How to Contact Your Congressmember/Senator Tool Kit
We urge you as a constituent to call, write or arrange a visit with your elected officials for all Warriors “Take Actions.”
We cannot do this alone. We need everyone to join us.
Identify Senate Office
You can find information about the local offices of your Senators and Congress Members on their websites. You can find their individual websites here:
For U.S. Senators: Click on your Senator’s NAME here to be brought directly to their website.
For U.S. Congressmembers: Click on your congressmember’s NAME here to be brought directly to their website.
Prepare for Call/Meeting
Most legislators’ websites include office phone numbers and “Request for Meeting” forms that you can fill out online or offer an email address for a staff member to schedule an appointment. Before calling your lawmaker’s office, fill out the form or send an email request for a meeting. If you are sending an email, it should contain the following:
Your name and address (to show that you are a constituent);
The issues you wish to discuss;
The local office you wish to visit;
The dates that you can meet (include several dates or an adequate time frame allowing flexibility in scheduling the meeting); and
Follow up your request with a phone call. A day or two after you anticipate your communication has arrived, follow up with a phone call to your legislator’s local office. Ask for the person in charge of scheduling your lawmaker’s appointments. *A Sample Email and Phone Script is below.
Prepare for Meeting
Research: Before you meet a policy maker, it can be helpful to research these topics:
The policy maker’s personal history: Read the bio provided on their website to get a sense of their personal and professional experience and to identify opportunities to make a personal connection. (Do they have young children? Are they a grandparent?)
Issues that are important to them: Look through their website for issues that are highlighted. Find out if they use social media. What do they post about?
Gather: Determine who will join you for the meeting.
Gathering a diverse group of constituents to attend the meeting is one powerful way to make the most of your visit. As you prepare for meetings with policy makers, know who will be attending the meeting and what role each person will play. Clarify beforehand who will be the primary spokesperson, the storyteller, and the notetaker, and who will offer the “out of field perspective.” Everyone should have a specific role during the meeting and each role should have talking points the group develops and agrees to before the meeting, which bring us to the next step.
Develop and practice your talking points.
Write down bullets of the main points you want to get across and personalize your comments and provide local context to help illustrate why it’s important to protect kids online.
Decide what questions you want to ask the policy maker or staffer.
Brainstorm possible answers to questions you will get asked during your visit.
Discuss ideas for how you will follow up after the meeting.
Follow-up.
After your meeting, be sure to send a thank you letter to your lawmaker and/or your lawmaker’s staff. Thank them for taking the time to meet with you and re-iterate the asks that you made in your meeting. Your legislator and their staff will appreciate it – and it is a great way to remind them about your requests.
SAMPLE EMAIL SCRIPT
Dear Senator [LAST NAME],
As a constituent in [STATE] I am writing to request a meeting with you and your aides to discuss several issues that affect [ISSUE].
I will be available to meet with you at your [LOCATION] office on [DATES YOU ARE AVAILABLE] and would welcome the opportunity to speak with you about these issues. I can be reached at the phone numbers listed below and will look forward to hearing from you regarding a time we can meet. Thank you for your consideration
Respectfully,
[YOUR NAME]
[YOUR ADDRESS]
M: [YOUR MOBILE PHONE]
O: [YOUR OFFICE PHONE]
H: [YOUR HOME PHONE]
SAMPLE PHONE SCRIPT
Hello, my name is [NAME] and I am a resident of [CITY]. I am calling to request a meeting with you and your aides to discuss [ISSUE]. I will be available to meet with you at your [LOCATION] office on [DATES YOU ARE AVAILABLE] and would welcome the opportunity to speak with you about these issues. Is Senator [NAME] available to meet with me on [DATE]?
If they are not available on those dates ask:
“Could you let me know some dates that he/she or a staff person might be available to meet with me?”
Write down the date, time and person you spoke with. If you have not heard back in a few days, call again to follow up. Be polite but persistent!
Senator Schumer is one of a handful of lawmakers who can help ensure Congress passes the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and the Children and Teens’ Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) by December 31st. These bills will require social media companies to design their platforms to prioritize children’s and teens’ safety and privacy.
