U.S. Poverty Weekly Update February 27, 2018

U.S. Poverty Campaigns

Weekly Update | February 27, 2018

“My question to our elected officials who seem intent on cutting vital safety net programs after providing tax cuts to the wealthy and to corporations is this: What would you have the children do?”

– RESULTS Columbus volunteer Ginnie Vogts in a February 24 letter to the editor in Marietta Times

Quick Media Action: Tell Congress to Protect Low-Income Americans

Got Two Minutes? Confirm Your #LettersGetLOUD Plans (February Action)

Thank you to everyone who has helped get our #LettersGetLOUD campaign off to a great start. RESULTS volunteers around the country are meeting together to write letters, read them out loud (some on social media), and deliver them to members of Congress. Visit the RESULTS Volunteers Facebook page to see some of the videos people have posted so far.

But we’re just getting started. #LettersGetLOUD is an ongoing effort to raise awareness of protecting access to food for low-income families and ensuring that people get the health care they need. Therefore, if you have not yet planned your first local #LettersGetLOUD meeting, do it now. In late March, there is a great opportunity to hand-deliver your letters (see more below) so get your letter-writing meeting on the calendar now. And if you’ve had your first meeting already, how will you continue the momentum? Invite different people to join your meeting? Record them and post on social media for the first time? Reach out to grasstops leaders to include them? There are countless ways you can keep using this campaign to make a difference, so start planning now.

TAKE ACTION: Take two minutes to confirm your #LettersGetLOUD efforts for the coming weeks. Schedule your next meeting and what your agenda will be. Use the February Action and #LettersGetLOUD page to help with planning (we will also have tips to help you in the March Action (available soon)). Also refer to your 2018 Group Plan to see how you can use #LettersGetLOUD to help you reach your goals for the year. If you have questions or need coaching, please contact Jos Linn for assistance.

Got Ten Minutes? Get Your #LettersGetLOUD Letters to REAL Changers

This weekend, many of our REAL Change Fellows will be traveling to Washington, DC for the Mid-Year Policy Summit. They will spend Sunday and Monday getting updated training on our U.S. and global poverty issues and then spend next Tuesday, March 6 on Capitol Hill meeting with members of Congress and their staff. These lobby meetings are a great opportunity to get your #LettersGetLOUD hand-delivered. It’s also a powerful demonstration to members of Congress that these young leaders have people back home standing with them on the issues.

TAKE ACTION: Take ten minutes to contact REAL Change Fellows in your state to see if they are attending the Policy Summit this weekend in Washington, DC. If so, coordinate with them how you can get your #LettersGetLOUD letters to them so they can deliver them in-person during lobby meetings next Tuesday on Capitol Hill.

Also, if you know someone who would make a great REAL Change Fellow, urge them to apply for the 2018-19 Fellowship today.

Got Twenty Minutes? Get a Jump on the March Action – Schedule #LettersGetLOUD Meetings for March Recess

Congress is back in Washington this week. Thank you to everyone who tried to get meetings with your members of Congress last week (and congratulations to those of you who succeeded). If you did not get a meeting, fret not. Congress has two-week recess beginning the weekend of March 23. Our March Action (out later this week) will focus on getting you ready for this recess. Specifically, how you can use this opportunity to meet with them and talk about protecting SNAP and Medicaid and invite new people to join you in delivering #LettersGetLOUD letters. Start preparing now by requesting face-to-face meetings so you can get on your lawmakers’ calendars early.

TAKE ACTION: Take two minutes to contact your House and Senate offices about scheduling a lobby meeting with your members of Congress during the March 26 – April 6 recess. Use our online template to customize, print, and send your meeting requests today. When you get a meeting or town hall, please contact Meredith Dodson ASAP for coaching and materials. Be sure to visit our U.S. Poverty Campaigns page for updated lobby requests to take to your meetings and after your meeting or town hall, please fill out the RESULTS Lobby Report form to let us know how it went.

Quick News

REMEMBER – National Webinar Next Tuesday! Don’t forget our new National Webinar schedule – the first Tuesday of the month at 8:00 pm ET. Be sure to remind your group members that the March webinar is next Tuesday, March 6. On the webinar, we urge you to share successes and questions about your #LettersGetLOUD experience so far. We’ll have more details about the webinar in next week’s Update.

New Piece Shows Why Work Requirements Don’t Work. Jared Bernstein of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has a new op-ed in the Washington Post outlining why Congress’s new push for work requirements in SNAP and Medicaid will do little to help workers find work and get out of poverty. As some leaders in Washington continue to push the myth that SNAP, Medicaid, and other services are a disincentive to work, use this piece to remind them in lobby meetings and letters to the editor that it’s just not true.

Invite New People to a RESULTS Intro Call. As you meet new people through your #LettersGetLOUD efforts, invite them to learn more about RESULTS by joining a RESULTS Introductory Call. These 30-minute calls will give them an overview of our work and answer questions they may have. People can register for an upcoming call on the RESULTS website.

Help Us Help You Come to the RESULTS Conference. If you want to come to the 2018 RESULTS International Conference, but need help with some of the costs involved, apply for scholarship assistance at www.tinyurl.com/RESULTSScholUS.

Self-Care Tip of the Week. One of the best ways to take care of ourselves is to focus on the welfare of others. Take time this week to check in with someone you haven’t spoken to in a while to see how they are doing. No agenda – just tell them you were thinking of them.

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.

Upcoming U.S. Poverty staff time out of the office: Kristy Martino: February 20-March 4. Meredith Dodson, March 9-12. Jos Linn, March 21-25.

REAL Change Mid-Year Policy Summit, March 3-6. Washington, DC.

RESULTS Introductory Call, Tuesday, March 6 at 1:00 pm ET. To participate, call (712) 775-8972, passcode: 761262. Register here.

RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Webinar, Tuesday, March 6 at 8:00 pm ET. Participate at http://fuze.me/32255914 or (201) 479-4595, Meeting ID: 32255914#.

U.S. Poverty Free Agents Calls, Tuesday, March 20 at 1:00pm and 8:00pm ET. Login at http://fuze.me/32256018 or dial in by phone at (201) 479-4595, Meeting ID: 32256018#.

RESULTS Introductory Call, Thursday, March 22 at 8:30 pm ET. To participate, call (712) 775-8972, passcode: 761262. Register here.

House and Senate Recess, March 26 – April 6. After any lobby meeting, please complete the RESULTS Lobby Report Form to let us know how it went.

RESULTS Introductory Call, Wednesday, April 4 at 8:30 pm ET. To participate, call (712) 775-8972, passcode: 761262. Register here.

RESULTS Introductory Call, Friday, April 20 at 1:00 pm ET. To participate, call (712) 775-8972, passcode: 761262. Register here.

2018 RESULTS International Conference, July 14-17, 2018, Grand Hyatt Hotel in Washington, D.C. Registration is now open – register today. Watch our new 2018 Conference video and share it (along with our flyer) with others you know!

Other Resources

Get Your RESULTS Promo Materials. If you are looking to up your presentation game for local meetings and events with banners, pens, stickers, or business cards, fill out our Materials Order Form and we’ll send them to you.

Got a Question for the RESULTS Board? If you have a question, comment, or suggestion for the RESULTS/RESULTS Educational Fund Board, please e-mail them to RESULTS Grassroots Board Member Steven McGee at [email protected]. View the most recently published Board minutes on the RESULTS website, as well as RESULTS’ most recent Annual Report.