In segment #1, former Congressional staffer Zahir Janmohamed provides the following tips for engaging with your congressperson:
1. Do not prioritize online petitions. Even if a petition has 10,000 signatures, most Congressional offices only count it as 1 piece of correspondence.
2. Snail mail gets noticed.
3. Hand-written notes get read. Reps themselves use handwritten notes to communicate high-priority messages to each other.
4. Calls do help. It is better to call a home office (in the Rep’s state) than their DC office.
5. Follow up on calls and letters. This one was new to me! If you sent a letter or called in, check back a few weeks later and ask if the Congressperson is going to respond.
6. Make the rep afraid of consequences. I’m not talking empty or violent threats – tell the Rep they have lost your vote or donation.
7. Choose specific issues and call or write about them on a regular basis. Start small with one thing that matters to you.
8. Make it personal. If you can, connect the issue to a personal example. Talk about your feelings and concerns from the heart, if you can. Facts or speaking from a script is fine if that’s what you have in you.
9. If you can, state your name, address, and phone number in your correspondences. This communicates that you are in a Rep’s district and that you are serious, and gives them a way to follow up with you.
Popaganda: A Guide to Trump Resistance | Bitch Media
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