5 Tips for Contacting Your Elected Representatives About Gun Reform

People often design cartoon strips and satirical pieces that show politicians as puppets with strings attached to their arms and legs. These pieces are clearly meant to be funny, but they resonate with us because they have a strong stench of veracity. And while politicians are certainly influenced by lobbyists and party affiliations, they can also be controlled by you and your peers – i.e. the constituents who control their political future.

When it comes to gun reform – something an overwhelming percentage of the population supports to some degree – it’s up you to contact your elected representatives and make sure your opinion is heard.

Get Out of the Echo Chamber and Speak Up

We all have that Facebook friend from high school who shares her unsolicited opinions on every single newsworthy event and stokes controversy with people she barely knows. Then there’s the crazy uncle who browses radical political websites and shares everything he reads as the truth, no matter how biased the source.

Or maybe you are one of these people.

The point is that sharing something on Facebook does nothing. In most cases, sharing politically charged content on topics like gun reform results in nothing more than an echo chamber of opinions. People who take the same stance pat each other on the back. Those who disagree with each other use the same straw man arguments in an attempt to make the other look foolish.

Some would claim that social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter are good for society – giving everyone a platform to be heard – but the bitter truth is that they’ve caused more harm than good (in the context of politics). Everyone thinks they’re being heard when, in reality, they aren’t moving the needle on public discourse or political activism at all.

If you really want your opinion to be heard, you have to remove yourself from the Facebook echo chamber and speak up. You must target the people who have influence over change – i.e. your elected representatives.

Whether they’re on the left, right, or somewhere in the middle, your elected representatives are probably thinking about gun reform in some form or fashion. A recent Quinnipiac University poll of American voters shows that 66 percent of people would support more stringent gun laws, while just 31 percent say they would not. That’s up considerably since 2015, when support for gun reform was below 50 percent.

Even gun owners, who are typically most against any sort of gun reform, are coming around. Roughly 50 percent of gun owners favor some degree of reform, while 44 percent do not.

5 Tips for Contacting Your Elected Representatives

Most of us have never contacted an elected official. We know they can be reached, but we have little idea of how to do so. If this sounds like you, you may find the following helpful:

1.     Think for Yourself

Before you go contacting politicians, make sure you’ve actually thought through what you’re going to say. It’s easy to regurgitate what everyone else in your Facebook echo chamber is saying – but what do you actually believe? It’s much easier to articulate a belief if you know what you support and why.

2.     Find Out Who Your Elected Officials Are

The next step is to determine who your elected officials are. If you’re unaware of which congressmen, senators, and representatives in Washington represent you, this website has a handy tool that allows you to enter your address and find out.

3.     Write a Handwritten Note

While there are lots of websites that let attach your name to a form letter and email it to your representative, this isn’t extremely effective. It’s far more valuable to write a handwritten note. Order some cheap greeting cards and make it a point to send one handwritten note per week until something is done. It won’t take very long for your letters to get noticed.

4.     Pick up the Phone and Call

If you want to take things to another level, you can pick up the phone and place a call to the office of your elected official. While you probably won’t get to speak directly with this person, you can leave a message or speak to the secretary who passes messages along. When enough people call, the friction forces them to respond.

5.     Visit in Person

Feeling especially bold and empowered? Why not head up to Washington and pay your elected representatives a visit in person. The offices of your elected officials have an open-door policy. This means you can walk in and ask to speak with someone any time the lights are on.

Again, you might not get to speak with your congressman or senator directly, but you can rest assured they’ll hear about your visit. If you really want to make a statement, bring a group of people and visit on consecutive days. Don’t be rude or belligerent – but do make your voice heard.

Don’t Wait Until the Next Horrific Event

In 2018 alone, there have already been 12 school shootings in the U.S. involving at least one victim. In addition to these events, there have also been a handful of other incidents involving guns on school campuses. In other words, this isn’t a problem that’s going away. School shootings – and shootings in general – are occurring at an alarming rate. We can’t wait for the next horrific event to have our voices heard.

Maybe you’re someone who wants to take guns away completely – revoking the second amendment and everything it entails. Or perhaps you’re in support of gun ownership, but simply want more stringent background checks. There’s room for a variety of opinions on this topic, but almost everyone can agree that something must be done. And in order for real change to happen, you have to speak with the people who matter.

There are people controlling your elected representatives – including lobbyists, donors, and political strategists. If you don’t speak up, their voices are the ones that win.

Log off Facebook. You have some work to do.