My daughter was looking at my Instagram the other day at the little bio section. It says:

“Mama<3 Home Educator<3 Advocate<3 Christian<3”

“Advocate? Advocate for WHAT?” in the way only 15yo girls can say it. I told her I advocate for lots of things, as the situation arises. Healthy eating, reducing the stigma around mental health issues, home education, literacy, history education, wild mustangs, adoption issues, foster care, sustainable and native gardening practices… the list goes on and on.

Have you ever come across a situation where things were wrong, and change was needed? Did you know what to do to help bring the change? Today I’d like to talk about how to advocate for change, for any kind of change, really but particularly one in the public arena, a social or political change.

Take a Look at Yourself

I think the first and arguably most important thing is to look at yourself. Is the way you are living your life in line with the change you want to see? If not… now is the time to make that happen. Maybe that means you stop using Round Up weed killer and use a salt an vinegar mixture instead. Maybe it means you need to start being kind to people who you suspect have a mental health challenge. Maybe it means you carry water bottles in your car and start giving them out when someone asks you for a cash handout. The point is, you want your life to represent what happens when the change has been made so your words and actions match.

Find Like Minded People

Next step is to look around and find like minded people and get together with them. Learn from them and figure out how you fit in with them. One example from my own experience right now is advocating for wild mustangs. I started out just ogling some of the fantastic photography online of wild mustangs and a rescue group that returns the mustangs to health and wide open spaces. When I was perusing these sites I learned about the problems facing the mustangs, a broken horse adoption system, corrupt Bureau of Land Management practices, and I became very motivated to see change in these areas.

I’d love to be able to run a 10k acre ranch and rescue mustangs myself– it would be a dream come true. I’d love to be able to spend days and weeks out on the open range working on my photography skills and taking pictures of these magnificent beasts to raise awareness.

Unfortunately my plot of land is only a 10’x50′ suburban backyard barely big enough for my yappy little dogs– no room for a large animal no matter how much I love them. My time and attention are taken up with home educating my wonderful children, while they wouldn’t mind me taking off for the wild places and skipping school, it might become a problem at dinner time or when someone needs a ride to sports practice. So, what can I do, that would actually help?

Speak Up!

One thing I can do, and anyone can do really with the internet, is to speak up and let your voice be heard. If its a social or political issue, you can contact your government representatives, who, through making laws and fiscal oversight can have a tremendous impact. In the example about the mustangs, congress funds the BLM (Bureau of Land Management) and sets their goals. If the people at the BLM are corrupt, congress is the one to investigate and clean it up, and change the needed policies. The only way your elected officials would know you care is if you contact them.

https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials

When you contact them, it is important to be thoughtful and offer evidence and information. No one will respond positively to threats or cursing.

Another avenue of action is to write letters to the editor or opinion pieces to be published online or in print newspapers. By providing information and persuasive reasons why the change is needed, you can motivate even more people to align their personal behavior with the change that is needed, and to speak up and let their voice be heard.

https://www.theopedproject.org/submissions

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is this…. many people feel like our world, our country and our individual lives are spinning out of control, right now. They feel like their voices are not being heard, and that everything is becoming more polarized and vicious. But there is a way out. We can use the tools given to us by the illustrious founders of our country, and speak up politely, thoughtfully, clearly and persistently until the change that is needed actually come to pass. I hope you will join me in advocating, and being the change that is needed.