RESULTS Weekly Update August 29, 2023

Quote of the Week

“Young people have always been the backbone of the great leaps forward in equity and justice.”

– From blogpost by Yolanda Gordon highlighting the RESULTS Fellowship

Table of Contents

• Senate TB letter deadline is September 7
• Use August recess meetings to set up CTC expansion this fall
• Quick News on U.S. and Global Poverty
• Announcements
• Upcoming Events
• Grassroots Resources

Senate TB letter deadline is September 7

You have been working hard to get signatures on a crucial Senate TB sign-on letter to the Biden Administration asking them to show bold leadership at the UN High-Level Meeting on Tuberculosis (UNHLM) on September 22. Thanks in great part to you, we now have 16 signers. The deadline for signing this letter has been extended to September 7, and the Senate will come back into session just two days before that. How high can we climb with signatures in these final days? The power of this letter comes in the fact that it not only calls on Congress to champion tuberculosis treatment and prevention, but it calls on the Administration to do so as well. The more signatures we gain, the greater the influence and positive pressure.

TAKE ACTION: Don’t wait. Especially if you are meeting with your senators during these last days of the August recess, ask for signatures on the Senate UNHLM tuberculosis letter. When contacting Senate offices, please send them a copy of the letter and the reasons why you want them to sign. Let your senators know why this issue is important to you. For help in figuring out what you wish to say, use messaging from our online alert. Polite persistence will be key. You can also keep the pressure on senators to sign by submitting a letter to the editor and asking your Action Networks to send a message to their senators as well. As we’ve said, don’t wait! Time is of the essence.

Use August recess meetings to set up CTC expansion this fall

As you meet with members of Congress and their staff this month, have you reviewed our resources to help you lobby for an expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC)? If not, let’s take a look:

• CTC Leave-Behind. This is your go-to document for your lobby meetings. It provides data and arguments to help you make a strong case for expanding the CTC to more families with low income. Make sure to give this to lawmakers and their aides in your meetings.
• Responding to CTC myths. The CTC will cause people to quit work and live off the payments. It is too partisan. It costs too much. If you’ve heard these arguments, please read our RESULTS blog post providing helpful responses to these common objections.
• Making the case with conservatives. Do you have a hard time discussing the CTC with conservative members of Congress? See our blog post on ways to enlist their support to expand the CTC. Also see the quick news below for some helpful polling.
• Tax equity page. For additional tools to help you talk about the CTC in lobby meetings, check out the resources on our Economic Justice in the Tax Code campaign page.

With the August recess nearly over, use these resources to push for an expansion of the Child Tax Credit this year. In Washington, most of the fall will be a fight over the FY2024 budget. Once a final budget deal is reached, any tax changes would likely be added to it. That’s why it is so important to meet with lawmakers now about the CTC. Keep the issue front and center so that when things finally come together this fall, a meaningful expansion of the CTC is included.

TAKE ACTION: Request meetings with congressional offices to discuss expanding the CTC in 2023. Use the resources above, and others found on our Working with Congress page to help you. Note that senators will return to Washington on September 5 and representatives will return on September 12. Try to meet with them before then. Remember that staff are here to help. Ask questions of RESULTS staff on tonight’s Lobby Prep Office Hour (see details below) or contact us directly.

Quick News on U.S. and Global Poverty

Polling Trump supporters on the CTC. While this research is from last year, the results are still important to highlight with conservative offices. Polling from family policy group Humanity Forward specifically surveyed Trump voters who live in red states, finding that 70 percent felt Biden’s expanded Child Tax Credit had a positive impact on their financial situation. Use this information to let conservative lawmakers know that their voters needed and appreciated the extra support for their families.

International Literacy Day Hill briefing and breakfast. Invite your House and Senate offices’ foreign policy staff members to RSVP for a Hill briefing and breakfast, co-hosted by RESULTS, on September 13, 8:30-10:00 am ET. This event will celebrate International Literacy Day and educate members of Congress about the READ Act reauthorization. Aides can RSVP online.

