U.S. Poverty Weekly Update July 5, 2016
U.S. Poverty Campaigns
Weekly Update | July 5, 2016
“We are really lobbyists for the world’s poorest people. Our job is to inform, educate and advocate.”
– RESULTS Coastal Connecticut volunteer Phyllis Behlen quoted in a June 30 article in the Connecticut Post
- Got Two Minutes? Prepare for the Joint U.S. and Global Poverty National Webinar this Saturday at 12:30 pm ET
- Got Ten Minutes? Request Meetings for the Long Summer Recess (July Action preview)
- Got Twenty Minutes? Report and Follow Up on Recent Lobby Meetings
- Upcoming Events
RESULTS deeply thanks everyone who helped make this year’s RESULTS International Conference a tremendous success. With over 500 people in attendance and over 300 lobby meetings, you made this one of the most inspiring and impactful Conferences ever. Thank you!
For materials used at the Conference, please visit our 2016 Conference Resources page.
Got Two Minutes? Prepare for the Joint U.S. and Global Poverty National Webinar this Saturday at 12:30 pm ET
Join us for the RESULTS National Webinar this Saturday, July 9 at 12:30 pm ET. This will be a joint webinar between RESULTS U.S. and Global Poverty volunteers. After a very successful 2016 RESULTS International Conference last week, this webinar will give you the chance to share your inspiring stories about the Conference and actions you took back home to make the Conference a success. We’ll also talk about how we keep the conversation going by using the upcoming long summer recess and election season to make the case for ending poverty. This exciting webinar will be part celebration, part inspiration, and part action. Please plan to join us.
Note: We’ll use a different Fuze number than our normal U.S, Poverty number for this particular webinar (see details below).
TAKE ACTION: Take two minutes to remind your local RESULTS group about the RESULTS Joint U.S. and Global Poverty National Webinar this Saturday, July 9 at 12:30 pm ET. Confirm the location where you’ll meet, what time you want people to arrive, and any group agenda items you’ll discuss before or after the webinar. The webinar is done through Fuze meeting, which you can join online or via phone. To join online, login at https://www.fuzemeeting.com/fuze/f2988286/30204806 or join by phone at (201) 479-4595, Meeting ID 30204806# (note that this is a different number than our normal U.S. Poverty Fuze number). Plan to log in or call in no later than 12:25 pm ET.
Got Ten Minutes? Request Meetings for the Long Summer Recess (July Action preview)
Vacations are nice. Everyone enjoys them and always hopes for more time off. Congress will get its fill of time off this summer as it takes an extra-long recess, beginning at the end of next week. Because of the political conventions and campaign season, both the House and Senate will be on recess from July 18 through September 5. This means you have plenty of opportunity to meet with them. Considering the House was on recess last week during the RESULTS International Conference, it is very important you get meetings with House members at home this summer – they need to hear from you directly. In addition, face-to-face meetings this summer allow you to follow up on requests made at the Conference. Finally, remember that campaign season will be gearing up so look for town halls and candidate events in your area that you can attend and ask a question. Don’t waste this tremendous opportunity to make the case for ending poverty in America!
TAKE ACTION: Take ten minutes to request face-to-face meetings for the congressional summer recess. Coordinate with your group this weekend at the National Webinar on dates and times you are available to meet. Designate members of your group to contact the DC or local schedulers to set up face-to-face meetings with all of your members of Congress. You can find DC scheduler names and contact information on our Elected Officials page. If you’re not sure how to work your request, tailor our sample request letter to send to them. We’ll have more information to help with meetings requests in the July Action (out later this week).
Once you do get a meeting or plan to attend a town hall/event, please contact Meredith Dodson to get coaching on what to ask and discuss ([email protected]). After any face-to-face meeting, please fill out our Lobby Report Form to let us know how it went.
Got Twenty Minutes? Report and Follow Up on Recent Lobby Meetings
Last week in Washington, DC, RESULTS volunteers held over 300 meetings with members of Congress and their staff. They discussed strategies righting the injustice of poverty here in the U.S. and around the world. U.S. Poverty advocates discussed how we can build on the tax credit success of 2015 by expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) for workers without children. They also educated congressional offices about the racial wealth gap and urged them to oppose efforts to cut or restructure the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). RESULTS Global volunteers focused on helping save the lives of millions of families around the world by building support for the Reach Every Mother and Child Act (REACH Act).
These meetings were critically important in moving us closer to a world free of poverty. But our work cannot stop there. In order for us to create that world, we have to do the things to make our work more effective. First is reporting – letting RESULTS know what happened in your lobby meetings (in DC and at home) by filling out the RESULTS Lobby Report Form (www.tinyurl.com/RESLRF). Please understand that reporting on your meetings is vital for us to be successful in this work. For example, in one of the sessions at the Conference, Ellen Nissenbaum of the Center in Budget and Policy Priorities told us that last year they were able to assess and alter their strategy for making the EITC and Child Tax Credit provisions permanent because of the feedback they got from RESULTS volunteers in their lobby meetings. That’s why doing the Lobby Report Form is so essential. It’s not just about tracking numbers; it’s about sharing intelligence that can help us best move our agenda forward.
Second is follow-up. As we’ve said many times, follow-up is almost as important as the meeting itself. If your senator promised to talk to tax leaders about the EITC for childless workers, how will you know if he or she did it without following up? If your House aide promised to tell his/her boss about the racial wealth gap or the need to protect SNAP from block grants, how will you know it happened without follow up? Follow-up allows you to thank the persons you met with, reiterate your request, provide new information, and check on your requests. But most of all, it keeps the conversation going and deepens the relationship. In advocacy, those are essential for success.
TAKE ACTION: Take ten minutes to report and follow up from your recent lobby meetings in DC or at home. Go to www.tinyurl.com/RESLRF to fill out the form today. If you had numerous meetings, divide up the responsibility in your group so one person doesn’t have to do it all. Also, please fill the form out separately for each meeting (note that meetings where both U.S. and Global Poverty issues were discussed are considered two separate meetings for reporting purposes).
Once you have reported in your meetings, coordinate with your group who will follow up on each of your meetings. Send thank you notes or e-mails to each office you met with and reiterate your request. If the office asked for more information, be sure to send that info to them. It is very important to do this right away so your request does not get forgotten. A week later, follow up with the appropriate aide to check on the status of your request. If you would like to use or review resources used at the Conference in your follow-up, go to our 2016 Conference Resources page. Also, if you need help with reporting on your meetings or your follow-up on them, please contact Jos Linn ([email protected]) or Meredith Dodson ([email protected]).
Upcoming Events
Go to the RESULTS Events Calendar to see a full list of RESULTS events. Also, find a list of the RESULTS U.S. Poverty staff with contact information on the RESULTS website.
Congressional Recesses: July 18 – September 5 (House and Senate). Request face-to-face meetings. After your meeting, please tell us how it went by filling out the RESULTS Lobby Report Form: www.tinyurl.com/RESLRF.
RESULTS Joint U.S. and Global Poverty National Webinar, July 9 at 12:30 pm ET. This will be a join call with RESULTS Global Poverty volunteers. Listen to previous webinars on our National Webinars page.
RESULTS Introductory Call, July 13, 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 Free Agents Calls, July 19 at 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm ET. Join online at http://fuze.me/32256018 or by phone at: (201) 479-4595, Meeting ID: 32256018#.
If you have a question, comment or suggestion for the RESULTS/RESULTS Educational Fund Board, please e-mail them to RESULTS Grassroots Board Member Lydia Pendley at [email protected]. You can download RESULTS’ most recent Annual Report at: https://results.org/about/annual_report/.