next week. |
|
Join Intro Call Tomorrow and Free Agents Calls Next WeekIf someone you know wants to learn more about RESULTS and how best to get involved, invite them to join our next RESULTS Introductory Call tomorrow night, June 10 at 9:00 pm ET. These 30-minute calls provide an overview of our work and how you can join us in the fight against poverty. Register for tomorrow's call (or another upcoming one) on the RESULTS website. Also, the RESULTS U.S. Poverty Free Agents will have their monthly support calls next Tuesday, June 16 at 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm ET. If you are an active volunteer (or want to be one) but live in an area with no active RESULTS group, join the Free Agents. You’ll get monthly support and coaching from staff on actions you can take on our U.S. Poverty issues. To participate in one of the calls, join online at: http://fuze.me/27491886; or by phone at (201) 479-4595 and enter Meeting ID: 27491886. For more information, contact Jos Linn ([email protected]). |
|
Upcoming EventsGo to the RESULTS Events Calendar to see a full list of RESULTS events. Next Congressional Recesses: House and Senate: June 29 – July 6. Request face-to-face meetings. RESULTS Introductory Call, June 10 at 9:00 pm ET. If you want to learn more about RESULTS, register for an upcoming Intro Call on the RESULTS website. RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Meeting, June 13 at 12:30 pm ET. Listen to previous conference calls and meetings on our National Conference Calls page. RESULTS U.S. Poverty Free Agents Call, June 16 at 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm ET. Join online at: http://fuze.me/27491886; or by phone at (201) 479-4595 and enter Meeting ID: 27491886. For more information, contact Jos Linn ([email protected]). Advocacy Training: Advocacy 101 Training and What to Expect at the International Conference, June 24 at 9:00 pm ET. Join online at: https://www.fuze.me/28699630 or by phone at (201) 479-4595, passcode 28699630. This webinar will also be repeated on July 9 at 1 pm ET. Independence Day Holiday, July 4. All RESULTS offices closed on July 3. Attend the RESULTS International Conference, July 18-21. Join us for the RESULTS International Conference at the Washington Court Hotel in Washington, DC. This is the biggest event of the year for RESULTS. Register TODAY! Find a list of the RESULTS U.S. Poverty staff with contact information on the RESULTS website. |