We can’t afford to delay any longer. Please take a minute now to ask Senator Schumer to get KOSA & COPPA 2.0 over the finish line!
NYC. Sound the Alarm! Nationwide Vigil. Wednesday, October 23, 2024. 7:30PM-8:30PM ET.A night of love. #communitycreateschange MOM ARMY DAD ARMY #BeAWarrior Where are all the missing children? Let’s join together and light the night. Law enforcement shares over 500K unaccompanied minors from our open borders are gone. Where are they? What about all of our American children missing, abused and being trafficked? Come together to protect ALL children. Enough. The time is now. Let’s light a candle for all children. We cannot ignore. We cannot forget. We cannot accept. #missingchildren Learn more here.
October 1, 2024 – Our Warriors Book of the Month – Vegas Concierge: Sex Trafficking, Hip Hop and Corruption in America by Brian Joseph.
A layered saga spanning more than a decade, Vegas Concierge moves from the luxury hotel rooms on the Las Vegas Strip to the inner offices of the Las Vegas police and some of Nevada’s biggest news organizations.
Using public and private records as well as exclusive, first-person accounts from primary sources, this book shows how prostitutes and pimps ply their trade, how law enforcement agencies trip up and their investigations become compromised, and how self-interest corrupts news organizations and the corridors of power.
More than anything, this book examines the disregard American society has toward sex trafficking victims.
Learn More and Order Here. ______________________________________________________________________________________
Would you know what to do if someone approaches your child online or in real time? Nude images, meetups, sexual dialogue? First step is calling 911 and filing a police report. Second step is contacting Missing and Exploited Children CyberTipline. There is help. Do you prefer to speak with a someone directly? The NCMEC Call Center is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.1-800-THE-LOST (1-800-843-5678). _________________________________________________________________________________
September 23, 2024. Learn more. No Such Thing Campaign
Rights4Girls teamed up with renowned survivor activist T Ortiz to launch the No Such Thing campaign— a national movement to make clear that there is no such thing as a “child prostitute”—there are only victims and survivors of child rape. The award-winning campaign has not only succeeded in changing our language, but it has also helped change the laws in several states to protect children from being criminalized for their own exploitation.
September 16, 2024. We need all WARRIORS to Take Action before September 17th. Congress is back in DC – for one more week. The Kids Online Safety Act passed the Senate on July 30th 91-3. It’s now over in the House and prayerfully headed into the EnC Committee for markup.
That will be the 1st step in moving this important piece of legislation to the President’s desk to be signed. We all know the impact SM and gaming has had on our kids. This important piece of legislation puts the duty of care over where it belongs – on the Tech platform.
*It also Requires social media companies to provide safeguards and tools for minors and parents and enables the strongest safety settings by default
*Creates a duty of care for online platforms to prevent and mitigate harms to children
*Establishes a transparency standard by providing academic and public interest groups access to platforms’ data
If you are unfamiliar with this bill, here is the link.
I’ve attached a one sheet that breaks it down into very simple bullet points.
I’m inviting you and all of your friends, your circle of influence and anyone you know to do one of two things after you read the bill:
1. Call your Congressional Rep and ask them to Co-sponsor the bill or thank them for co-sponsoring the bill. List of Co-sponsors is in the above link, and here is the link to find your Reps: https://www.house.gov/representatives
2. If you know someone who lives in Louisiana please have them call their Representative, in particular, Rep Scalise, here is his DC number: 202-225-3015 or Rep Jordan in Ohio, his number is (202) 225-2676 and ask them to support this important piece of legislation.
All there is to say is: Call them and say something like:
“Hello, my name is ____________________, I live in _____________________, I’m calling to ask Rep __________ to co-sponsor __________. As a _____________ (mom, dad, grandma, aunt, uncle, etc) I’m asking you to Co-Sponsor this legislation because ________________________________
(your reason).
Thank you! Again my name is _____________________, I live in _______________, my zip code is _________________ and I’m asking you to support bill_____________. “
Thank you for taking a simple action of sharing an email, making a call and inspiring others to take an action that will save children’s lives. I was on a call last week with a parent who lost their child to sextorition.
