RESULTS Campaigns Weekly Update March 24, 2020

Quote of the Week

“The only way we can be truly free and powerful in any action is if we do it because we know it needs to be done.”

– Kaira Jewel Lingo

Visit our RESULTS Coronavirus page

Our coronavirus pandemic page is a great new resource for you. Read recommendations on remote meetings for grassroots, information about office functioning, media messaging for these times, and regular updates from Capitol Hill on coronavirus legislation. Visit the page regularly to get the latest news on our work during the outbreak.

Table of Contents

• Global Poverty Campaigns Update
• U.S. Poverty Campaigns Update
• RESULTS Announcements
• Upcoming Events
• Grassroots Resources

Global Poverty Campaigns Update

QUICK ACTION Ask the Senate to invest in global health

Got Five (Or More) Minutes? Send in Appropriations Requests

Great news! There are currently three Senate “Dear Colleague” letters open for signatures but closing soon – a letter on maternal and child health/Gavi/nutrition as well as letters on basic education and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. These letters of influence help us exert positive pressure for support of robust global health and education funding. We’re off to a solid start and need to keep going (check our online tracker for updates on signers). Plus, all Senate members must have their appropriations funding requests in by April 24, which means they must hear from us now. They need time to consider the requests and send them onward.

TAKE ACTION: Use our comprehensive FY21 appropriations page (which includes deadlines, memos/backgrounders on our requests, sign-on letter details, and more) to ask your senator to sign onto one or all three appropriations letters right away. And use our March action sheet to ask your senators to support our global health and education appropriations requests.

Got Fifteen Minutes? Prep for the April 4 RESULTS United Webinar

We are thrilled that on April 4 at 1 pm ET, New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof will speak on our RESULTS United Webinar. His appearance is a positive opportunity and a great moment to invite new advocates to join your local RESULTS group. In this time of social distancing, anyone can join remotely. We want to help you maximize this fantastic event. First, book a virtual meeting with a member of Congress for the April 6-17 recess, and then invite a new person (using our laser talk) not only to log in to the RESULTS United Webinar, but to be part of the virtual lobby meeting as well. Utilize the time directly after the webinar to plan for that lobby meeting. What better way to inspire, share hope, and empower a new fellow advocate . . . or two?

Join the webinar with Nicholas Kristof at https://results.zoom.us/j/994444828. You can also join by phone at (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, meeting ID 994 444 828. To help you prepare for all these opportunities, check out the RESULTS Announcements section for information on a March 26 training on using tech for virtual local meetings and an April 1 training on using tech for virtual meetings with members of Congress.

TAKE ACTION: Use our lobbying support materials to book your virtual meeting with a member of Congress, and then use our laser talk to invite a new advocate to join remotely to the webinar with Nicholas Kristof, the lobby meeting planning, and the virtual meeting with your member of Congress itself. It’s a winning combination for advocacy and growing your group.

QUICK NEWS ON GLOBAL POVERTY

What can you do? You can write! In this unprecedented time, you can raise your voice in the media. Help us tell the story and sound the call – marginalized communities can’t bear the brunt of the coronavirus pandemic. Use our online alert to write today.

Today is World TB Day. It’s time to stand in solidarity and with resilience in the fight against these two airborne diseases: TB and COVID-19. Get into the social media conversation on March 24, World TB Day, at hashtags #EndTB and #ItsTimetoEndTB.

U.S. Poverty Campaigns Update

QUICK ACTION Generate letters to the editor on housing impacts of COVID-19

Got Five Minutes for the Final Push?  Tell Congress to prioritize housing in COVID-19 response

Your advocacy is working. After the first two COVID-19 bills omitted provisions to help people struggling with housing and homelessness, both House and Senate proposals on a “Phase III” response bill now include them. Had you not made calls and sent e-mails over the last week, Congress may have overlooked these critical investments again.

Things continue to move quickly. While the Senate GOP bill failed to advance on Sunday and Monday, negotiations for a bipartisan bill continue. House leaders also released their response bill, which includes $100 billion for emergency rental assistance. As noted in this Washington Post piece, “Renters tend to have lower incomes than their homeowner counterparts and cannot tap into the equity in their homes for a credit line it in case of an emergency. And a disproportionate number of renters are African American, Hispanic and other minorities.” With a deal potentially imminent, please make one last push on housing with your members of Congress (and please check the RESULTS coronavirus and poverty blog post throughout the day for latest updates).

TAKE ACTION: Take five minutes to e-mail your House and Senate housing aides with the following message:

Hi ___________, this is ___________ from RESULTS. I know this is a busy time, but I want to reiterate our support for the following provisions in the final “Phase III” COVID-19 bill:

• At least $15.5 billion in Emergency Solutions Grants to address the housing and health needs of people experiencing homelessness who are at the greatest risk of an outbreak (the Senate GOP proposal has $4 billion)
• A national moratorium on evictions
• Substantial resources for emergency rental assistance (along the lines of the bipartisan Eviction Crisis Act, S. 3030).

Will you please urge Sen./Rep. ____ to speak to leadership and urge them to include these provisions in the final Phase III bill?

Got Fifteen Minutes? Get ready for important April webinar and recess

Ensuring COVID-19 legislation helps those experiencing poverty as a result of the pandemic is a reminder of the importance of your advocacy work. In numerous crises, RESULTS volunteers have stepped up. And you are again now. Many of you have contacted legislators and their aides successfully imploring them to include resources for housing and homelessness in any COVID-19 response. Thank you for your advocacy!

Your work is not only creating policy changes. You are also creating hope. Few of us have experienced a crisis as big and uncertain as this, and we are all grappling with the fear of what’s next. Yet, despite what you are feeling, you’re still doing the work that needs to be done. That’s how hope is created, and how this crisis ends.

