“Participation – that’s what’s gonna save the human race.”
Pete Seeger
I recently posted an Advocacy Action request on ALSC-L. The Washington Office asked us to use the Legislative Action Center (http://capwiz.com/ala/home/) to request that our Senators support continued debate on the FISA Amendments Act.
In response to my post, I received a message from a member saying that contacting [his/her} Senators about anything that [he/she] cares about is worse than worthless. It struck a chord. I know that a major barrier for people to engage in advocacy work is that they feel that their elected officials will turn a deaf ear to them. They are reluctant to pick up the phone or send off an e-mail because it feels kind of isolated or unimportant, or maybe they have tried and gotten the brush-off from legislative staff. Some Legislators may not be responsive — they may demagogues or entrenched partisans or simply arrogant …
I asked Ted Wegner, Grassroots Coordinator, ALA Washington Office for advice. He shared the following insights that he and Stephanie Vance, ALA Advocacy Consultant, have developed to address the issue.
1.) You can look at members of Congress as Champions, Supporters, Neutrals, and Opponents of your issues. Now the senators in question are probably never going to become library champions or supporters. But if you can do enough education and advocacy, perhaps you can move them into the neutral category. Persistence matters, even with opponents.
2.) From a slightly more cynical view, if you’re talking to them, they do have to at least listen. If they’re listening to you (hopefully presenting a good case) it’s less time they can be hurting the cause.
3.) And finally, vote! If they really won’t listen, be sure to exercise your civic duty. You obviously won’t be running any political campaigns at your library, but as a private citizen you do many things to help with campaigns.
I contacted the office of one of my own Senators and had a long conversation with a staff member. After being told, in no uncertain terms, that her boss (or any of her staff) would not be unresponsive or rude to ANY constituent, she had the following suggestion:
If you get a rude response or a brush-off from the person who answers the phone, ask to speak directly with the Legislator’s Chief of Staff. Tell the Chief that you were calling to express your point of view and did not like the attitude or response that you received from the person answering the phone. (Who knows, it may have been an intern who feels that they are doing their boss a favor by shutting down dissenting opinion. Or the office may need to engage in more staff training.)
“But most important,” she said, — “be persistent.”
Remember, it is very important for us to take a few minutes to express our opinions, and let our Legislators know that there are voices, both dissenting and supporting. If we don’t speak-up and express our thoughts, as far as the Legislators are concerned there are no people out there who have opinions. If we continue to get the brush-off, we need to continue in our persistence. We need to become part of the network of voices.
By responding to ALA calls for action, each one of us is strengthening the organization’s advocacy and lobbying arm. Persistent voices from among the membership provide credibility to our lobbying team and show that people care about libraries and the various issues of privacy, freedom of speech, access to information, etc. to which we subscribe.
P.S. On a sad note, this weekend, I attended a vigil remembering the children and educators killed in Newtown, Ct. The participants echoed the need for overcoming political opposition to their cause and maintaining persistence in the face of adversity.
We are not alone.
Penny Markey, Chair
2012-2013 ALSC Advocacy and Legislation Committee