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/ Global Action
December 2010
Ask for Face-to-Face Meetings with Your Members of Congress
The new 112th Congress begins session in January 2011. There are approximately 125 new members of Congress, which means that there are many freshman members who are not only new to Washington, but new to issues of global poverty. In fact, foreign policy and development was hardly discussed this year, as compared to the elections of 2008. And if one looks at the changes in Congress since PEPFAR was passed in 2003, barely half of either the House or Senate members from that time will still around. But this lack of experience for new members of Congress is an opportunity—you can be the ones who meet them first and get them to care about global development and poverty.
And we shouldn’t forget about the returning members! There is tremendous pressure to only focus on domestic issues. They need to hearing from you — their constituents — that they have support to take bold action on global poverty.
Start working now to request face-to-face meetings during the winter recess with your representative and senators. They will be home in their districts from the end of December through mid-January and again for the President's Day recess in February. Their schedules fill up quickly, so now is the time to contact their schedulers and staffers.
To help increase your chances of getting a face-to-face meeting,send a personally written letter requesting a meeting that is signed by your group and anyone else in your community who supports your efforts to represent the community to your members of Congress. Be sure to follow up with a call to the member of Congress' scheduler.
Writing a Letter
Your letter should include:
a clear request for a face-to-face meeting for the December–January recess.
a brief description of your local, volunteer chapter of RESULTS, a grassroots advocacy organization working to end poverty.
a description of why you care about global poverty and the work your group does to raise community awareness.
a request to speak directly with the rep./senator to tell him about your work, get his views on the issues and learn how you can work together.
an acknowledgment that the letter is signed by group members and other constituents who care about global poverty and want the rep./senator to meet with RESULTS.
include a phone and e-mail address for the primary contact from the group.
Collecting Group and Community Signatures
Once your letter is written, have all group members sign it. Then ask friends, family, and community members who support RESULTS to also sign. Even though these community members may not be able to attend the meeting, by signing the letter they are telling your representative and senators that there is a constituency who cares about these issues and supports RESULTS, a group constituents who are carrying the message as community liaison for all those who want to fight global poverty and disease.
It is useful to have all signers include their address, so the office knows they are constituents. If you aren't able to get actual signatures, get permission to include the names and addresses of your community members instead.
Drop off this letter inperson to the scheduler in the district office, and you should also e-mail or fax it to the scheduler in D.C. as well as the local scheduler (call the office and ask the receptionist for the scheduler’s name and how he/she likes to receive meeting requests). Follow up to make sure it was received. Then, you should follow up again with a call in a week if you haven’t heard back.
How to Schedule a Recess Meeting
You can meet with your members of Congress throughout the year when they are in your district. They are often less distracted and have more time to meet with constituents when they are away from Washington. Members are typically in their districts from Friday to Monday. In addition, there are congressional recesses (or “district work periods”) when they are home for a week or more. Congress will likely adjourn in mid-December and be home until the start of the new 112th Congress in mid-January, and will also be available during the President's Day recess in February.
Tips on Making the Call to Schedule a Meeting
Step 1: Request your meeting now to increase the likelihood of getting a meeting during one of the recesses.
Step 2: Find contact information for your member of Congress’ district office through the RESULTS website under Take Action (the green box on the right will link you to Congressional offices).
Step 3: Prepare what you will say, using the notes below. Ask to speak to the scheduler.
Hi, my name is ______, and I am a constituent in your state/district. I am also an advocate with RESULTS. We’re a grassroots group working on the alleviation of hunger and poverty here and abroad, and we have previously worked with Rep./Sen.______on [describe one or two issues]. If he/she is new, say that you would like the rep./senator to meet with an important constituent group.
I know that Rep./Sen.______has shown an interest in our issues in the past because of his/her leadership on ______. [Personalize your message here by researching the voting record, statement, website of your legislator through the RESULTS website])
I would like to schedule meeting with Rep./Sen.______while he/she is home for the upcoming recess. Would it be possible to do that today? I also have a letters signed by community members requesting this meeting that I can send you via fax or e-mail. If you don't have the signed letter when you make the call, let the scheduler know that you will be sending a letter of community support from the meeting soon (then get those community signatures).
Step 4: Be sure to note the name of the scheduler, and if a firm answer isn’t given to you, mention when you’ll be following up.
For additional tips on how to schedule your face-to-face meeting, check out Working with Congress: Activist Milestone #7, which includes a sample letter to the scheduler. Additionally, you can find a sample letter at our Skills Center. Contact a RESULTS regional coordinator or staff person if you need support in making your request.
Planning for the Meeting
When it comes time to plan for the meeting, work with your RC and with RESULTS staff to help make it as strategic and impactful as possible.
After introducing RESULTS, who you are, and why you care about the work, pick one issue to focus on.
Tell a story or show a video — it’s important that your rep./senator become emotionally invested in the issue in order for them to start taking action. Remember, one story about one child or one person suffering from TB is much more impactful that focusing on a bunch of statistics!
Think about why you do this work. What got you involved? Why do you keep working so hard day after day? And then put yourself in their shoes and try to get them to care as much as you do!