Diverse Elders Coalition

February 28, 2021    |    

  • A A A
    • Who We Are
      • The Coalition
        • Who We Are
        • Our History
        • Our Team
        • Our Supporters
        • Employment Opportunities
        • Contact Us
      • Diverse Elders
        • AAPI Elders
        • Black Elders
        • AI/AN Elders
        • Hispanic Elders
        • LGBT Elders
    • What We Do
      • Current Campaigns
        • Civic Engagement
        • Family Caregiving
        • Health Reform
        • Public Education
      • Past Campaigns
        • State Advocacy: Georgia
        • State Advocacy: New Mexico
        • White House Conference on Aging
    • What to Know
      • Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia
      • Data Collection and Disaggregation
      • HIV & Aging
      • Immigration Reform
      • Medicare & Medicaid
      • Older Americans Act
    • What You Can Do
      • Tell Your Story
      • Explore Our Stories
      • Share Our Blog Posts
    • Library
    • Blog

    Blog

    Comments 0 Comments

    Diverse Elders

    March 8, 2017

    Advocacy 101: How Would You Advise the Government to Help Older Adults?

    lelandby Leland Kiang, LICSW. Leland is the Information & Referral Manager at IONA Senior Services in Washington, DC. IONA supports people as they experience the challenges and opportunities of aging by educating, advocating, and providing community-based services to help people age well and live well.  This post originally appeared the IONA website.

    No matter your party affiliation, this election may have inspired you to get more involved in the political process. And why shouldn’t you? Like it or not, the federal government directly impacts each of our lives through programs as diverse as education to veterans’ benefits.

    Federal laws dictate what Medicare covers, how much Social Security pays us, and what we pay in taxes. US states, on average, obtain a third of their revenue (for state services) from the federal government. The incoming congress, and the president-elect already have suggested big changes to the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) and to Medicare — programs that impact one in five Americans (for more information, click here and here). In addition, in the coming years, our elected officials also will decide on funding levels for the National Family Caregiver Support Program, the national Elder Justice Initiative (elder abuse prevention), Alzheimer’s research, senior employment assistance, and senior housing.

    How does an average American influence national policy? Voting for our candidates of choice is one way. The framers of our constitution, however, also gave us opportunities to influence lawmakers in between elections. They created a government where “we the people” can advocate at any time with our elected officials to create or change laws that affect us.

    (c) 2006 Bonnie Jacobs

    (c) 2006 Bonnie Jacobs

    How You Fit Into the Lawmaking Process

    Before considering how to advocate, it’s first necessary to have a basic understanding of our legislative process, and where you might fit in. Generally speaking, lawmaking starts at Congress, and ends at the President. Any senator or representative, from either government “chamber” (i.e. the senate or the House of Representatives), may draft legislation (a.k.a. a “bill”).

    In drafting a bill, legislators may use their own ideas, and/or ideas they receive from others…like us. The bill’s author (its “sponsor”) introduces the bill, which then goes to committee where lawmakers refine the bill’s language, often incorporating feedback from others…like us. After committee, the members of the chamber (where the bill was introduced) vote on the bill. In deciding how to vote, they may be persuaded by others…like us. If approved, the bill goes to the other chamber, where the process is repeated. When both chambers agree on the bill’s language, they send it to the President, who may approve or veto it, often after reflecting on input from others…like us.

    Basic Advocacy

    How we advocate with (or persuade) our elected officials is similar to the way we persuade anyone else. For example, imagine you want to convince a friend to donate to a charity you support. You might invite your friend to meet, or you might write a letter. In your conversation, you likely will introduce the charity and the problem it hopes to solve; and explain to your friend who the problem impacts, what the charity is doing to solve the problem, and how your friend’s donation can help. To make your case more convincing, you might describe how the charity’s work relates to your friend’s hobbies or values, mention mutual friends who already have donated, or share a personal story about how the charity’s work impacts you. If your friend donates (or even if he/she doesn’t), you might send a “thank you” note for your friend’s time.

    Advocating with our legislators is not much different, although the means by which we connect might be. Because we may not personally know our elected officials, we might first participate in a town hall meeting with an official, write a letter to the local newspaper to get their attention, schedule a meeting through their staff, or first meet with their staff. Because the government intensely examines incoming mail (to check for dangerous substances) — a process that may take up to a month — we also may choose to phone or to send an email, rather than mailing a letter.