If KOSA had been passed, that child may not have experienced sextortion to the level of them choosing to end their life. This can not be allowed to continue!
We are asking for the children that are being targeted every day for you to take 60 seconds and make the call. Please do that before Tuesday 9/17.
Washington, DC. September 11, 2024. The Warriors were honored to be invited and attend a bipartisan Senate Roundtable to discuss the landscape of human trafficking in the U.S. and strategies and updates about human trafficking and sexual exploitation legislative policy and actions.
September 6, 2024. September is National Suicide Prevention Month. Be There.
Talk to your kids. Educate yourselves. It’s ok. No judgment. Learn more and resources. Call 988. Ask questions. #CommunityCreatesChange
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September 4, 2024. Tell your Rep. to Co-Sponsor the Kids Online Safety Act!
Help us make KOSA the first new law to protect children online in over 25 years! This bipartisan bill passed the Senate by an overwhelming majority of 91-3, and now we need your help to get it through the House before the election.
Your voice is needed: Tell your Representative to cosponsor KOSA today!
August 28, 2024. Parents Under Pressure: The U.S. Surgeon General Advisory on the Mental Health and Well-Being of Parents Just Released – Read more here. This Surgeon General’s Advisory highlights the stressors that impact the mental health and well-being of parents and caregivers, the critical link between parental mental health and children’s long-term well-being, and the urgent need to better support parents, caregivers, and families.
August 27, 2024 Phone-FREE Schools Movement is Here! Learn more and let kids be kids! No distractions, kids can learn and socialize better. Studies show academic improvement, less anxiety. Kids thrive. 90% of teachers want this so they can teach properly with no distractions. Free to thrive.
August 20, 2024. Please Sign This Petition and Share with Your Networks – Stop Rampant Sextortion of Kids on Instagram Take Action!
Sextortion is a serious and sometimes deadly crime that has increased more than 300% in the past couple of years – and most of it is happening on Instagram. As this crime spreads on their platform, Instagram’s response is getting worse. By not taking sextortion seriously, Instagram is putting thousands of kids at risk of exploitation, abuse, and even death.
Sextortion is a crime where a predator blackmails a victim over sexual or nude images – for money, more images, or something else of value. Teens are the most common victims of sextortion, and predators often initiate contact by pretending to be a peer and asking to exchange sexual images. The #1 place this happens online: Instagram.
Recent analysis of data from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) by Thorn found Instagram was the #1 platform where sextortionists meet kids, as well as the top platform where these predators threaten to share and actually share the images of the kids they are blackmailing. As the top social media platform for sextortion, Instagram should be investing in preventing and reporting this crime. They’re not.
Instagram’s new sextortion prevention approach is to put the onus on teens to recognize, respond to, and get themselves out of exploitation. They’ve also significantly delayed sextortion reporting – from reporting incidents within a week a couple years ago to taking nearly two months on average today. This delay can be deadly for terrified, abused children in a sextortion situation – many kids have died by suicide hours or days after becoming sextortion victims.
Instagram is utterly failing to prevent or report the frequent and growing sextortion on their platform. They need to do better.
Thank you in advance for your work on behalf of the mental, emotional, psychological, physical, and academic health of our children. It took the work of many people to create a world in which our children are exposed to an unhealthy mindset about screen time. It will take the work of even more dedicated people like you to create healthier kids, and to undo some of the damage already done. That’s exactly why the Screens in Schools work group at Fairplay’s Children’s Screen Time Action Network created this Action Kit.
One of the reasons Big Tech has been so successful is that they have given people tools and a vocabulary calling for ever more screen time for our children. We are now taking a page out of their playbook. What you have here is an astounding array of information, research, and helpful aids distilled into bite-sized chunks. Please use these tools as you talk with neighbors, school decision-makers, politicians, and anyone else you believe needs to be educated on this issue.
