hi! i work in local government and community management, and i’m here to tell you a secret: it is like, really, really easy to overwhelm the people who work in your local government. especially right now. especially on things they can actionably do or impact.

you may not know this, but i bet your city or town or municipality has a website. i bet that website has some contact forms or email addresses on it. i bet you can use them to put together a message in about 5 minutes! i bet it’s almost as easy as signing a national petition.

which is to say: i’m noticing, like most other people, that the national level discussion on really important and long overdue issues is flagging. but the internet and news cycle is not the only battleground, and you will be pleasantly surprised by how easy it is to—

—fight those battles at home, on your own turf, with much more immediate impact, and they are so, so important.

I am begging you: make my job, and the jobs of people like me, difficult right now. flood us with demands. make yourselves impossible to ignore. 10,000 signatures on twitter is a lot but 10 unique personal emails is enough to derail an entire council session.

Okay! I did not anticipate this level of traction or this degree of engagement so please bear with me while I address a few points I’m seeing in the responses. Please keep in mind I did not and do not intend this to be a magical panacea for all evils—this is ONE thing you can do!

1) emails v letters v calls?
It really depends! Yes, your email may get blocked or ignored. I’m sorry. This is not a one-person strategy. You have to be willing to be a straw on the camel’s back, knowing you may not be the one to break it.

HOWEVER. —

—if you plan on calling or letter-writing try to find out first if your target is even in the office. Lots of folks are teleworking! A key part of why I’m urging this to you right now is that things are WEIRD right now. Rules are different. Everyone/thing is AT CAPACITY—

—and that is the whole point. Ultimately, your local government is made up of people—humans—and those humans can be strategically overwhelmed and strongarmed. That is what I am encouraging you to do.

Also! Emails can be logged, referenced, demanded as public information!

2) What do I say?
Say exactly what you want! If all you have time/spoons for is a form letter, by all means send it, but your two sentences that are unique to you will get read in a way a template letter won’t. A perfect understanding of policy isn’t your job, it’s theirs.

3) I don’t even know where to start/what to ask for!

Ask for information! These people *work for you.* If you don’t know what the situation is in your town, request that they tell you. Honestly? This is good. It requires them to look it up and educate themselves, too.

This is also a great opportunity to find out what groups in your community are already DOING this work and to align yourself with their platforms. Groups who specifically care about this information WANT other people to have it. They will be thrilled to educate you!

4) These people don’t care about me, why waste my time?

Okay look at their most cynical they care about whoever is loudest, and I guarantee you they are listening to very loud and very wrong people by default so you might as well make them spend time on you too