    Whichever method you choose to contact your elected officials, here are some guidelines to consider:

    1. Be brief. Your lawmakers and their staff rarely have more than 30 minutes to devote to individuals. At a town hall meeting, you may have less than 10 minutes to get to your point; and in a letter or email, you may want to limit yourself to 100-150 words.
    2. Be organized. Because your time is brief, you will want to deliver your message efficiently. State the problem or issue. If you’re contacting your lawmaker about a particular bill, indicate the bill’s title or number (see Logistics). Explain specifically how the problem/issue affects you, your legislator, and/or your legislator’s constituents. If possible, provide evidence from independent sources, and show how the problem/issue relates to your elected official’s values, voting record, or campaign promises. Most importantly, identify what you want your lawmaker to do: be it drafting legislation, revising language in a bill, or voting on a bill.
    3. Be courteous. Like you, your elected officials and their staff want to make a difference; and like you, they may have time conflicts, competing responsibilities, or bad days.
    4. Leave something behind. If you meet with your elected official or your official’s staff, consider leaving literature about the issue and the position you want your legislator to take. You might leave your contact information, and offer to answer future questions. Whether you wrote to your lawmaker, or met with them in person, send a thank you note for their time; be sure to include a reminder of the issue, and what you want your lawmaker to do.

    Easy Advocacy

    If you’re short on time — or just seek an easier way to advocate — consider signing up for action alerts from an organization that fights for issues important to you. Typically these organizations will notify you about issues on which you can act, instruct you on how to contact relevant decision-makers, and provide sample language for your use.

    Organizations that advocate on issues of concern to older adults include AARP, the National Council on Aging, the Alzheimer’s Association, the Center for Medicare Advocacy, LeadingAge, and the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care.

    Logistics

    Find contact information for your senators on this US Senate’s webpage; and for your representatives, on this webpage of the US House of Representatives. To contact the President, visit the White House’s website. To find bill titles and numbers, along with text and summaries, visit the website of the Library of Congress.

    For More Information

    For more information on our legislative process, see the US House of Representatives website. Or, for easy-to-read information, see the House of Representative’s Kids’ page, which includes progressively more detailed descriptions for grade schoolers through high school. For more information on how the annual federal budget is determined, visit the National Priorities Project website. For more advice on advocacy, see resources from the Gerontological Society of America, the National Council on Aging, and the National Psoriasis Foundation.

    Leland Kiang, LICSW is manager of Iona’s Information & Referral Help Line, whose staff answers questions about senior services throughout the DC metro area.  Leland also has written articles for BIFOCAL, Unite Virginia, and the National Resource Center on LGBT Aging.

     

     

    The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Diverse Elders Coalition.

    Share Print this        Email Email this        Print Print this

    Recent Posts

    • Centering Vaccination Planning on Equity: Intersecting Considerations of Age, Race, and More
    • Diversifying Research on COVID-19 and Aging-Related Issues: A Call for Asian American and Pacific Islander Older Adults and Caregivers to Participate in COMPASS and CARE
    • Study Seeks to Understand Arab American Health During COVID-19

    Most Popular Posts

    • 35 quotes to help guide your life from famous African American older adults
    • Dion Wong: A conversation with a 69-year-old Chinese gay man (AAPI Heritage Month)
    • Chinese Seniors in New York: Where to Live
    • HIV/AIDS is Still an Issue for Older Gay Black Men
    • Growing Older Together: Queer People of Color and Aging

    Issues

    • All
    • Access to Services
    • Aging & Ageism
    • Caregiving
    • Chronic Illness
    • Civic Engagement
    • Cultural & Linguistic Competence
    • Data Collection / Research
    • Discrimination
    • Economic Security
    • Elder Abuse
    • Health & Wellness
    • Health Reform
    • HIV / AIDS
    • Housing
    • LGBTQ Communities
    • Medicaid / Medicare
    • National Asian Pacific Center on Aging (NAPCA)
    • National Caucus and Center on Black Aging (NCBA)
    • National Hispanic Council on Aging (NHCOA)
    • National Indian Council on Aging (NICOA)
    • Older Americans Act (OAA)
    • People of Color
    • Public Policy
    • Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP)
    • SAGE || Advocacy and Services for LGBT Elders
    • Social Security / Retirement
    • Southeast Asia Resource Action Center (SEARAC)
    • Transportation

