Take Action
As people of faith, we have a strong tradition of helping those who are less fortunate. But soup kitchens and shelters are only short-term solutions. Our efforts to sustain our brothers and sisters living in poverty must be complemented with a serious plan of action from our political leaders to reduce the number of needy. And so, from November 8 – November 18, 2012, Fighting Poverty with Faith will be “Building Opportunity through Affordable Housing for All.” We encourage individuals and communities to plan a Poverty Simulation and/or Fighting Poverty with World Cafe Forum to educate and advocate for an end to homelessness in the United States.
Fighting Poverty with Faith event resources 2010 – Do No Harm, Promote Economic Opportunity
As a leader on the local level, you can become a part of Fighting Poverty with Faith by organizing an event or campaign. There are so many ways to raise up issues of poverty in your community! Listed below are some ideas and resources for planning your activism as part of the 2010 Fighting Poverty with Faith mobilization. Don’t forget, once you’ve planned your event, to upload the details to our event calendar.
Getting Started
As a first step in the planning process, read this memo from the Fighting Poverty with Faith steering committee. It is full of programming ideas. Once you’ve completed that, please look below for resources specific to individual types of events.
Writing Op-Eds
Placing a poverty-focused opinion editorial in your local newspaper is great way to raise the profile of poverty issues in your community. In the hopes of assisting those interested, Fighting Poverty with Faith has drafted a sample op-ed on which you may base yours. It can be found here: Sample FPWF Op-Ed
For those interested in working with experienced media professionals on an opinion piece, the Coalition on Human Needs is offering such an opportunity. To learn more, please e-mail Maricela Donahue by clicking on her name.
Candidate Forums (Host Your Own or Ask Questions at a Public Event)
Poverty-focused candidate questions written by Fighting Poverty with Faith
Tips for Attending a Town Hall Meeting or Candidate Forum (aka “bird-dogging”) from RESULTS
Many non-profit organizations have questions about getting involved in politics and elections. Below you can read through two guides for non-profit organizations that provide guidelines and best practices for events you may be planning during election season, including candidates forums and voter registration drives:
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s Election Guide: Called to Be a Public Church
Jewish Council for Public Affairs’ Guide for Election Year Practices: Jewish Values in Action
National Council of Jewish Women’s Election Guide: Promote the Vote, Protect the Vote
In the same vein, here is a sample candidate questionnaire created by the Jewish Community Relations Council of San Francisco
Poverty Simulation Materials
Community Action Poverty Simulation (CAPS) Website
CAPS Brochure
This program, created by the Missouri Association for Community Action (MACA), is a powerful tool. On their informative website, listed above, you may purchase a kit. Alternatively, in most states there are individuals or organizations that already own the kit and will come conduct the simulation with you. MACA is happy to help connect you to people in your state who can do this.
Get Press For Your Event
FPWF hosted a webinar on September 14 that detailed strategies for attracting the media to your community’s FPWF events. To view the Powerpoint slides from that webinar, please click here. Additionally, you may download an event-planning checklist (with reminders for gaining press attention) by clicking here.
Contact Your Local Officials
Find your Elected Officials
Your representatives will be home in their districts often as election season approaches and you can set up meetings with them to share with them the goals of Fighting Poverty with Faith. As their constituent, you have the power to convince your officials that voters care strongly about human needs programs and job creation legislation.
