U.S. Poverty Weekly Update October 25, 2016
U.S. Poverty Campaigns
Weekly Update | October 25, 2016
“When Halloween season concludes, the rogue clowns lurking in our area may disappear. But the poverty existing within our region won't — unless we take action.”
– RESULTS Allentown (PA) volunteer Deirdre MacDonald in an October 20 letter to the editor in the Allentown Morning Call
- Got Two Minutes? Get to Candidates in the Next Two Weeks (October Action)
- Got Ten Minutes? Keep Up Your Great Media Work!
- Got Twenty Minutes for Outreach in November? Do the Where – When – Invite!
- Quick News
- Upcoming Events
Quick Action: Use Election Coverage to Generate Media about Poverty in America
| Take Action! |
Got Two Minutes? Get to Candidates in the Next Two Weeks (October Action)
We’re only two weeks away from Election Day. While many of us will be thankful when the election is over, the issues we care about will carry on. But we don’t have to leave the outcome to the Fates. By meeting with candidates this month to talk about the narrowing the racial wealth gap and expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), you lay the groundwork for a productive 2017 (and beyond) now. Think about it… will it be easier to educate candidates on these issues after the election when they are barraged with requests? Wouldn’t you rather get in on the ground floor, making them aware of the issues right now so once they take office, they can hit the ground running? Make these last two weeks count – meet and talk to candidates about ending poverty in America!
TAKE ACTION: Take two minutes to attend a candidate town hall or schedule a candidate meeting to talk about the racial wealth gap and the EITC. If you cannot meet with the candidate him/herself, ask to meet with one of their policy staff. See the October Action and our October National Webinar resources for information to help you. In addition, our Election Guide helps you find candidate websites and contact info and our Elected Officials Guide does the same for members of Congress. If and when you get a meeting or plan to attend a town hall, please contact Meredith Dodson ([email protected]) for coaching to help you get ready.
Got Ten Minutes? Keep Up Your Great Media Work!
What a great seven weeks you’ve had getting media published about poverty in America. Your count is up to 43 media pieces published since September 1 – this includes 36 letters to the editor, 4 op-eds, 2 articles, and 1 editorial. Wow! Even if debate moderators don’t know about the Earned Income Tax Credit or SNAP or the racial wealth gap, thanks to you candidates and constituents do.
The debates are now over and candidates are focusing on getting votes. Writing a letter to the editor or op-ed asking them by name to support expanding the EITC or using the tax code to address the racial wealth gap or protecting SNAP will get their attention. Hopefully it will also prompt voters to learn more about these important issues themselves.
TAKE ACTION: You’ve gotten 137 media pieces published in 2016. Let’s hit 150 by Election Day! Take ten minutes to send in a letter to the editor or start an op-ed telling candidates to focus on ending poverty in America. The September Action has helpful resources for writing your own letter or you can use our online media alerts on the EITC or SNAP to tailor and submit your letter in just a few clicks. If you need help with drafting or editing your media piece, please contact Jos Linn for assistance ([email protected]).
Got Twenty Minutes for Outreach in November? Do the Where – When – Invite!
We are now three weeks from our big National Outreach Webinar with Dr. Maya Rockeymoore on Tuesday, November 15 at 8:00 pm ET. We hope you are well into planning your local outreach event around the webinar. If not, you still have plenty of time to plan and execute a meaningful and successful event. But the time to start is now.
At this point, hopefully you have a location for your local outreach meeting confirmed (or at least requested). The only requirements for a location are easy location to find and get to, a good internet or phone connection, and enough room to accommodate the people you are inviting. Someone’s family room, a library, a church, a separate room at a coffee shop or restaurant – wherever you want.
The next thing is to confirm when your meeting will start. We recommend that Eastern and Central time zones plan to have people come before the webinar to hear about RESULTS and your local group, with Mountain and Pacific time zones planning those activities afterward. If you need help, use our sample agenda for ideas on how to structure your meeting.
Once you have your location and time, tailor our Outreach Webinar flyer (full-page and half-page) listing those details for your local meeting.
