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The Power of Advocacy: How One Voice Can Make a Difference - RyanHearn.org

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Advocacy is the heart and soul of social change. It’s the driving force that propels movements forward, giving voice to the voiceless and power to the

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Environmental groups in Oregon | US environmental groups

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Find Environmental groups in Oregon and get involved to solve the climate crisis. Post your environmental group here for others to find and volunteer.

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Protecting the rights and well-being of indigenous peoples

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Advocating is done in many ways. Personally, I run an advocacy page on Instagram. This has allowed me to connect with many people on the platform who share similar ideas to myself. I'm part of multiple advocacy group chats, primarily focusing on the criminal justice system, but also environmental issues and helping animals. Just recently I've been able to correspond with a journalist, and former incarcerated person who now works within the prison system to help create a much needed change.

From online petitions that resulted in elephants being re-homed, donation sites that plant trees or help families in need, fighting for injustice’s in the justice system, to important bills being passed after public outrage, I have seen the positive impact that my community has made on the world.

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This article gives a great overview of the general idea of advocacy, and how it's made great changes throughout history. The Civil Rights Movement is mentioned in here, and is usually the first thing I think of when discussing the significance of advocating.

Often times, individuals feel like they don't have the ability to make a difference because they're only one person. However, if everyone thought this way, where would we be today? Time has shown over and over again that everyones involvement matters, and that much of the worlds resolved issues have come from people speaking out about things they know are wrong.

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Indigenous people are suffering from poverty, loss of resources, and deforestation of their land. It's alarming to hear in this video that those of the Indigenous population are the most vulnerable and disadvantaged people in the world.

By bringing attention to this tragedy, more can be done to stop the damage of Indigenous culture.

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Advocacy plays a major role in environmental protection. Many of the laws that have been put into place to help the environment have happened because of people advocating and pushing political figures for change. Oregon is home to a large amount of environmental groups. This website definitely reflects that, as it gives examples of the many ways you can get involved with the environment as well as advocate for it.

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For many years now, I have come to realize how important advocating, and spreading awareness about certain issues that you feel strongly about can be. and while I am not always the biggest fan of social media, I can't deny what a powerful tool it is for situations like this. Using your voice and informing those around you truly makes a difference. Being able to use your platform and share valuable information to people all around the world is incredible.

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Out of the four megatrends categorized by the United Nations, technical innovation affects my community the most. This is because of how difficult it would be for someone without stable internet access to participate in advocacy groups.

My community relies heavily on social media and the internet in general, especially when discussing how to maintain the resources and funding in order for the group to continue helping others. Organization and planning is also done mostly through the internet.

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Why You Should Use Social Media for Advocacy

Provides a massive platform for networking

Provides a cost-effective way to connect with others to promote a common cause

Offers efficient resources to inform and collect support from parents, teachers, and the community

Connects you with almost every lawmaker who uses social media-another pathway to advocate

Connects you with almost every reporter who uses social media-another pathway to spread the word

The Primary Options for Social Media Advocacy

Twitter:

A platform to share your thoughts with followers in 140 characters or less

You can tweet at (@) people/groups; use hashtags (#) to create or join a movement referencing certain subject matter and follow other people/groups to get different viewpoints, learn something new, and follow breaking news and what others are doing; and retweet the posts of others to share the idea or news with your followers

The more often you tweet and explore on Twitter, the more your follower base and subject matter will grow-getting your word out to a greater volume of people

An example tweet about President Obama highlighting a new (hypothetical) literacy policy would look like this: "Great literacy policy introduced by @POTUS that addresses equity gap in low-income schools. #Literacy #EquityForAll"

Facebook:

A platform to share your thoughts with friends and followers. Also has a "group platform" that many organizations use to communicate with other group members or grow support for a certain movement.

You can post status updates, web links, announcements, photos, documents, etc.

Has a similar hashtag system to Twitter, allowing you to create or join a movement involving certain subject matter.

Has more active users than any other platform.

LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube:
Good resources for sharing videos, photos, and organizational updates

Remember these social media rules of conduct:

You can have an opinion; however, be articulate and professional in any tweet, retweet, or post.