    Tags

    #MakeHistory #PrideInPlace #TellACL 2020 AAPI AAPI Heritage Month AAPI Older Adults AARP Activism ADRD advocacy Affordable Care Act Africa African American African American Elders Ageism & Culture Aging Aging in America Conference AI/AN AI/AN Elders AI/ANs aid AIDS Alaska Native Alyssa Tulabut Alzheimer's Alzheimer's Disease American Indian American Indian & Alaska Native Elders American Indian Alaska Natives American Indian and Alaska Native Elders American Indian and Alaska Natives American Indians/Alaska Native Elders American Indians and Alaska Native Elders American Society on Aging Arab American Arab Americans Asian American and Pacific Islander Elders ballots barriers BIPOC Black Black History Month Black Lives Matter Black Veterans Black Veterans for Social Justice Blog Brazil care Caregiver Caregivers Caregiving Caregiving in a pandemic Caring Across Generations CDC CDSME Census Christmas Civic Engagement Clinical Trials Commemoration Commonwealth Fund communities communities of color community Community Catalyst Community Catalyst. Pandemic COMPASS Congresswoman Continuing Education Coronavirus COVID-19 COVID-19 Cases Cultural Competence Cultural Competency Culturally Competent Healthcare data Dawn Dearborn Dementia Dementias Department of Aging Direct Services Disability Discrimination diverse Diverse Elders Stories Initiative Dr. Marcy Adelman Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dual Eligibles Early Voting Earthquake Economic Security Education Egypt eldercare elders Election Election Day Election Reflections Employment/Workforce Issues End of Life enrollment Essential Workers event Events Executive Director exercise Families family Family Caregivers finances Financial Finding a Job Finding a Job LinkedIn Fitness Fitness and Exercise Food and Nutrition Functional Exercise funds Geriatrics Gerontological Society of America Gina Le Grandaughters Grandmother Grandparents Hassan Abbas Health Health & Wellness Healthcare health care Health Care Workers health coverage Health Disparities health equity Health Insurance health research Healthy Aging Healthy Eating Hispanic Elders Hispanic Heritage Month Hispanic older adults HIspanics HIV Holidays Home Exercises Hunger Hurricane Immigration / Refugees immunizations Indian Country Indigenous insurance Intergenerational Intergenerational trauma In The News Isolation Justice & Equity Justice in Aging Katrina Dizon Mariategue Kham Moua Khmer Kristine Ajrouch Language Access Languages Latinos LatinosAgainstAlzheimer's Latinx lawsuit Leadership LGBT LGBT Caregivers LGBT Elders LGBT History Month LGBT Older Adults LGBTQ LinkedIn LinkedIn Profile Listening Session Living Lockdown Long Distance Caregivers mail-in vote Mayra Acevedo MCCFAD medicaid medicare Medicina Salud Publica Mental Health mental health care Metro Detroit money NAPCA National Council on Aging National Disability Employment Awareness Month National Indian Council on Aging National Minority Health Month National Work and Family Month Native American Heritage Month Native Americans needs assessment Neighborhood and Community New York New York City Next Avenue NHCOA NICOA Nonprofit NYC obstacles Oklahoma Older adults Older adults of color Older Americans Month open open enrollment Paid Leave Pandemic People of Color People with Disabilities Personal Perspectives Philanthropy Physical Health Plan policy polling PPE Pride Month prizes Programs public health Puerto Rico queer Quyen Dinh raffles Reflection registration Related Dementias research Resiliency RRF safety SAGE SAGECents SAGEVets SEAA SEARAC Second Wave Self-Care seniors Services Shawnee Tribe Sina Sam Social Engagement Social Isolation Social Justice social worker South Asian Elders Southeast Asian American Southeast Asian American Caregivers Southeast Asian Elders support survey Technology telehealth telemedicine Thanksgiving The John A. Hartford Foundation trans Transgender Elders Two-spirit U.S. Treasury Department Unemployed United States University of Michigan University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine vaccinations vaccines Veterans vote voting Voting plan webinar Web Seminar Weight Gain Weight Loss White House Conference on Aging WHO Work & Purpose Workplace Workplace Issues Yvette Clarke
    • Who We Are
      • The Coalition
        • Who We Are
        • Our History
        • Our Team
        • Our Supporters
        • Employment Opportunities
        • Contact Us
      • Diverse Elders
        • AAPI Elders
        • Black Elders
        • AI/AN Elders
        • Hispanic Elders
        • LGBT Elders
    • What We Do
      • Current Campaigns
        • Civic Engagement
        • Family Caregiving
        • Health Reform
        • Public Education
      • Past Campaigns
        • State Advocacy: Georgia
        • State Advocacy: New Mexico
        • White House Conference on Aging
    • What to Know
      • Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia
      • Data Collection and Disaggregation
      • HIV & Aging
      • Immigration Reform
      • Medicare & Medicaid
      • Older Americans Act
    • What You Can Do
      • Tell Your Story
      • Explore Our Stories
      • Share Our Blog Posts
    • Library
    • Blog

    Join Our Community

    © 2021 Diverse Elders Coalition. All Rights Reserved.  |   Terms of Use