Help us gain momentum on READ Act co-sponsorships. In these final days of the August recess, ask your members of Congress to co-sponsor the READ Act (H.R.681, S.41) in both chambers. We need to gain steam on this crucial legislation. Everyone deserves the building block of a good basic education for future quality of life. Have you made your request yet?

Continue to ask for End TB Now co-sponsorships. The End Tuberculosis Now Act has successfully moved through committee in both chambers, and the next step includes more co-sponsorships and seeing that the bills have floor time for passage. As part of your final August recess lobby meetings, ask your representatives and senators to co-sponsor the bill, or use our online alert. This is part of our strategy for key U.S. leadership in the run-up to the UN High-Level Meeting on Tuberculosis this fall . . . and beyond.

Media hooks for the week. Use the hook ideas below to submit a letter to the editor this week. If you need a template, use our online media actions to edit and submit your letter today.

• U.S. Poverty: Use last week’s Republican presidential debate as a hook to demand that candidates outline in detail how they will reduce child poverty if elected. Then pivot to say that we already have a solution to child poverty – expanding the Child Tax Credit.
• Global Poverty: International Literacy Day is next week, September 8. Use this special day as a hook for your own letter to the editor on global education and the READ Act (H.R.681, S.41).

Announcements

September National Webinar on September 9. Due to the Labor Day holiday, the September National Webinar will be held on Saturday, September 9 at 1:00 pm ET. We will launch into our fall campaign focus with a media training to help bolster our advocacy efforts. Register today.

Join tonight’s final Lobby Prep Office Hour. Join RESULTS staff to get coaching on any question you have about August recess lobby meetings. The call is tonight, August 29, 8:00-9:00 pm ET. Join at: https://results.zoom.us/j/98582131855 or dial (301) 715-8592, meeting ID: 985 8213 1855 (no registration required). If you prefer more personalized coaching, please contact RESULTS staff to schedule a lobby prep call with your group.

Join the fall Friends & Family fundraising campaign. New numbers on donor leverage are in! Every $1 in support of RESULTS helps create approximately $2,000 worth of impact! Learn more by reading how one donor became a lifelong volunteer (and then member of our staff) and get inspired to step out for RESULTS this fall.

Check out our new congressional timeline. Ever wonder when issues we work on are most important? Use our new congressional timeline tool to see how our issues fit into the annual congressional calendar.

New Advocate Orientations have resumed!  All new RESULTS volunteers attend a one-hour orientation to introduce them to our organization. During the orientation, we’ll share about how new volunteers can get involved in advocacy, go over some basic skills, and highlight some issues on which we work. These webinars are a great introduction to RESULTS. You can invite anyone who is new to RESULTS to attend an orientation and learn more! RSVP for an upcoming orientation.

Apply for the RESULTS Fellowship. This recent blog highlights the power of young leaders in our movement and in the world. That’s why this invitation to share the application for the RESULTS Fellowship is so important. If you know someone aged 20-35 who wants to harness their political power, sharpen skills, and take action on important issues, invite them to apply for the RESULTS Fellowship.  RESULTS Fellows advocate at the intersections of poverty and anti-oppression and learn how to work with the media, their communities, and policymakers to create change. Applications are now being accepted through October 31. For more information, register for our Fellowship information session on September 13 at 5:00 pm ET. Any questions, please email [email protected].

Don’t miss out on the next Diversity & Inclusion 101 session. To be held at 12:00 pm ET on September 29, this session facilitated by Dr. Christina Gunther, Ed.D., will offer an important way to engage with our values. During this session, we’ll define critical terms, identify why inclusion is important, define implicit bias, describe how biases are developed and what influences them, identify implicit personal biases, and identify the value of disrupting those biases. We’re urging all Group Leaders – current and future – to particularly prioritize taking this training. Register here for this 90-minute learning opportunity.

