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Dispatches on the For The People Act (Special 10th Edition)

We can’t believe our Substack is already on its tenth week! We want to thank all of our subscribers for reading our work and joining the fight for H.R. 1. In honor of our tenth edition, this Substack will look a little different — instead of a provision of the week, we’re going to share five easy and fun ways to advocate for H.R. 1 from wherever you are.

But first, we have some exciting announcements:

In a big legislative development: Senator Amy Klobuchar announced that the Senate Rules Committee will hold a markup of the For The People Act on May 11. This procedural step will bring the bill closer to a vote on the full Senate floor.

Live Events!

We will be having a live discussion about the For the People Act with two members of the Demos team, Laura Williamson and Shruti Banerjee. It will take place tomorrow, Friday, the 16th, at 5 pm on Facebook Live. RSVP here!

Next Friday, the 23rd, at 5:30 pm we will go live on Facebook with Elizabeth Hira from the Brennan Center for Justice. Don’t miss out on this undoubtedly wonderful discussion about the For the People Act. Stay tuned for an RSVP link.

This week on the podcast, Lawrence Lessig spoke with Lee Drutman, senior fellow in the Political Reform program at New America. The two discussed the history of the U.S. political party system, polarization and partisanship, reform, and Lee's recent book, "Breaking the Two-Party Doom Loop: The Case for Multiparty Democracy in America". Check it out here.

Unveiling our Senate Filibuster Tracker!

To celebrate our tenth Substack, we launched a tracker where you can see the positions of each Democratic senator on the filibuster. Does your senator believe in preserving this arcane Senate rule, or do they want to save democracy? Find out here. And if your senator still doesn’t believe we should do whatever it takes to pass the For The People Act, then we have provided a phone number for you to call to tell them to change their mind.

Full credit to Daily Kos Elections for compiling the information regarding where senators stand on the filibuster.

Five Ways You Can Join the Fight for the For the People Act Right Now:

1) Call your senators.

Even if your senators already cosponsored the For The People Act, it is critically important that they know just how many of their constituents support the bill. Your voice could make the difference between them advocating for the bill or just letting it fall by the wayside.

This call is even more important if the senator does not support reforming the filibuster, the single biggest obstacle to the passage of the For The People Act. It will take thousands of calls to save our democracy. Trust us, the other side is working hard to kill this reform. 

You can use our filibuster tracker to find the phone number of your senator, or call the Capitol switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected to them. 

Not sure what to say on the phone? Check out sample scripts in our Extra, Extra section!

2) Sign up for a virtual meeting with your senators.

The Declaration For American Democracy, a coalition devoted to advocating for H.R. 1, has a program that allows you to meet with your senators to lobby them in favor of H.R. 1. When you sign up at this link, DFAD will send you a toolkit and resources for how to schedule and have a successful meeting. This is an amazing opportunity to not only meet your representatives, but also to have a real impact on whether they prioritize the For The People Act. 

3) Write a letter to the editor about H.R. 1.

Members of Congress pay close attention to the local press in their state/district to see what issues are important to their constituents. Writing a letter to the editor is therefore a great way to create pressure for the For The People Act.

Letters to the editor are often short (no more than 250 words) and less formal than op-eds, meaning writing one is quick and easy! In your letter you can share your favorite parts of H.R. 1, talk about why it will help your community, or why it matters to you personally. You can also call on your senators by name to support the bill, or encourage them to reform the filibuster to pass it. (If you need inspiration about specific provisions of H.R. 1, check out our previous Substacks.)

If you have more questions about how to write a letter to the editor, or just want to know how to get started, send us an email at info@equalcitizens.us and we can help!

4) Share your support for H.R. 1 on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, Twitch, or whatever social media you use.

The more buzz we can create about the For The People Act, the better. We’d love it if you would share our Substack, but you can also share any news articles that you come across (including those we share with you), or your general thoughts on the bill. Bonus points if you tag your senators in your posts!

Represent.Us also has a huge collection of gifs and graphics you can use to spice up your posts. Check them out here.

5) Finally, talk with your family and friends about the For The People Act.

