RESULTS Campaigns Weekly Update September 22, 2020
Quote of the Week
“While millions of Americans are still struggling to pay the bills and put food on the table, Congress is at a stalemate in terms of passing a second round of COVID-19 emergency funding.”
– RESULTS Olympia, WA volunteer Tonnie Cummings in a September 17 letter to the editor in The Columbian
Table of Contents
- Global Poverty Campaigns Update
- U.S. Poverty Campaigns Update
- RESULTS Announcements
- Upcoming Events
- Grassroots Resources
Global Poverty Campaigns Update
QUICK ACTION Write a letter to the editor on prioritizing global health and education during the COVID-19 crisis
Got Fifteen Minutes? Get your letter to the editor on a COVID-19 global response submitted
Most everyone is conceding that Congress and the White House will not advance a COVID-19 relief package before the elections. We must keep up constituent pressure so they know we are angry & disappointed so it becomes a priority in November upon their return. Your media work has been incredible, with new pieces coming in daily. Your calls and emails have been critical as well.
We need to keep the pressure on–there’s too much at stake to let up. In October we’ll continue to focus on generating media. We are still asking for a global response of no less than $20 billion for development assistance in the next emergency response package, with a designation of $10 billion of that to be used as follows:
- $4 billion over two years for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria
- $4 billion for Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance
- $2 billion for anti-hunger programs, with at least $500 million for nutrition
Will you write and submit a letter to the editor this week?
TAKE ACTION: Write a Letter to the Editor. Let your members of Congress know that you want them to prioritize passing a COVID-19 relief bill that includes at least $20 billion in development assistance. Use our online action alert to write your letter. Once it’s published be sure to do the following:
- Send the letter to Legislative Director and Foreign Policy aide along with our global media compilation of over 124 pieces of media from around the country and a request for action.
- Send your letter to your group members and network and ask them to amplify it by sending it to your representative and senators with a call to action.
- Report your letter so we have a record of your great work.
Got Another Fifteen Minutes? Utilize the September Action Sheet to enlist others into taking action
COVID-19 is having a devastating impact in low-income nations. Did you know that without urgent action, the number of people facing hunger is expected to double to 265 million by the end of 2020, according to the World Food Program? Wasting, a form of severe malnutrition, is the single biggest driver of increased child deaths in projections of the impact of COVID-19. And these are just two of the effects COVID-19 is expected to have globally.
TAKE ACTION: Utilize our September Action Sheet to enlist others to write a letter to the editor, letting members of Congress know that a (minimum) $20 billion global emergency response package is what’s needed – and what leadership must work for – to face the COVID-19 crisis globally.
QUICK NEWS ON GLOBAL POVERTY
Blogpost on UNICEF Report. UNICEF and the UN Interagency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UN IGME) recently published a new report on child mortality estimates during 2019 and found that under-five mortality has decreased almost 60 percent since 1990. This progress is remarkable. But in 2019 over five million children still died before reaching their fifth birthday, many from preventable or treatable causes. Read more on our blog.
Hunger piece in the New York Times. Read about the threat of hunger as a vicious side effect of the COVID-19 crisis in a New York Times article titled “The Other Way Covid Will Kill: Hunger.”
New Global Fund Report. 38 million lives saved through the Global Fund since 2002. Read about the strides made and the lives saved in the Global Fund’s new report on its outcomes and impact in the world. Check out the full report.
U.S. Poverty Campaigns Update
QUICK ACTION Use media to push Congress to pass emergency rental assistance
Got Five Minutes? COVID relief before election unlikely – let your frustrations be known
At the end of last week, it looked as if the ice in negotiations between Congress and the White House over a new COVID-19 relief bill were thawing. A bipartisan group of House members released a COVID relief proposal that included funding for rental and nutrition assistance. The White House then signaled its willingness to accept a higher price tag for a COVID package (the biggest sticking point for negotiators), which was the opening many people were waiting for. Going into last Friday, there was hope.
Then Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away.
The prospect of filling a Supreme Court vacancy this fall has now consumed the attention of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, as well as President Trump. As a result, any hope for a COVID bill before the election seems to have disappeared. After months of inaction, the Senate has finally found its sense of urgency, just not for helping the millions of Americans still struggling to pay rent and put food on the table in the worst economic crisis in a century.
