U.S. Poverty Weekly Update October 16, 2018
U.S. Poverty Campaigns
Weekly Update | October 16, 2018
“I urge members of Congress not to repeat any mistakes of our past and rise against any detrimental policy changes that deny medical care, nutrition and housing assistance from any families.”
– RESULTS Olympia, WA volunteer Coco Chang in an October 10 letter to the editor in The Olympian
Got Two Minutes? Submit Your Comment Opposing the New Public Charge Rule
It’s out! Last week, the Trump Administration officially released its new “public charge” rule. Under the proposed rule, a person residing here legally could be denied permanent residency for using SNAP (formerly food stamps), Medicaid, federal housing assistance, or other anti-poverty programs. This rule is a radical departure from current law. It creates a wealth test for immigration and intentionally forces families into poverty. This is immoral. Already, immigrant families are forgoing food assistance and health care – services they are legally permitted to use – for fear of being thrown out of the country. But you can help stop it.
TAKE ACTION: Take two minutes to oppose the new public charge rule by submitting your official public comment at www.protectingimmigrantfamilies.org. When you comment, please personalize your message (if you only send the sample comments provided, it might not be counted). If you have questions, please contact Jos Linn for assistance.
Got Ten Minutes? Urge Others to Oppose the Public Charge Rule
Advocates working to protect families against the cruel new public charge rule are working to get 100,000 opposing comments submitted before the comment period ends on December 10. To hit that goal, we must get the word out. Tell your action networks in your area to take action. Use the media to educate your community about the rule and the need to take action. Already RESULTS volunteers have gotten 22 letters to the editor published opposing the new rule – let’s keep it up. The more opposition you help generate, the better the chance of delaying or perhaps preventing this harsh policy from going into effect.
TAKE ACTION: Take ten minutes to urge others to oppose the new public charge rule.
- Copy and paste this message into an e-mail or social media post to your local action networks urging them to submit comments opposing the new rule (and to forward your message to people they know).
- Submit a letter to the editor urging your members of Congress and people in your community to oppose the rule.
When you get a letter to the editor published, please let Jos Linn know. Also, if you are attending an event and want to urge others to submit comments on the public charge rule, give them our new half-page flyer.
Got Twenty Minutes? Engage Candidates Before Election Day (October Action)
Election day is three weeks away. Regardless of who wins this election, Congress will look a lot different than it does today. There will be 90 new members of the House of Representatives and potentially a handful of new senators. If you want to influence what they do when they get to Washington, the time to start is now. We know it’s not easy – you have families and jobs and commitments. But if you any time over the next few weeks, use it for things that you know will matter. Already, RESULTS volunteers have engaged congressional candidates 44 times. That’s a great start, but we need more. If you want SNAP protected from cuts and changes, talk to candidates now. If you want Congress to address the racial wealth divide, talk to candidates now. If you want politicians to stop attacking low-income families with their policies and their rhetoric, talk to candidates now.
In addition, start looking past the election. Plan to meet with newly-elected members of Congress to talk more in depth about priorities for the new Congress. Reach out to them now to find out how best to schedule a sit-down meeting with them after the election; don’t wait until November 7 when their meeting requests will spike. If you get on the schedule early, you help make poverty a priority for them.
TAKE ACTION: Take twenty minutes to take the October Action. Look for candidate events in your area. Start here and here and also contact their campaign offices to set up meetings after the election. Also, be prepared. First, when you find an event or meeting you plan to attend, contact Meredith Dodson for help getting ready. Second, be ready at a moment’s notice if you happen to see a candidate shopping at the store or walking their dog; bookmark our U.S. Poverty Laser Talks on your phone or print and keep them handy so you’re good to go when the opportunity arises. Finally, once you have talked to a candidate or their staff, let us know what happened.
Quick News
Election Time is a Good Time to Recruit New Volunteers. Use the election to build and strengthen your local RESULTS groups and local action networks. To help you, VolunteerMatch (a free online service that helps people find local volunteer activities) has some best practices for recruiting new volunteers (hint: elections can be a big motivator for people to join volunteer groups). Learn how to set up a VolunteerMatch ad for your local RESULTS group using our updated guide.
New Report Confirms that Work Requirements Deny Services. The Brookings Institution has released a new report confirming that stringent work requirements in anti-poverty programs hurt families, children, and seniors. Under the analysis, the House-proposed farm bill would put 4.1 million people at risk of losing SNAP. Find the full report here and remind lawmakers to protect SNAP by supporting the Senate-passed farm bill.
Sign Your Group Up onto New SAVE for All Principles. Help build support for the new SAVE for All principles for the next Congress by signing your local RESULTS group (e.g. “RESULTS Santa Fe”) onto them.
Check Out Report and Webinar on the Racial Wealth Divide. Prosperity Now and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy have released a new report looking at how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 is causing greater inequality and “supercharging” the racial wealth divide. They will also host a webinar on Thursday, October 25 at 2:00 pm ET to highlight the issues raised in the report. Sign up today.
RESULTS Attends PPC Event in Washington. The Poor People’s Campaign held an event in Washington last week highlighting the stories of Americans experiencing poverty. Read about the event in our RESULTS Blog post by RESULTS U.S. Poverty Intern Charles Palmer.
Give Us Suggestions for the 2019 RESULTS International Conference! The 2019 RESULTS International Conference is set (July 13-16, 2019). Help us make it the best conference yet by completing our suggestion form with your ideas for speakers and sessions.
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.
U.S. Poverty Team members planned time off: Meredith Dodson, Tuesday, November 6; Jos Linn, Wednesday, November 21.
Upcoming Congressional Recesses: House: October 1-November 9; Senate: October 12-November 9.
RESULTS New Advocate Orientation, Thursday, October 17 at 8:30pm ET; Friday, October 26 at 1:00pm ET. Get started here.
U.S. Poverty Free Agents Calls, Tuesday, October 16 at 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.
RESULTS Presentations in Greenville/Spartanburg, SC, Monday, October 22. Grassroots Manager for U.S. Poverty Campaigns will be doing several presentations at Wofford College about the importance of anti-poverty advocacy. For details, contact Jos.
Election Day, Tuesday, November 6. Be sure to vote!
RESULTS Action Network Community of Practice webinar, Wednesday, November 7 at 8:00pm ET. To join, log in: https://results.zoom.us/j/427674133 or dial in: 669-900-6833, Meeting ID: 427 674 133.
Veterans’ Day Holiday, Monday, November 12. All RESULTS offices closed.
RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Webinar, Tuesday, November 13 at 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.
RESULTS Virtual Thanksgiving Feast Fundraising Campaign, November 2018. Contact Mea Geizhals, Grassroots Fundraising Manager, with any questions and look for more information soon.
Thanksgiving Holiday Break, Thursday, November 22 – Friday, November 23. All RESULTS offices closed.
RESULTS International Conference, July 13-16, 2019. Learn more at www.resultsconference.org.
Other Resources
Get Your RESULTS Promo Materials. If you need banners, pens, stickers, or business cards for your local RESULTS work, 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 Steven McGee at [email protected]. View published Board minutes on the RESULTS website, as well as our Annual Reports.
Please Fill Out the Lobby Report Form. After any lobby meeting, please fill out the RESULTS Lobby Report Form to let us know how it went. When you have a meeting where both U.S. and global poverty issues are discussed, please fill it out twice.