No sane educator or parent deliberately seeks to harm children. However, the sad state of the world is that many educators and parents simply do not know the facts about educational technology, or edtech. The aim of this toolkit is to empower you to educate and advocate. Here you will find templates for letters to school administrators and letters to the editor to be sent to the websites and newspapers you read. You’ll find handouts you can use for community and PTA meetings. You’ll find research that can be presented to those in power, especially those who are considering adopting big-tech initiatives that ultimately harm children. There are brief handouts that present key research in manageable pieces. There are petitions and opt-out forms, which have been used successfully by parents all over the country to keep their children safe at school; as well as other tools and documents that will be helpful when talking with your communities.
July 30, 2024 is World Day Against Trafficking in Persons – “Leave No Child Behind”
Your Role in Preventing Human Trafficking: Recognize the Signs
This free 30-minute online training program developed by PACT in collaboration with the American Hotel and Lodging Association and Marriott International discusses the intersections between human trafficking and the hotel industry. PACT also offers free tools and resources that can be used in conjunction with the
training to help companies combat trafficking and inform clients and suppliers of their commitment to child protection.
Please watch here and share on your platforms.
https://courses.wearepact.org/recognize-the-signs
July 26, 2024. CONTACT YOUR SENATORS TODAY TO URGE THEM TO VOTE YES!!! NEXT WEEK FOR KOSPA – KIDS ONLINE SAFETY AND PRIVACY ACT
July 19, 2024. Please Sign Petition to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to STOP BIG MOUTH on Netflix.
We respectfully request that you launch investigations into the Netflix Corporation for producing content that is harmful to American families. Netflix is currently streaming material that normalizes the sexualization and sexual exploitation of children into American homes, which can readily be accessed by young boys and girls.
One of the worst of these shows is a cartoon called Big Mouth. At the click of a button, 6-year-olds can be exposed to explicit sexual images . . . hundreds of “jokes” about masturbation . . . off-color references to genitalia . . . nonstop vulgar language . . . and other offenses too disturbing to even mention.
In my opinion, this type of so-called “entertainment” is criminal and should be treated as such. Please take immediate action to make sure that Big Mouth is no longer accessible to America’s children.
June 28, 2024. Sound the Alarm. Do you live in California? Even if you don’t we need help protecting kids in California.Make buying a child for sex a FELONY.
We’ve come so far with this bill, but we need your voice to ensure it protects all children, no matter their age!
For the past few months, we have been working with the office of California State Senator Shannon Grove, supporting her bill, SB 1414. This bill would make it a felony to buy a child for sex and it’s exactly the kind of legislation we’ve been advocating for through our films and campaigns for years.
Many of you signed the petition we sent out in support of this bill, it successfully passed out of the Senate Public Safety Committee, but not before a few legislators removed protection for 16 and 17 year-olds.
Despite that damaging amendment, it’s good that this bill is moving forward because there’s still time to fix it in the Assembly Public Safety Committee hearing on July 2.
If we want to end the sex trafficking of children in California, we must get protection restored for 16 and 17-year-olds.
If you live in California, today and tomorrow, please call the three democratic leaders below and tell them to restore SB 1414 to its original form. We must make it a felony to purchase a child of any age.
Governor Gavin Newsom: (916) 445-2841
Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas: (916) 319-2029
Senator Pro Tem Mike McGuire: (916) 651-4002
Here’s a sample script you can use:
“Hello, I’m _____, a resident of California, and I want to urge you to restore SB 1414 to its original form by reinstating protections for 16 and 17-year-olds. Buying a child of any age for sex should be a prison felony.”
If you live outside California, you can still help by commenting on or sharing our recent Instagram posts on SB 1414, which will help these messages to be seen.
Your voice is important! In a historic reversal, we saw a similar bill last year get restored in our state after the public spoke out.
Please take five minutes TODAY to help protect millions of children in California. 🙏
June 20, 2024. Take the Pledge Sweeping the Country – Wait Until 8th! Wait Until 8th is a community of parents dedicated to helping families have a healthy relationship with technology. We started several years ago to empower parents to say yes to waiting on the smartphone by signing the Wait Until 8th pledge. Now, more than 50,000 families have rallied together to delay giving children a smartphone until at least the end of 8th grade!
June 10, 2024. Join the HEAT INITIATIVE. The Warriors are proud members of this coalition calling upon APPLE to stop the spread of CSAM – child sexual abuse material on their platforms now! Join us. CALL TO ACTION. Please sign the Petition and make your voices heard NOW!