Now it’s time to invite. If you’re not sure who to invite, start with a list of friends and family. Each person in your group should do this. Don’t think about what they’ll say, just write down their names. As you make your list, you will think of additional people to invite. Each time a name pops in your head, put it on the list. Once you have your list started, start contacting people. Remember that personal invitations (an in-person conversation, a phone call, a personal e-mail with phone call follow-up) are essential in making your meeting a success. People are more likely to accept an invitation to an event when someone they know personally invites them. Understand that you will likely get more no’s than yes’s, but that’s OK. Even one new volunteer for your group is a good thing. Plus, people will surprise you. Use the flyers and social media advertisement to supplement your inviting (find them on our Outreach Webinar page).
TAKE ACTION: Take twenty minutes to make your November 15 Outreach Meeting a great success. Find your location of your meeting, decide on the time for your meeting, and start inviting people to come. Our Outreach Webinar page has resources to help you both invite and plan your local event, including flyers, a sample agenda, participation forms, sign in sheets, and action sheets. If you need additional information about Dr. Rockeymoore, please see last week’s Weekly Update. If you have questions or need additional materials, please contact Jos Linn ([email protected]) for assistance.
Quick News
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Welcome our Newest RESULTS Group! Last night, U.S. Poverty Organizer Kristy Martino helped start a new RESULTS group in Russellville, AR. The group is made up of students from Arkansas Tech University (ATU) who are part of an organization called Because We Can, a campus community service initiative. They've done amazing work to start a food waste recovery program. Now they want to take their passion for social justice to a deeper level with advocacy that addresses the root causes of hunger and poverty. At last night’s meeting, they group took action by calling Senators Tom Cotton and John Boozeman. They are looking forward to the next meeting on Monday, October 31. Goal number one is to prepare for their first face-to-face with a member of Congress. Welcome RESULTS ATU!
Invite Someone to Friday’s RESULTS Intro Call. In this season of heightened political awareness, you probably know someone(s) who would make a great RESULTS volunteer. Let them know that their political engagement doesn’t have to stop on Election Day. Invite them to join one of our RESULTS Intro Calls. These 30-minute calls (done twice per month) provide a great overview of RESULTS and how to get involved and each caller interested in getting involved gets a personal follow up. An Intro Call is a great way to warm people up for our November 15 Outreach Webinar. The next call is this Friday, October 28 at 1:00pm ET. Register for an upcoming call at: https://results.org/take_action/become_a_results_activist/#Introductory%20Call.
Read New Grassroots Stories and Then Share Yours. RESULTS would like to gather your advocacy stories to inform and empower others in the important work of ending poverty. We have already started highlighting some of these stories on our website. We want to hear your story too. Go to our Voices of RESULTS form and share it with us today!
Join the new RESULTS Volunteers Facebook page. This new online resource is a place where you can share successes, pictures, challenges, best practices, and ask questions in your advocacy work. Go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/RESULTSVolunteers/ to sign up.
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.
Congressional Recesses: House and Senate: Monday, October 3 – Friday, November 11. Request face-to-face meetings. After your meeting, please tell us how it went by filling out the RESULTS Lobby Report Form: www.tinyurl.com/RESLRF.
RESULTS Introductory Call, Friday, October 28 at 1:00 pm ET. If you want to learn more about RESULTS, register for an upcoming Intro Call on the RESULTS website.
Election Day, November 8. Find your polling place and other voter info at: www.vote411.org.
RESULTS U.S. Poverty National Outreach Webinar, Tuesday, November 15 at 8:00 pm ET. Guest speaker: Dr. Maya Rockeymoore. Join online at http://fuze.me/32255914 or by phone at (201) 479-4595, Meeting ID: 32255914#. Listen to previous webinars on our National Webinars page.
RESULTS U.S. Poverty Free Agents Calls, Thursday, November 17 at 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm ET (note different date). To participate, login in at http://fuze.me/32256018 or dial by phone at (201) 479-4595, Meeting ID: 32256018#.
RESULTS International Conference, Saturday, July 22 – Tuesday, July 25, 2017. Washington Court Hotel, Washington, DC. More details soon.
If you have a question, comment or suggestion for the RESULTS/RESULTS Educational Fund Board, please e-mail them to RESULTS Grassroots Board Member Vanessa Garcia at [email protected]. You can download RESULTS’ most recent Annual Report at: https://results.org/about/annual_report/.