U.S. Poverty Weekly Update February 26, 2019
Quote of the Week
“The housing crisis in our nation needs urgent attention.”
– RESULTS Madison volunteer Rachel Azanleko-Akouete in a February 9 letter to the editor in the Cap Times
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Note that U.S. Poverty National Webinar is next Tuesday, March 5 at 8:00 pm ET. Please make plans this week for where and with whom you will do the webinar. Find more details about the webinar in our Events Calendar and in next week’s Update.
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Got Two Minutes? Generate Media on Housing (and new form to report it)
As we continue our work on housing and homeownership in 2019, it is important that lawmakers and people in our communities understand the issue. When a person working full-time at the federal minimum wage cannot afford a two-bedroom apartment anywhere in America, we have a problem. Sadly, too few people know about it. Generating media is the easiest way to educate lawmakers and the public about housing. And we’ve made it easier for you to do. Use our online media action to submit a letter to the editor today urging Congress to invest more resources to address America’s housing crisis.
TAKE ACTION: Take two minutes to submit a letter to the editor about affordable housing using the RESULTS housing media alert. Make sure to personalize your letter and mention your members of Congress by name. Also, please report your U.S. and global poverty media pieces using our new online form at: http://tinyurl.com/RESULTSMedia. If you have questions, please contact Jos Linn.
Got Ten Minutes? Follow Up from Last Week’s Meetings and Seek New Ones in March
Thank you to everyone who sought meetings during last week’s congressional recess. You meeting with members of Congress and their staff is the best way to influence them on important issues like housing and tax policy. But it doesn’t stop with the meeting. Follow-up from your meetings is vital in keeping the momentum going. It is your opportunity to thank them for meeting with you (relationship-building), reiterate your requests (advocacy), and check on the status of those requests (accountability).
Your work so far in 2019 is helping us Set the Agenda for the new Congress. So far, volunteers have had 14 face-to-face meetings and 38 meetings with congressional staff since the Set the Agenda campaign began last month. Congratulations! But we have more to do. Our goal is to meet with each office our volunteers cover by the end of April. The more offices that hear about the importance of housing assistance, the more likely Congress will act. Congress will be on recess again in March and April. Push for meeting during those recesses so that you can make your voice heard.
TAKE ACTION: Take ten minutes to set the agenda by following up on recent meetings with congressional offices and to request meetings for the Merch and April recesses. You can find contact information for your members of Congress using our Legislator Lookup tool. Use our meeting request (online or Word doc) to request a meeting for March or April. Find all the resources you need for your meetings on our new lobbying page. If you get a last-minute meeting this week, please contact Meredith Dodson for coaching.
Also, please fill out a lobby report for each of your meetings (staff or face-to-face) on the RESULTS website. Sometime the lobby report is the only way we know you had a meeting and what happened.
Got Sixty Minutes? Join Black History Month Discussions Today and Thursday
Black History Month celebrates the accomplishments of African Americans, raises awareness of past and current injustices, and reminds us to recommit ourselves to do work consistent with our stated values. As Black History Month 2019 wraps up this week, RESULTS is offering several opportunities to deepen the discussion into the issues BHM calls to mind.
First, today, February 26 at 1:00 pm ET, RESULTS Regional Coordinator Rachel Azanleko-Akouete will host a discussion centered on three short videos: “What does my headscarf mean to you?,” “Place Matters,” and “The danger of a single story.” Please watch these three short videos and then join the discussion. Join online at: https://results.zoom.us/j/398056270 or dial either (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, meeting ID 398056270.
Then this Thursday, February 28 at 2:00 pm ET, join RESULTS Director of U.S. Poverty Campaigns Meredith Dodson for a discussion of the book, Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. Join online: https://results.zoom.us/j/398056270 or dial either (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, meeting ID 398056270.
TAKE ACTION: Take sixty minutes this week to explore some of the ideas and issues raised by Black History Month. Join one or both of the above discussions. In addition, read through our Black History Month resource list for resources to expand your knowledge and create topics of discussions in your groups.
In addition, because the issues raised by Black History Month don’t disappear on March 1, join another webinar on Wednesday, March 6 at 3:00 pm ET called “Applying a Racial Equity Lens to U.S. Federal Nutrition Policy: SNAP, WIC and Child Nutrition”. Learn more and register for this webinar here.
Quick News
Trump Administration Proposes to Roll Back Payday Lending Rule. In yet another attack on protections for low-income Americans, the Trump Administration is proposing to repeal a new payday lending rule. The rule, created by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in 2017, requires lenders to assess whether the person seeking a payday or car title loan can repay it. Under new administration, the CFPB is now proposing to repeal its own rule. This change would increase the risk of “debt traps” for borrowers pushing them deeper into poverty. Read more about the change from the Center for Responsible Lending. You have until May 15 to submit a comment opposing repeal of the rule. Submit your comments today!
Register for the RESULTS Conference! Registration for the RESULTS International Conference (July 13-16 in Washington, DC) is now open. Go to www.resultsconference.org to register today for our biggest event of the year.
Oppose New SNAP Rule. If you have not submitted your public comment opposing the Trump Administration’s proposal to take SNAP benefits from 755,000 childless adults, please go to FRAC’s website to submit your comment today. The deadline is April 2.
Send in Your Group Plans. Please submit your 2019 group plan using our online form. Find all our planning materials on the Outreach and Planning page. If you have questions, please contact Jos Linn for assistance.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Tuesday, February 26: Black History Month Discussion, 1:00 pm ET. Join a discussion centered on three short videos: What does my headscarf mean to you?, Place Matters, and The danger of a single story. Join online at: https://results.zoom.us/j/398056270 or dial either (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, ID:398 056 270.
Thursday, February 28: Black History Month Discussion, 2:00 pm ET. Join a discussion of the book, Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates. Join via online at: https://results.zoom.us/j/398056270 or dial either (669) 900-6833 or (929) 436-2866, ID:398 056 270.
Tuesday, March 5: RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Webinar, 8:00 pm ET. Join at: https://results.zoom.us/j/873308801 or dial (929) 436-2866 or (669) 900-6833, Meeting ID: 873 308 801. Find recordings and slides from previous webinars on the National Webinars page.
Wednesday, March 6: RESULTS Action Network Community of Practice webinar, 8:00pm ET. To join, log in: https://results.zoom.us/j/427674133 or dial in: 669-900-6833, Meeting ID: 427 674 133. You can also join our Facebook and e-mail groups.
Monday, March 18-Friday, March 22: Congressional Recess. Submit your meeting requests today.
Tuesday, March 19, U.S. Poverty Free Agents Calls, 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.
Saturday, July 13-Tuesday, July 16, 2019: RESULTS International Conference. Register today at www.resultsconference.org!
Find all events on the RESULTS Events Calendar.
U.S. Poverty Staff time out of the office: Meredith Dodson, April 15-19. Jos Linn, March 21-22.
OTHER RESOURCES
Learn more about the RESULTS Experts on Poverty.
Report lobby meetings in our Lobby Report Form and report any published media in our Grassroots Media Form.
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.