TAKE ACTION: Take ten minutes to tell your members of Congress to get their priorities straight. Use our updated media alert to submit a letter to the editor telling them to pass a COVID-19 bill that includes $100 billion in rental assistance now. Be sure to mention members of Congress by name to put pressure on them and the White House to pass a COVID-19 as soon as possible (most likely, after the election).
QUICK NEWS ON U.S. POVERTY
Today is National Voter Registration Day. Today, September 22 is National Voter Registration Day. With less than 50 days until the election, it is vital to American democracy that eligible voters get registered and plan to vote. Sadly, low-income Americans are less likely to be registered or vote than higher income Americans. Help make sure all voices are heard in our election by urging everyone you know to get registered to vote. Find additional resources at Our Homes, Our Votes 2020.
Help renters take advantage of new moratorium. The new eviction moratorium does not automatically stop all evictions. In order to be protected, eligible renters must sign a declarative statement and send it to their landlord ASAP. The National Low-Income Housing Coalition has a new resource that explains the moratorium and draft declaration form renters can use. Please share this resource with people you know.
RESULTS Announcements
Remember to register for the National Webinar. You will need a password to access our October 3 RESULTS National Webinars. Please fill out our webinar registration form to get on the list to receive the password.
Register for “Racial Equity and Housing Justice During and After COVID-19” with Ta-Nehisi Coates. NYU’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute and NLIHC will host a conversation on housing and racial equity after the pandemic with award winning journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates on October 6, at 1:00 pm ET. Register today for this live-stream event at: https://bit.ly/32yRqi6.
RESULTS Fellowship Applications closing. September 30 is the final day for RESULTS Fellowship applications. This fellowship, designed for emerging leaders ages 20-30, is a tremendous learning and networking opportunity. For information on the fellowship itself and how to apply, go to https://results.org/fellowship.
Visit coronavirus blog for updates. Read the RESULTS coronavirus blog for the latest updates and actions you can take.
Receive action alerts via text. We are setting up a system to send some of our action alerts via text. If you’d like to receive text action alerts, please text RESULTS to 50457 to sign up for text action alerts.
Upcoming Events
Congressional schedule. Members of Congress are in DC. Submit your remote meeting requests today.
Wednesday, September 23: New Advocate Orientation, 8:30 pm ET. Sign up online.
Tuesday, September 29: Presidential Debate, 9:00pm ET.
Saturday, October 3: RESULTS National Webinar, 1:00 pm ET. 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. Please register for the webinar to receive the login password.
Wednesday, October 7: Vice Presidential Debate, 9:00 pm ET.
Thursday, October 8: Candidate Engagement training webinar, 8:30 pm ET. Login details TBA.
Tuesday, October 13: Welcoming New Advocates training webinar, 8:30 pm ET. Login details TBA.
Tuesday, October 13: Putting The Righteous Mind into Practice webinar, 9:00 pm ET. Join the meeting using this link, meeting ID: 655 036 085, passcode: 641539.
Monday, October 19: Global Poverty Free Agents Webinars, 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm ET. Join at https://results.zoom.us/j/464361707 or, by phone, (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, meeting ID 464361707.
Thursday, October 15: Presidential Debate, 9:00pm ET.
Tuesday, October 20: U.S. Poverty Free Agents Webinars, 1:00 and 8:00pm ET. For information on how to join, please contact Jos Linn.
Tuesday, October 22: Presidential Debate, 9:00pm ET.
Grassroots Resources
Learn about the RESULTS Experts on Poverty.
To update volunteer info (e.g. subscribe to the Weekly Update or action alerts, add new advocate information, update an existing advocate’s information or preferences), use our Volunteer Information Form.
Find actions and volunteer resources on our Current Volunteers page, including our anti-oppression resources.
Remember to please report your recent grassroots successes in lobby meetings, media pieces, and outreach activities.
If you have a question, comment, or suggestion for the RESULTS/REF Board, please e-mail Lindsay Saunders at [email protected]. View Board minutes and Annual Reports.
RESULTS Staff directory.