Generally, you should not use personal social media accounts for education business and it is recommended too that you create accounts for professional use.

If things go negative, it's okay to stop engaging. Consider the impact on your overall advocacy efforts to help make a decision.

The moment you publish anything on social media, it's out there forever.

Social Media To-Do List

Follow policymakers at all levels on various social media. Understanding what your federal, state, and local policymakers are saying on social media will help you craft the speaking points and messages you'll need to communicate with them on your issues. Pay attention and track what they're working on; what kinds of things they like to talk/tweet about, and what their positions are. For example, you may learn that your member of Congress likes to tweet out photos of his or her recent visit to a school. You could use this as a way to ask your representative to come visit your own school.

Create groups on Facebook. You can do this to build advocacy coalitions for funding increases with lawmakers; build grassroots support; and connect with parents, teachers, and others throughout the community for reporting/discussing progress and "asks" during the state accountability program development stage.

Use social media to establish relationships with members of the media, especially on Twitter. Reporters have massive followings, and they're always looking for a good story that furthers their following even more. Use these relationships to tell your story and share good news and/or concerns with your community.

Suggested Twitter and Facebook accounts to follow:

NASSP: @NASSP on Twitter, @Principals on Facebook

The U.S. Department of Education: @usedgov on Twitter, @Ed.Gov on Facebook

The White House/President: @WhiteHouse/@POTUS on Twitter and Facebook

Your local, state, and federal legislators; community leaders; and local media

Sample Social Media Posts

Facebook

I'm advocating for more funding from Title II in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) because our schools need proper funding. Check out this toolkit from @NASSP for everything from fact sheets to sample social posts to spread the word. https://www.nassp.org/essa-toolkit

[INSERT MEMBER OF CONGRESS NAME] I hope you will join me in advocating for more funding under ESSA. https://www.nassp.org/essa-toolkit

Increased funding for education programs under ESSA is important and necessary. Help me make sure [INSERT MEMBER OF CONGRESS NAME] helps to secure it. https://www.nassp.org/essa-toolkit

Twitter

I'm advocating for more funding from Title II #ESSA and you should too! Our schools need proper funding: https://www.nassp.org/essa-toolkit

.[@INSERT MEMBER OF CONGRESS TWITTER HANDLE] join me in advocating for more funding under #ESSA: https://www.nassp.org/essa-toolkit

Increased funding for education programs under #ESSA is necessary. Help make sure [@INSERT MEMBER OF CONGRESS TWITTER HANDLE] helps to secure it. https://www.nassp.org/essa-toolkit

In This Section

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Social Media 101: Using Social Media to Advocate and Influence Policy

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Remember these social media rules of conduct: You can have an opinion; however, be articulate and professional in any tweet, retweet, or post.Generally, you should not use personal social media accounts for education business and it is recommended too that you create accounts for professional use.If things go negative, it's okay to stop engaging.

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NDIA Affiliate Land of Sky Testifies before House Subcommittee "We need a holistic approach to the digital divide that includes infrastructure, affordability, devices, and skills," said Sara Nichols during her testimony yesterday before Congress. Sara, a senior...

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Home - National Digital Inclusion Alliance

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A unified voice for home broadband access, public broadband access, personal devices, and local technology training and support programs. A community of digital inclusion practitioners and advocates.

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The National Digital Inclusion Alliance is a non-profit group that is made up of a large team. This team includes policy-makers and other advocacy organizations in order to lessen the digital divide. The NDIA recognizes that people who aren’t able to access electronic devices often miss out on opportunities and can feel isolated, which is why they’re focused on achieving digital equality within the United States and beyond.

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Economic systems and policies will alter what advocacy groups need to advocate for.

Social and economic justice is something my advocacy community strives for, and when we see new laws put into place that positively impact the world, we can move our focus elsewhere.

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The Economic Policy Institute’s vision is an economy that is just and strong, sustainable, and equitable — where every job is good, every worker can join a union, and every family and community can thrive. About EPI. The Economic Policy Institute (EPI) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank working for the last 30 years to…

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Progressive Economic Research Groups like the Economic Policy Institute primarily advocates for safe work environments. The organization prioritizes diversity and inclusion, recognizing that people of color and women face discrimination in the workforce. Progressive Economic Research Groups like the Economic Policy Institute, primarily advocates for safe work environments. Powerful corporations can easily influence laws that benefit profit over the well-being of people, which is why advocacy groups speak up in order to make a change.

