January 28, 2017
Like a lot of Club staff and members around the country, I marched on January 21 to demonstrate opposition to the values the new president is espousing.
After that march, people have been asking what they can do to help make sure Trump doesn’t achieve what his campaign rhetoric—and now his actions as president—are trying to achieve: the total rollback of environmental protections, health care, immigrant rights, social justice and general decency.
In California, we’re fortunate. We have political leaders who are willing and able to protect Californians and to advance good environmental policy and social justice. What we can do here is so much more than what can be effectively done in some other states.
So with this in mind, here are a few things you can do from and in California over the next few weeks and months to help the resistance to Trump’s policies and advance the environment and social justice.
National Policy
1. Put the phone numbers of your two U.S. Senators and your House Representative in your contacts list and use them. Senator Kamala Harris’s office numbers are listed at the bottom of her website contact page here. Links to Senator Dianne Feinstein’s office numbers are here. You can find your representative’s information here. If you are wondering if it really makes a difference to call or visit your members of Congress when you want them to take action, read the Indivisible Guide put together by former Congressional staffers. (Hint: It makes a big difference.)
Remember this: Even if you live in a district whose U.S. House representative is a Republican who never votes the right way on environmental issues—rather, especially if you live in a district whose member votes the wrong way on environmental issues—you need to be telling that representative what you think often. District pressure makes a difference.
Also, if you get voicemail when you call, leave a message. Staff count the messages and report back. If you can’t even leave a message, call another time, or visit the local office and leave a letter with your thoughts. Work with others to do the same. Keep the pressure on. Don’t be discouraged.
2. Watch for action alerts from the national Sierra Club and respond. The national Sierra Club staff, including organizers, are depending on the Sierra Club’s grassroots power across the country to drive home the message that Americans are not going to tolerate Trump’s agenda. You’ll continue hearing from national staff via email about ways to help.
3. Put April 29th on your Calendar as a day devoted to action on climate, jobs and justice. March in Washington or locally in a People’s Climate March event. The last People’s Climate March was in 2015 in New York, a few months before the U.S. signed onto the Paris climate agreement. The main one this time will be in DC, and there are expected to be others, with lead-up actions, around the country. Sierra Club is among the groups on the march steering committee.
State Policy
1. Get involved in your local Sierra Club Chapter. As the old adage says, “think globally, act locally.” At your local Chapter, there are various committees you can be involved in that will help you learn more about issue areas, but each chapter also has a political committee. On state policy, decisions are often dependent on how the legislature acts. Much of our power comes from our volunteers’ willingness and ability to develop relationships with legislators and meet with them in their district offices to help persuade those legislators to take the right stand.
You can find what chapter you’re in and how to contact that chapter on our website.
2. Get to know your state Senate and Assembly representatives. Then let them know what you think. On state policy, decisions are often dependent on how the legislature acts. Much of our power comes from our volunteers’ willingness and ability to develop relationships with legislators and meet with them in their district offices to help persuade those legislators to take the right stand.
You can find documents and links to help you follow and contact them and have an effective meeting with them on our website page about in-district advocacy. You should also contact Meg Gunderson in our office if you want to represent the Sierra Club in in-district meetings.
3. Check Sierra Club California’s website occasionally for updates. We’ll be posting a list of high-priority bills after March 18. Once that’s posted, you’ll want to pick one or two that interest you and send a note to your legislators asking them to support the bills when they come before them. Also, we have a listserv for California activists that I post to occasionally to keep our most active members apprised of the doings at the State Capitol. You can sign up for that here.
4. Sign up for state alerts and take action. If you’re reading this because it came to you in an email, we have your email address. But we don’t necessarily know that you want to be kept updated when we need help pressuring specific legislators or agencies or the governor to take the right action. If you want to be included on the list of folks we rely on to make calls or send emails to legislators, particularly in emergency situations when a bill needs extra help, go to this page on our website and fill it out.
One important note: Think broadly. Protecting California’s environment depends on a strong society in which everyone feels safe enough and healthy enough to speak out about environmental wrongs. When people are under attack simply because they look a certain way, or were born in a different country or practice a certain religion, the freedom to demand a clean, thriving environment is shattered. Sierra Club is committed to access to health care, civil rights and social justice. Our members’ and allies’ ability to act depends upon these.
The marches across the country last weekend are a reminder that if you’re concerned about the state of the country under the new president and don’t want to be silent, you’re not alone.
If we stick together, we can overcome this.
Sincerely,
Kathryn Phillips
Director
Sierra Club California is the Sacramento-based legislative and regulatory advocacy arm of the 13 California chapters of the Sierra Club.
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