Ready to Douse the Flames?

It feels like the world is on fire, and I need to do more to put out the flames. So far, I'm disappointed in my progress. Do you ever procrastinate in a way that looks like work? After a busy summer teaching, I vowed to re-commit to non-violent resistance. The plan was to dedicate a portion of my writing time to crafting letters to my elected representatives—especially the ones who enable the current administration. But the hours I spent researching the issues have come to feel like avoidance, and the world keeps burning.

One of my investigatory rabbit holes began with the question, what is the most impactful way to communicate with ones' elected officials; letter writing, email, or telephone calls? Writing old-fashioned letters appeals to my nature, but it turns out that making a call or writing a well-crafted email can work just as well.

I started doing this but my methods have me jumping from nonprofit emails to legislation tracking sites and then double-checking everything before making the call or writing a request. It's an inefficient process. As my teaching will begin again soon, I need to manage my time. And I know from experience that working with a group is a good way to hold myself accountable.

Last spring a few of us gathered at the Penn Wynne Library for monthly meetings to discuss the issues of the day and create a safe space that welcomed diverse perspectives. However, getting folks with diverse perspectives never gained traction. This fall we will tweak the mission.

While Breaking Bread with Neighbors will continue as a group committed to community and to strengthening our members sense of belonging, this fall we will also support one another's advocacy and community-building efforts. Group members have given me the green light to begin with letter writing. I imagine that in addition to writing our elected officials we could do get-out-the vote postcards and perhaps letters to the editor.

In the meantime, I’ve learned that writing public comments on proposed changes to federal regulations is another avenue for advocacy. A lot of harm can be inflicted with these kinds of rule changes because they don't require congressional approval and often fly under the radar.

A PennEnvironment email tipped me off to a proposal to change a regulation that would allow roads to be carved into the wild lands managed by the US Forest Service. After signing their petition against, I wanted to take it a step farther and began researching the process for making a public comment. It took time to figure it out, but it felt good to write out why it's a bad idea (destruction of wildlife habitat and increased risk of wildfires from human activity to name a few) and then to hit the send button.

As we head into fall and mid-term elections, I suspect that many folks will agree that it's time to do more. I've experimented with a variety of legislation tracking sites like Bill Track 50 and GovTrack, but the 5 Calls app and their website are the most user-friendly—if you don't want to make a career out of it, try that one first.

I would love to hear about your acts of resistance, and if you live near Philadelphia or its surrounding suburbs, consider joining us for Breaking Bread with Neighbors. Stay tuned for the details—coming soon!