Saturday, September 15, 2007

ring, ring, ring, ring, ring

The 'End the occupation of Iraq Pledge' campaign continues and the pink and blue dots across America continue to grow as we all CALL CONGRESS and light up the Capitol switchboard. They do count the calls, why you are calling and what zip code you are in.

I began calling Congress daily (well, almost daily, I'm not perfect) early this summer during our 'Focus on Nelson' call in, a Florida statewide campaign to get our senior Senator Nelson to stop funding the war. I added the other Senator and Congressional rep to my daily calls and have timed it enough to know that it takes me less than five minutes or 35 minutes a week,and whopping 2.5 hours a month to let Congress know how I feel. Much like a good morning stretch, it's worth it.

I decided to start sharing this empowering daily habit at meetings I would attend, whether peace related or not. Every time I have an opportunity to speak, like I did at the Orlando Progressive Alliance (OPA) meeting in front of 20 different organizations last month, I begin by asking everyone to take out their cell phones and dial Congress with me. I give them the Capitol switchboard number 202 224-3121 and tell them to ask for their representative. I explain that they are open 24/7 and it's okay to leave a voice mail as long as they remember to leave their zip code! Then I remind them to save the name with the number and go on with my report.

This month, I returned to the same OPA meeting and was pleasantly surprised by a report back from another group. They had done a chalking for peace at our downtown Lake Eola city park and when folks came up to see the art, they asked them if they would like to call Congress. They filmed some of the calls and had such a great response and so much fun that they are going to make it a monthly "cool thing" to do with their group.

So, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, our Congress and help spread the word! The CODEPINK
'End the occupation of Iraq Pledge' is also a great way to engage those busy people, who "so support our movement" but just don't have time to help. It only takes five minutes a week to be counted and make a difference. ring, ring, ring, ring, ring

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