Share Your Story. Here at RESULTS, we know that sharing your story is the most powerful form of advocacy. When we share our “why” for ending poverty and our experiences taking advocacy action, we build the momentum of our movement. An online form is now available as a place for you to share your “why” for taking action on issues that dismantle poverty and oppression and to share about how that action looks. You might write a brief account of what it felt like to draft a letter to the editor about tuberculosis. You may create a short video describing work to create affordable housing in your community. You might say how the Child Tax Credit changed your life. Depending on the permissions you provide, these stories could be shared on our website, in our social media, in lobby meetings with lawmakers, or among other advocates (or we will keep it private!). Thank you for sharing your story soon. Our experiences are our strength!

Interested in being a Regional Coordinator? The Regional Coordinator (RC) is a key player in the RESULTS community. RCs are the brilliant network of people who provide training, cheerleading, and support for our network of groups. RCs work directly with RESULTS staff members, receive leadership coaching, coaching on powerful speaking, legislative updates and attend a yearly retreat for skills development. Ideal candidates for this volunteer role have experience in a RESULTS Group Leader role, but we welcome all inquiries. Want to learn more about this unique volunteer opportunity? Contact Lisa Marchal. Let’s chat!

Upcoming Events

Congressional schedule: The Senate is on recess until September 5 and the House is on recess until September 12.

Typically, registration ends one hour prior to the start of all webinars and trainings.

Tuesday, August 29: Lobby Prep Office Hour, 8:00 pm ET. Bring questions for RESULTS Staff about your August recess lobby meetings. Join at: https://results.zoom.us/j/98582131855 or dial (301) 715-8592, meeting ID: 985 8213 1855.

Thursday, August 31: Event Planning and Outreach Office Hour, 2:00 pm ET. Drop in via https://results.zoom.us/j/98524229370 or call (312) 626-6799, meeting ID 985 2422 9370.

Saturday, September 9: National Webinar, 1:00 pm ET. Note adjusted date. Register today.

Wednesday, September 13: RESULTS Fellowship information session, 5:00 pm ET. Register today.

Thursday, September 14: New Advocate Orientation, 12:30 pm ET. Learn more and register today.

Thursday, September 14: Event Planning and Outreach Office Hour, 2:00 pm ET. Learn more about this opportunity and just drop in!

Thursday, September 14: Global Allies Program with Returned Peace Corps Volunteers, 8:30 pm ET. Learn more.

Tuesday, September 19: U.S. Poverty Free Agents, 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm ET (note the new evening time). Contact Jos Linn for more information.

Tuesday, September 19: Together Women Rise/RESULTS Advocacy Chapter, 8:30 pm ET. Learn more.  

Wednesday, September 20: Action Network Managers webinar, 12:30 pm and 8:00 pm ET. (Choose your time.) Join the 12:30 pm ET session at https://results.zoom.us/j/93288388695. Join the 8:00 pm ET session at https://results.zoom.us/j/91531456676. Please note that the 8:00 pm ET session will be a media training. No registration required.

Wednesday, September 20: Media Office Hour, 2:00 pm ET. Drop in with questions about writing and getting published.

Thursday, September 21: U.S. Poverty Policy Forum, 8:00 pm ET. Register today.  

Thursday, September 21: Global Poverty Policy Forum, 9:00 pm ET. Register today.

Monday, September 25: Global Poverty Free Agents, 7:00 pm ET. Contact Lisa Marchal for more information.

Friday, September 29: Diversity and Inclusion 101, 12:00 pm ET. Read more about this important 90-minute webinar.

Saturday, October 14: Special National Webinar, 12:00-3:00 pm ET. Stay tuned for more information.

Grassroots Resources

Learn about the RESULTS Experts on Poverty.

Find actions and volunteer resources on our Volunteers Hub, including our anti-oppression resources. To join the RESULTS listserv for more RESULTS conversation, send an email to [email protected].

Remember to please report your recent advocacy successes in lobby meetings, media, and outreach activities. Also, use our Volunteer Information Form to add or edit volunteer info and to sign up for updates and alerts.

If you have a story about advocacy you feel could inspire others, use our new online form to tell us your story.

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

RESULTS Staff directory and job postings.