#ShowUp4DC

Sample Emails to send to your friends and family

 

Sample # 1

Did you see any of the news last summer where the military marched onto peaceful protesters on the streets of DC? A president has unique and, in this case, dangerous powers over those of us who live here, because we are not a state. Please read this petition – it tells our story of the injustice, the denial of our voting rights. And please, after you read it, sign the petition. It will send a message to your Congressional delegation (something I don’t have). If your members of Congress have co-sponsored the statehood bill, it will send them a than you letter. If they have not, it will urge them to do so.

This is how we build power to win. Then, please forward this email to your friends and family. Be well, be safe and thanks for working to make our democracy stronger.  

 

Sample #2

Friends,

Have I ever told you how crummy it is to have no voice in Congress? With all the things going on in the country today, it kills me to not be able to call a Senator and tell them what I think.

 

You, my friend, can help end this. The Washington DC Admission Act, HR 51 will come before the whole House of Representatives soon, and it already has enough co-sponsors to pass. Then the hard work of passing it through the Senate will begin.  

 

Please support our efforts to keep the momentum going and sign DC Vote’s petition. This is how we build the grass roots power to win. Please forward this email to your friends and family. Thanks!

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Letters to the Editor

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Many publications, especially smaller newspapers welcome timely content. Ask your friends and family in the states to submit a letter to the editor (LTE) or an op ed. Below is a sample letter that they can use. If you know people who aren’t sure what publications are in their area, we can help with that too. Email Barbara with questions or for advice.  

 

Dear Editor: 

 

As Americans reel from violent images of police brutality over the past year, stunning photos came out of Washington, DC last week.  I, like many friends and neighbors, watched in shock as the Trump Administration ordered the use of tear gas to clear peaceful protesters from Lafayette Park and stood idle as the Capitol was overrun. 

 

A president can do this because Washington, DC residents lack statehood, which would grant them the basic representation that Americans living in the 50 states have. This means that DC families, unlike those in our state, do not have senators, voting representatives in Congress, nor a governor. 

 

Washington, DC’s  population of 712,000 is greater than the states of Wyoming and Vermont. DC residents pay more than $26 billion in federal taxes, more than 22 states. After witnessing the events of the past year, I believe it is high time to give the people of DC their full voting rights. 

 

A bill granting the people of DC statehood has received a groundswell of support in Congress this past year. But our senators have not signed on as co-sponsors yet. Voting rights are a pillar of our democracy, and it is time for elected officials to recognize this and co-sponsor their colleagues’ DC statehood bill. 

 

NAME OF SIGNER

City, State

 

Sample Tweets

 

• 712,000 D.C. residents, mostly Black and Brown people, have been denied a vote in Congress for 200+ years. #DCStatehood ends this discrimination. Read this petition to learn more and SIGN IT! https://bit.ly/3eyr8S0

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• Did you see the military troops that marched on peaceful protesters on neighborhood streets of DC? A president has vast powers over those of us who live here because we are not a state. Make us equal to all by supporting #DCStatehood https://bit.ly/3eyr8S0

 

• For the first time in history, on 6.26.2020, the House of Representatives voted in favor of ending 200 years of voter suppression the people of DC have suffered. #DCStatehood is overdue. Join the celebration and pass this news on.  https://bit.ly/3eyr8S0

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Videos

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• DC Vote has a 1-minute video on our FB page, showing that just the yellow line in the street divides those with representation from those without. Share it on your social media accounts or email the link to friends and family, especially those unfamiliar with the Statehood effort.

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• We've enlisted the voices of some of our Hometown favorites in the push for Statehood.  Check out these short videos with actors and activists who call DC home and share them on your social networks.

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• Know some students? Send them Students for DC Statehood's video. In 3 minutes, it tells the history and how we can change it. Their web page encourages students to start a chapter on their campus.

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Donate

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DC Vote needs the financial resources to make this work happen. We've led this campaign. Become a monthly donor, giving $51 each month, to help us grow it. We'll be travelling from Arizona to Pennsylvania to Wisconsin to build public support for equality for Washingtonians. DONATE TODAY and select the amount you can give.