Far too many Americans have still never heard about the For The People Act. Fortunately,  poll after poll has shown that when people learn about what the Act does, they overwhelmingly support it, regardless of whether they are liberal, conservative, or somewhere in between. To pass this bill, we need a groundswell of support from people — like those in your social networks. And if people have misinformation about the For The People Act, talking to them as family or friends, using this article, can help them understand why they are mistaken. Plus, if you can get them to take all the steps you did to advocate for H.R. 1, then you’ve just doubled your impact!

The bottom line is this:

We HAVE to get people talking about H.R. 1, to anyone who will listen. Dark money groups are advocating for “under-the-dome strategies” to kill the bill precisely because they know that when people hear about H.R. 1, they support it. Your senators work for YOU, so if you tell them you support the bill, there’s a good chance they will, too. 

And a Quick In the News:

Rep. Mondaire Jones argues that Congress must prevent the return of Jim Crow by passing the For the People Act. Rep. Jones declares that it is time for a Third Reconstruction, “one that abolishes Jim Crow once and for all”. He continues by noting that we need to protect voting rights, reform redistricting, and transform our campaign finance system -- all of which are encapsulated in the For the People Act.

Senate Majority Leader Schumer asked his Democratic colleagues to reach across the aisle to see if Republicans will work in a bipartisan manner. If the Republicans are unwilling to compromise, then the Democrats will have more justification for reforming the filibuster.

Extra, Extra:

If, after reading our newsletter, you still want to know more about what to say to your senators, the For The People Act, Equal Citizens, or the two of us, you can find more information here!

What to say when you call your senator’s office:

Calling a senator’s office for the first time can seem a bit daunting, but it is actually one of the quickest and easiest ways to make your voice heard. If you’re not sure what to say, here’s a few quick sample scripts:

If your senator supports the For The People Act AND reforming the filibuster:

My name is [FULL NAME] and I am calling from [CITY/TOWN, STATE]. I would like to thank [SENATOR’S NAME] for their support for S. 1, the For The People Act. This bill is the most important fair elections bill in generations, and it is essential that we pass it to protect the right to vote and make our government work for everyone. I hope [SENATOR] will continue to advocate for S. 1 and continue to support reforming the filibuster to pass it.

If your senator supports the For The People Act BUT NOT reforming the filibuster:

My name is [FULL NAME] and I am calling from [CITY/TOWN, STATE]. I would like to thank [SENATOR’S NAME] for their support for S. 1, the For The People Act, and to ask that they support filibuster reform to pass this bill. The For the People Act is the most important fair elections bill in generations, and we cannot allow a minority to stop this bill while anti-democratic legislation is being passed in states across the country. This issue is important to me, and I hope [SENATOR] will help reform the filibuster to make sure this bill becomes law.

If your senator DOES NOT support the For The People Act:

My name is [FULL NAME] and I am calling from [CITY/TOWN, STATE] to ask that [SENATOR] support the For The People Act, S. 1. The For the People Act is the most important fair elections bill in generations, and we must institute these reforms to make our democracy works for everyone. This issue is important to me as a voter, and I hope [SENATOR] will join me in supporting the bill.

Relevant Resources:

Here are a few resources on the “For the People Act” if you have questions:

The Brennan Center for Justice created a wonderful guide to H.R. 1. Check it out here. They also created an in-depth report about racism and disenfranchisement due to incarceration.

Here is the link to the House website on the For the People Act.

Flood social media with these awesome graphics about the For the People Act! 

There is a lot of misinformation about H.R. 1, and the amount of misinformation will only grow as the fight heats up. That’s why it’s more important than ever to make sure everyone has all the facts on the bill - here is an article from Media Matters that can help you fact check.

More about us:

Kate Travis is a fellow at Equal Citizens and a junior at Harvard studying History and Literature with a minor in Government. When she’s not fighting for democracy, you can find her running, playing the cello, and drinking copious amounts of coffee (maybe even all at once). Follow her on Twitter at @mkht930.

Kevin Rissmiller is a fellow at Equal Citizens and a Goodwin-Niering Scholar at Connecticut College majoring in Government and exploring sociology, economics, and applied statistics. In his free time, you will find him at Dunkins or (pre-pandemic) playing ultimate frisbee. Connect with him on LinkedIn.

If you want more updates on H.R. 1 from Kate and Kevin, then subscribe here!