Making Your Voice Heard

Written on: October 25, 2018

The following is from American Friends Service Committee (AFSC). It has excellent pointers about how to talk about the migrant caravan and migration more broadly. I attached the two articles in case there was any difficulty accessing their website: https://www.afsc.org/blogs/.

These along with the information below should be a great help in trying your hand at writing a Letter to the Editor (LTE). If you have never written one, you may think it too daunting, but honestly it isn’t.

Some tips:

• If you can, reference or respond to a related article from the newspaper to which you are writing
• Focus on one important point; don’t use general jargon
• Be personal, positive, sincere and helpful
• Many papers have between 150 and 250 word limit. Check that out.
• 3 things you can do to stand with the migrant caravan today
• How to talk about the migrant caravan
  

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The accompanying attachments are from LCWR regarding this election time. This is an issue we are prioritizing, even as we observe Disarmament Week. We believe the violence these two issues are fomenting stem from the same root, fear.

That being said, this week we might consider the power of the pen as suggested here by LCWR.  Truth and nonviolent words can help bring about a sense of equanimity. We know that fear and the violence it produces are not viable options!

Here is a wonderful election year Letter-to-the-Editor written by Virginia Wilkerson, PBVM. She hopes to get it published in the Catholic New York. We hope it inspires you to consider writing an Letter To the Editor for publication in your own local press.

Two other election year pieces that you might find helpful:

• USCSAHT Human Trafficking Voter Guide
• A theological reflection written by Quincy Howard, OP

This entry was posted in With a Heart for Justice and tagged: Catholic Social Teaching, Civic discourse, Human Trafficking, letters, politics, voter guide, voting