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⬅️ This graph from the EPI shows that the racial wage gap has unfortunately continued to widen, increasing inequality. Working with a number of other advocacy groups, the Economic Policy Institute aims to decrease this economic inequality and create a more fair, long-lasting system that treats workers equally.

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Institutions Related to Health and Safety

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Institutions Related to Health and Safety

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The connection between institutions and healthcare in particular have become a massive talking point within my advocacy groups. Protests around the United States increased recently with the cuts to federal healthcare programs, acknowledging how dangerous this is for the country.

An organization called Advocates for Community Health is a group lead by health care center leaders who advocate for secure resources and improving the healthcare system. Almost every member of my online advocacy groups have been directly harmed by the cuts in healthcare programs, and going through this first hand experience allowed them to become more knowledgeable on the issue, ultimately gaining new resources and information used to protest against the healthcare cuts.

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Social Advocacy — Definition and 18 Examples

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What is social advocacy? This blog post explores how social advocacy works, provides real-world examples and addresses common challenges.

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Our Top 5 Legislative Wins for Students and Educators in 2021 | NEA

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Educator voices were heard in Washington, resulting in key supports for families and public schools.

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Advocacy groups are constantly highlighting the importance of education for all. This article explains the incredible work and change in the school system with help from the National Education Association ➡️

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Institution of Religion Affecting Advocacy Groups

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Institution of Religion Affecting Advocacy Groups

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Religion is powerful and influences the social norms in a community. In a way, I think that the institution of religion can work both with advocacy groups and against them. Religion can help bring people together, creating a community of support and often doing things that help others like donating to food banks. On the other hand, there are some religious beliefs that my advocacy groups specifically protests against. For example, religion impacts politics in a way that is often leaning towards decisions my advocacy groups would highly disapprove of.

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Fierce advocates for the high academic achievement of all students - particularly those of color or living in poverty.

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The EdTrust is moving the education system down a path of acceptance and improving the overall schooling for students. This creates a learning space that prioritizes each individual student, and can help them navigate their future. It also helps students from low-income families and promotes equality, wanting to dismantle previous barriers.

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What is separation of church and state and where does this concept appear in the Constitution? Here’s everything you should know.

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How have social movements affected you and your community in the context of social change?

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How have social movements affected you and your community in the context of social change?

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Many members of my community are currently studying criminal justice in school, while others have graduated with a degree. They regularly attend events and support organizations that will make prisons a safer place. At least one member I know of hosts music classes multiple timer per week with inmates and prison staff.

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In the past, prisons were not open to situations like this and were more focused on punishment rather than rehabilitating individuals. Nowadays, we know that creating opportunities for prisoners helps them grow as people, resulting in a healthier environment for everyone.

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Education has majorly impacted my community, as individuals must be educated on the topic they are advocating for to make a positive change in the world.  

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Education has majorly impacted my community, as individuals must be educated on the topic they are advocating for to make a positive change in the world.  

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Social Movements are a vital part of group advocacy, and bring people together to create new politics that are beneficial to the environment, human rights, etc. 

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Social Movements are a vital part of group advocacy, and bring people together to create new politics that are beneficial to the environment, human rights, etc. 

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The economy is a topic that comes up a lot in my community, and we often discuss how financial issues and inequality do not need to have the heavy impact that they do today. With the amount of resources throughout the world, it doesn’t make sense that so many people are still suffering. Unequal distribution of resources is something my advocacy group really focuses on, doing their best to make a difference and educate themselves on how to best influence policy changes.    

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The economy is a topic that comes up a lot in my community, and we often discuss how financial issues and inequality do not need to have the heavy impact that they do today. With the amount of resources throughout the world, it doesn’t make sense that so many people are still suffering. Unequal distribution of resources is something my advocacy group really focuses on, doing their best to make a difference and educate themselves on how to best influence policy changes.    