U.S. Poverty Weekly Update November 20, 2012

November 20, 2012

As we sit and talk deficits and tax cuts and ending tax cuts, we as Americans must think about what this could and would do to families like mine that try our hardest to support our children the best way we know how and often take on part time jobs to do it.

— RESULTS volunteer Yolanda Gordon on her blog

New and Urgent in This Week’s Update (Two-Ten-Twenty Actions)

Latest from Washington, DC

Organizational Updates

Got Two Minutes? Say Thank You to Someone in RESULTS

Thank you to all of you for doing what you do to make the world a better place. You awe and inspire us. Your dedication to eradicating poverty from the Earth is a testament not only to your character, but also a shining example of all that is good about humanity.

TAKE ACTION: As we all take time this week to pause and reflect on the things we are thankful for, take two minutes to reach out to someone (or someones) in RESULTS for whom you are thankful and express your gratitude for who they are and what they do. It could be a volunteer in your group, someone in our national network, a staff person, or a community ally. Just a simple call, e-mail, or in the RESULTS tradition, a handwritten note. Just as one phone call or e-mail or letter can make the difference with a lawmaker, or showing our gratitude for a fellow advocate goes a long way.

RESULTS staff wishes all of you and your families a very Happy Thanksgiving and hopes you have a safe and enjoyable holiday.

Please note that all RESULTS offices will be closed Wednesday afternoon, Thursday, and Friday of this week.

Got Ten Minutes? Invite People to Your Next RESULTS Meeting or RESULTS Intro Call

The RESULTS National Conference Call with Barbara Ehrenreich was a great success for RESULTS. We had 224 people on the call and have gotten very positive feedback about it. Keep the energy and excitement generated by the call going by following up with people you know who attended the call. If you had people listen to the call with your local RESULTS group, contact them to thank them for coming and invite them to your next local RESULTS meeting. The quicker you follow up, the better chance they will stay interested and engaged. Be sure to include folks you invited but could not make the call in this group (send them the link to the call recording: https://results.org/uploads/media/2012ConfCalls/11-12DomCall.mp3).

Also, if you invited someone who is not local to be on the call (someone you know in another city, Facebook friends, etc.), invite them to join a RESULTS Introductory Call. These 30–45 minutes calls are a great introduction to RESULTS for people who are not that familiar with us. We have two more RESULTS Intro Calls in 2012: November 30 and December 14 at 1:00 pm ET. Send them the registration link (www.tinyurl.com/RESULTSMeetandGreet/) and invite them to register for a call. Please feel free to invite any local attendees to join an Intro Call as well.

TAKE ACTION: Take ten minutes to follow up with people you know who attended the RESULTS National Conference Call (or who were interested but could not come). For local folks, thank them for attending the call with your group and invite them to attend your next local RESULTS group meeting. For people you know outside your local area, invite them to attend an upcoming RESULTS Intro Call. They can register for an upcoming call at: www.tinyurl.com/RESULTSMeetandGreet/.

In addition to thanking and inviting them to a meeting or Intro Call, feel free to include any of the following links to keep them engaged:

You can find these and other helpful resources from the Barbara Ehrenreich call our National Outreach Event page:

Got Twenty Minutes? Call Tax Aides to Talk about the EITC and CTC with New Census Data (November Action)

Thank you to all those who joined our RESULTS Call-in Day last Tuesday! It was great to hear reports of RESULTS volunteers and allies talking to Congress on their first day of the Lame Duck Session.

Also last week, the U.S. Census released more data regarding poverty in the U.S. in 2011. This Supplemental Poverty Measure shows that the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit (CTC) are still two of the most successful provisions helping children and families in poverty. The data shows that in 2011, the EITC and CTC lifted 8.7 million people out of poverty; without them, the child poverty rate would have been nearly seven percentage points higher. In addition, SNAP and unemployment insurance are also lifting millions out of poverty each year.

TAKE ACTION: Take 20 minutes to call the tax aides in your House and both Senate offices, sharing the new Census data (including this graph)Census Supplemental Poverty Measure: Impact of EITC, SNAP, urging them to tell their bosses to make sure expiring improvements to the EITC and CTC are extended and that these credits are protected in deficit reduction. You can find the names of tax aides for your members of Congress on the RESULTS Elected Officials page.

Once connected, use the talking points to help in your conversations in the November Action and be sure to urge the aide to ask his/her boss to speak to Senate (Sens. Reid/McConnell) or House (Reps. Boehner/Pelosi) leadership, requesting that they make the expiring improvements to the EITC and CTC permanent and support a principle that specifically protects the EITC and CTC from cuts in any deficit reduction framework. If you have any questions or would like coaching before making your calls, please contact Meredith Dodson ([email protected]) or Jos Linn ([email protected]) on the RESULTS U.S. Poverty staff.

