As Napoleon once said, “ten people who speak make more noise than ten thousand who are silent.” Government is a two-way street, with output from the legislators and input from the people. There’s a bump in the road, though. It’s hard to communicate with legislators, even at a state level. They’re busy, you’re busy, and putting together a coherent argument that isn’t just emotional word vomit takes more time than you have.
That’s where the Equality State Policy Center comes in.
The ESPC is non-partisan group that works to help citizens articulate their hopes and thoughts to legislators. They educate the public about policy-making and legislative accountability.
Last Tuesday, the ESPC the held a letter-writing party at Coal Creek Downtown. The goal of the program was to get students and residents of Laramie to come in and write a letter to either Senator Mike Enzi, Senator John Barrasso, Representative Liz Cheney, or one of the state legislators. The ESPC had tips for letter-writing as well as a list of upcoming bills that would specifically affect Wyoming, that we’re going to share here!
The Equality State Policy Center’s 5 Steps for an Effective Letter
Pro-tip #1: State your purpose. Take one line to say who you are, why you’re writing, and what you want.
My name is Laurel. I’m writing this article because it’s important to learn how to write a good argumentative letter, and I want you to write to your legislators.
Pro-tip #2: Support your stance. Make 2-4 points that are either statistics/research or personal views about how this affects your community.
The Washington Post found that only 53% of Americans can identify what party their Congress(wo)men belong to, indicating a lack of communication between the public and the legislators. This relationship is exceptionally important in Wyoming, where the voices of 584,153 people are funnelled into just three Congressional representatives. We don’t have anyone else to speak for us.
You have to speak clearly and loudly to be heard by your representative.
Pro-tip #3: Make a clear request. Request action! You want a vote for or against a bill or a general policy change.
Write to your legislator! Write about an issue that’s important to you, personally! Do it!
Pro-tip #4: Close the letter by saying “thank you” (even if you didn’t vote for them and you’re angry) and restate your purpose.
Thanks for getting this far in my FIRST article ever. Please write to Mike Enzi, John Barrasso, Liz Cheney, or your local rep. if you’re from out of state. Write about something you’re passionate about. Light a fire. Be heard.
Pro-tip #5: Do what your teachers have been telling you since kindergarten: sign your name! (And your address, phone, and email.) It lends you credibility if you can show that you’re an actual person with an actual address.
Laurel Markert
I’m not telling you my phone number here!
There are a lot of other general rules, but you probably know them already. Do your research, and make sure that you know all about the policy you’re arguing over. Don’t make threats. Proofread and spellcheck. Get personal, don’t just sign a petition with fifty-gajillion other names on it.
Barney Frank, a former Massachusetts Representative, recommends registering to vote before writing your legislators. He says that “Elected officials pay as much attention to those who are not registered to vote as butchers do to the food preferences of vegetarians.”1 Basically, the idea is that if you’re not registered to vote in their district, you can’t vote against them, and therefore you can’t pressure them about legislature. Register to vote if you haven’t, then write to YOUR legislator, and get shit done.
If you need a hand getting started, here’s the State of Wyoming list of 2017 bills.
Here’s a national list.
Here are some pages with Wyoming’s Senators, Reps, what committees they’re on, and who the bosses of the Capitol floors are.
Easier still, when you decide to write one of Wyoming’s Senators or our Representative, here are the addresses:
Senator Mike Enzi
379A Senate Russell Office Building Washington, DC 20510
Senator John Barrasso 307 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510
Representative Liz Cheney 416 Cannon House Office Building Washington, DC 20510
Good luck writing!
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Frank, Barney. “Barney Frank: Here’s How to Successfully Lobby Your Congressperson.” Mic. Mic Network Inc., 07 Feb. 2017. Web. 25 Feb. 2017.
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