Call-In Day

A call in day is a great way for participants to connect with their Members of Congress. When a Congressional office receives multiple phone calls about one issue over the course of a few hours or a day, they become more aware of the importance of that issue in their district or state. The volume of calls raises the profile of the issue.

GETTING STARTED

We recommend calling your Representative and Senators; if you would prefer to target only one of these three, feel free to ask us about who might be the most effective target.
When placing calls, we encourage advocates to ask specifically for the legislative assistant who covers housing issues.
Choose block of time when the office is open and members of your community are likely to be available to make calls from home or from a specified location. Having an in person call in day is a fun way to get people excited about engaging their members of Congress. 2-3 pm EST can be a great time.
Write a call-in script. Here are some tips and examples:
- As always, identify yourself as a constituent and tell the staffer where you are from. If your job permits it, mention what you do and how it relates to affordable housing.
- Explain that there is a shortage of affordable rental housing in your district and in every community around the country. This shortage slows economic growth, reduces mobility, drives up healthcare costs, and traps families and communities in poverty.
- Explain that the shortage is the direct result of underfunded federal housing programs that don't meet the national need. As a country, we must invest more in programs that make housing affordable for all members of our community.
- Tell the staffer that President Trump's budget proposal would put hundreds of thousands of families at risk of homelessness and would hurt every community in our country.
- Ask that your senators/representative to reject President Trump's budget proposal, and instead to work with their colleagues to lift the spending caps for this year's spending bills and increase investment in HUD and USDA Rural Development programs.
- Thank the staff person for their time and their work serving your district.

SHARING THE EVENT

Create a Facebook event explaining the need for investments in affordable homes and the reason for the event. Include the number to call and the script for a call, or if doing an in person call in day, provide the location and time of the event.
Share information about the event, including the link to the Facebook event, with ourhomes@nlihc.org.
Publicize the event through your email list and social media accounts; recruit other organizations interested in social justice and anti-poverty causes to help sponsor the event and ask them to publicize the event through their channels.

PLANNING LOGISTICS

On the day of the event, send reminders through social media and email to call or show up at the specified time.
If you are doing a call in day at a location, provide advocates with call in scripts and computers to look up their legislators.
Having stations where participants can check in, receive swag, look up their legislators, make calls, receive food, report out on calls, and take pictures makes the event fun!
Take pictures at the event and post them on social media, tagging @OurHomesVoices and #OurHomesOurVoices.

AFTER THE EVENT

After the event, send an email thanking attendees and reminding them of ways to continue to be involved in the movement for affordable homes for all.
Write thank you letters to speakers, volunteers, site hosts, and others.
Be sure to post on your organization’s blog or social media pages about the event to continue to raise awareness of the issue.

LETTER WRITING CAMPAIGN

Hosting a letter writing campaign involves providing materials and a script to participants so they are able to write to their Members of Congress about the need for investment in housing. Participants are able to include their own experiences as well as data you provide about housing need. By sending the letters in bulk to your Members’ local offices, you will raise awareness for the housing affordability crisis and demonstrate to your Members the importance their constituents place in federal investments in affordable homes.

GETTING STARTED

Download the mailing addresses for the district offices of your representative and senators. Templates for letters and postcards will be available for download soon.
If you are planning to host an in-person letter writing event, work with local organizations, houses of worship, and community centers to find a space you can use for your event. Any easily accessible room with tables and chairs will work.

SHARING YOUR EVENT

Choose a time for your event and create a Facebook event explaining the need for investments in homes that people can afford and the reason for the Week of Action. Include details about the time and place and how advocates can engage from home if they so desire.
Share information about the Week of Action, including the link to the Facebook event, with ourhomes@nlihc.org.
Publicize the event through your email list and social media accounts; recruit other organizations interested in social justice and anti-poverty causes to help sponsor the event and ask them to publicize the event through their channels.
Consider using Our Homes, Our Voices posters to publicize the event around your community.

PLANNING LOGISTICS

Our Homes, Our Voices provides letter and postcard templates. Choose whichever fits your community best, or provide all options.
Plan to send letters to both of your Senators and your Representative. Print their names and post them around the room to make it easy for advocates address their letters.
Provide advocates with templates, pens, and pencils. If you will have children participating, considering providing crayons or markers and encouraging them to draw pictures of their homes and families.
Send the letters using one large envelope for each recipient. Look up your elected officials and use the mailing address of the district office nearest to you. Do NOT send the letters to the Washington, DC office.
Take pictures at the event and post them on social media, tagging @OurHomesVoices and #OurHomesOurVoices.

AFTER THE EVENT

After the event, send an email thanking attendees and reminding them of ways to continue to be involved in the movement for affordable homes for all.
Write thank you letters to speakers, volunteers, site hosts, and others.
Be sure to post on your organization’s blog or social media pages about the event to continue to raise awareness of the issue.