Join the Next RESULTS Intro Call and New Activist Orientation

We’re always looking for new people to get involved with RESULTS. If you know someone who would make a good advocate or has an interest in public policy or simply wants to make a difference but is not sure how, invite them to Join the Next RESULTS Introductory Call. These 30–45 minute calls are perfect for people looking to be inspired about advocacy and learn more about RESULTS and our work. The next RESULTS Intro Calls are on Friday, November 30, and Friday, December 14, both at 1 pm ET. You can register for an upcoming call at http://tinyurl.com/RESULTSMeetandGreet. We will have 2013 Intro Call dates available shortly.

But what if you’ve already done an Intro Call or want more than just a 30 minute introduction to RESULTS? We urge you to join the next New Activist Orientation. This series provides an in-depth overview of RESULTS and our work (beyond the RESULTS Intro Call). This series includes two calls, one on November 28 and the other on December 12, both at 9:00 pm ET (we will also repeat the first call on December 5 at 9:00 pm ET). To participate, dial (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. RSVP to Lisa Marchal at [email protected]

Quick News

Keep Sending Letters and Op-eds about Poverty. Congratulations to RESULTS volunteers around the country on their successful media outreach. In less than two months (early Sep. – early Nov.), RESULTS volunteers have gotten 11 letters to the editor and three op-eds published; the most recent being from RESULTS St. Louis volunteer Charles Kindleberger in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Use our online LTE alert to submit a letter urging Congress to invest in poverty reduction and oppose cuts to services that support low-income individuals and families.

PBS’ Frontline to Highlight Child Poverty TONIGHT. Tonight’s episode of the PBS program Frontline will focus on what poverty means to children. From their website: “Frontline spent months following three young girls who are growing up against the backdrop of their families’ struggles against financial ruin. At a time when one in five American kids lives below the poverty line, Poor Kids is an is an intimate portrait of the economic crisis as it’s rarely seen, through the eyes of children.” Check the Frontline website for when it premiers in your area. And help ensure low-income children get a head start in life; take our online e-mail action in support of Head Start and child care services.

New Half in Ten Report on Progress Reducing Poverty. Yesterday, Half in Ten released their second annual report tracking progress toward our goal to cut poverty in America. They hosted an event in Washington, which you can watch online, and read the entire report including fact sheets by state and by indicator. In addition to Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa, Bishop Gene Robinson and our friend Debbie Weinstein of the Coalition on Human Needs, they opened the event with a powerful “share” from a low-income single mother from Philadelphia who is active in Witnesses to Hunger — be sure to check it out for a dose of inspiration.

Fundraising News

Thank you to our California RESULTS partners from Inland Empire who hosted an event on November 9th. Over 40 people attended a very inspiring and fun post-election event with Meredith Dodson speaking about how we move forward after campaign season. They raised $1,400 and inspired monthly donors, too.

You know about Black Friday and Cyber Monday, but get ready for Giving Tuesday this year. On Tuesday November 27, charities, families, businesses and individuals are coming together to transform the way people think about, talk about and participate in the giving season. We’ll be sending out social media messages to repost and retweet about how our supporters can donate to RESULTS on this major day of giving.

RESULTS Activity Calendar

(See a complete calendar on the RESULTS website)

Congressional Recesses: (these are target dates and subject to change) House: December 14, 2012 – January 2, 2013; Senate December ?, 2012 – January 2, 2013. Request face-to-face meetings.

Thursday and Friday, November 22 and 23: All RESULTS offices closed for the Thanksgiving holiday.

Wednesday, November 28: RESULTS New Activist Orientation, 9:00 pm ET. (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. RSVP to Lisa Marchal at [email protected]. (this is the first call of a two-call series; the second call is December 12).

Friday, November 30: RESULTS Introductory Call, 1:00 pm ET. (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. RSVP for the call.

Wednesday, December 5: RESULTS New Activist Orientation, 9:00 pm ET. (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. RSVP to Lisa Marchal at [email protected]. (this is the first call of a two-call series; the second call is December 12).

Tuesday, December 11: RESULTS Free Agents group (U.S. Poverty) call, 9:00 pm ET. (218) 486-1611, passcode 7378587# (RESULTS#). For more information, contact Jos Linn at [email protected].

Wednesday, December 12: RESULTS New Activist Orientation, 9:00 pm ET. (712) 432-3100, passcode 761262. RSVP to Lisa Marchal at [email protected]. (this is the second call of the two-call series).

Tuesday, December 25 – Tuesday, January 1: All RESULTS offices closed for the end of year holidays.

RESULTS Contact Information

Main Office: (p) (202) 783-7100, (f) (202) 466-1397, 1730 Rhode Island Ave, NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036. If mailing a donation to our DC office, please address the envelope to the attention of Cynthia Stancil.

RESULTS U.S. Poverty Legislative and Grassroots Support Staff:

The RESULTS U.S. Poverty Update is sent out every Tuesday via e-mail to RESULTS volunteers and allies all over the country. The purpose of these updates is to inform and activate RESULTS activists to take action on our U.S. poverty campaigns.

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