People need hope right now and, by your example, you can offer it to them. On April 4, RESULTS is hosting our national webinar with Nicholas Kristof. Congress will also be on recess in April. These events are a great way to show others that times of crisis are filled with opportunities to experience and create hope.

TAKE ACTION: Take fifteen minutes to invite people to our April 4 webinar with New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof and virtual lobby meetings during the spring recess, April 6-17 (also, make sure your or someone in your group is scheduling those virtual lobby meetings!). The updated March Action has tips for messaging and letter-writing in light of the virus outbreak. If you need help with anything, please contact Jos Linn for assistance.

Also, since all these meetings need to be done remotely, we scheduled new training calls on using technology for virtual meetings with your group (March 26 at 8:30 pm ET) and planning virtual meetings with members of Congress (April 1 at 8:30 pm ET). See more details in the Announcements section below.

QUICK NEWS ON U.S. POVERTY

Speak up in the media. Want more to do while staying socially distant? Media is a great tool in educating lawmakers and the public on our issues. During this time of uncertainty, keep the pressure on leaders to make sure no one is left behind during the COVID-19 outbreak and beyond. Read our new RESULTS Blog post on why media matters now with links to online letters to the editor you can submit today.

Join CHC End Hunger 30 Challenge. The Congressional Hunger Center (Alexa Angelo is our new 2020 CHC Hunger Fellow) is offering a free online End Hunger in 30 Challenge beginning April 1. Participants will receive daily email messages and online lessons on the root causes of food insecurity in the U.S. and solutions to the problem for 30 days. You’ll also be able to discuss each lesson and its implications in the current situation with your fellow advocates. Learn more and sign up here before April 1.

RESULTS Announcements

Join trainings on virtual advocacy on March 26 and April 1. While RESULTS groups cannot meet in person during the COVID-19 outbreak, that doesn’t mean you cannot meet. To help you navigate the logistics of moving your meetings online, join us for a series of training calls in using technology in your advocacy. On Thursday, March 26 at 8:30 pm ET, Ken Patterson will host a webinar on how to set up your RESULTS group meetings online. Then, on Wednesday, April 1 at 8:30 pm ET, Jos Linn will review how to schedule and plan a virtual lobby meeting with congressional offices. Join each webinar at https://results.zoom.us/j/390106571 or dial by phone at (929) 436-2866 or (669) 900-6833, meeting ID 390 106 571. If you have held group or lobby meetings online before, please join us to share about your experience.

Join tomorrow’s New Advocate Orientation. If you or someone you know are new to RESULTS, join us for our next New Advocate Orientation tomorrow, March 25 at 8:30 pm ET. Interact with RESULTS staff and other new volunteers, learn more about our advocacy model and issues, and get information on getting involved. Sign up here.

Bob Dickerson Award nominations open. For more than 15 years, RESULTS Seattle volunteer Bob Dickerson epitomized the best of what it means to be a grassroots advocate. After his passing in 2015, we created an annual award in his honor. Use our form to nominate a fellow advocate for this year’s Bob Dickerson Award. Deadline for nominations is April 15.

Apply for the RESULTS Fellowship. If you or someone you know is 20-30 years old and is looking for marketable advocacy skills, a top-notch policy education, and the opportunity to lead, apply for the RESULTS Fellowship (formerly named the REAL Change Fellowship). We are taking applications for the 2020-21 class through April 30. Find more info on the RESULTS website and apply today.

Upcoming Events

Congressional recesses. The next full congressional recess is expected April 6-17. Submit your remote meeting requests today.

Wednesday, March 25: New Advocate Orientation, 8:30 pm ET. Sign up online.

Thursday, March 26: Using Tech for Your Local RESULTS Meetings training, 8:30 pm ET. Join at https://results.zoom.us/j/390106571 or dial into (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, meeting ID 390 106 571.

Wednesday, April 1: Training: Planning Virtual Lobby Meetings with Members of Congress, 8:30 pm ET. Join at https://results.zoom.us/j/390106571 or dial into (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, meeting ID 390 106 571 (note: this training will be combined with our monthly Action Network webinar)

Saturday, April 4: RESULTS United Webinar, 1:00 pm ET. Guest speaker: Nicholas Kristof. Join at https://results.zoom.us/j/994444828. You can also join by phone at (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, meeting ID 994 444 828.

Tuesday, April 14: Book Discussion: The Righteous Mind, 9:00 pm ET. Join via Zoom online or dial (669) 900-6833 US or (646) 876-9923, meeting ID 655 036 085, password: 641539.

Monday, April 20: Global Free Agents Webinars, 1:00 pm ET and 8:00 pm ET. Join a great conversation via https://results.zoom.us/j/464361707 or, by phone, dial (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, meeting ID 464 361 707.

Tuesday, April 21: U.S. Poverty Free Agents Webinars, 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm ET. Join at: https://results.zoom.us/j/324294681 or dial by phone at (929) 436-2866 or (669) 900-6833, meeting ID 324 294 681.

Monday, April 27: Continued book discussion on White Fragility, 9:00 pm ET. To join, log in at: https://results.zoom.us/j/807783478 or dial (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, meeting ID 807 783 478.

June 20-23: RESULTS International Conference. Join us for our biggest gathering of advocates and marshaling of political will of the year. Read more on our Conference page.

Grassroots Resources

Learn about the RESULTS Experts on Poverty.

Do you have a new person in your RESULTS group or info to update? Use our Volunteer Information Form to add them.

Find actions and volunteer resources on our Current Volunteers page.

Please let us know about your recent grassroots successes for lobby meetings, media, and outreach.

If you have a question, comment, or suggestion for the RESULTS/REF Board, please e-mail Steven McGee at [email protected]. View Board minutes and Annual Reports.

RESULTS Staff directory.