June 4, 2024. June is Internet Safety Month. Form a Family Digital Partnership.
We know navigating the digital landscape can be overwhelming, and parents may not know where to start when looking to help their children establish healthy boundaries with technology. In fact, survey data says that more than 40% of parents don’t talk to their kids about setting time limits on their devices. Based on that, we identified a need to provide families with better tools and resources to navigate the digital world together.
Schools almost out. Kids will probably be spending more time online. So will the predators. Take action now. Join us for a safer summer vacation.
May 8, 2024. Recommended Resource Guides/Workbooks from former LAPD Vice Sergeant, Dr. Stephany Powell.
These interactive human trafficking workbooks are geared toward middle to high school students of all genders. The purpose is to raise human trafficking awareness as it pertains to both sex and labor, advocacy and knowledge of state, local and government policy. The workbooks include fact based knowledge on how traffickers recruit, selection of potential victims, elevation of self esteem and setting healthy relationship boundaries. This workbook can be used in the classroom, youth groups or personal as a discussion tool for family.
April 29, 2024. 2023 Impact Report Released from the National Center on Missing and Exploited Children.
No child should suffer the traumatic realities of going missing or being exploited. While many still do, at the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) we are committed to recovering and protecting every child while working to prevent future harm. For 40 years, our organization has stood as a beacon of hope, dedicated to safeguarding the security and well-being of society’s most vulnerable members: our children. With unwavering commitment and advocacy, NCMEC serves as a guardian, a lifeline and a force for change.
Please read shocking results and understand that child exploitation is on the rise with no stop in sight. #protectourchildren
April 24, 2024 is WEAR DENIM DAY! Get your DENIM READY! 4/24 #DenimDay April is Sexual Assault Awareness & Prevention Month. #SAAPM#supportsurvivors#listentosurvivors Take action. Learn more from RAINN. Take pics and post on your social media platforms.
April 17, 2024. DHS Launches KNOW 2 PROTECT Campaign to raise awareness and combat child exploitation online. Please join us. We need ALL of you. Use the #Know2Protect Tool Kit and share facts, resources and take actions on your social media platforms. #communitycreateschange
April 15, 2024. Please sign the Petition for SAMMY’S LAW. It only takes seconds.
Sammy was an amazing kid — sweet, funny, curious, and an A student. Sammy’s parents worked hard to keep him away from dangerous people and places. But, like most parents, Sammy’s parents had no idea that drug dealers were preying on children using Snapchat and other social media platforms. And they had no idea illegal, untested drugs could be delivered to their house as easily as a pizza. On February 7, 2021, a drug dealer reached out to our son Sammy on Snapchat and delivered drugs to him at home. He snuck out after his parents were asleep to meet the dealer, who gave him what turned out to be a lethal dose of fentanyl. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid twice as addictive as heroin, 100 times more powerful than morphine — and fatal even in microscopic doses. Sammy had no idea he was taking it. As a result, Sammy lost his life. Don’t let your child or teen be next.
April 10, 2024. The 2024 Dirty Dozen List Revealed. Now we need you.Take action and hold these 12 companies, platforms, apps and even Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act responsible for facilitating sexual exploitation. This annual campaign sponsored by our colleagues at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation is a proven winner with many past victories to pushing CHANGE. #protectourchildren
April 6, 2024. Register for the 2024 Dirty Dozen List Reveal on April 10th at 11AM EST!This is the annual campaign calling out 12 mainstream corporations, institutions and entities that facilitate and profit from sexual abuse and exploitation. Since its inception in 2013, #DDL campaign has galvanized tens of thousands of individuals like YOU to call on corporations, government agencies and organizations to change problematic policies and practices. Have you registered for the reveal event? If not, you can do so here. Thank You.
April 2024. Calling ALL New York Warriors! Do you want a brothel next door? It could happen. And soon. New York legislators want to pass a bill legalizing pimps, traffickers, brothel owners, illicit spas and sex buying. More people, including vulnerable children, will be trafficked to fill the demand. Join us. Make your voice heard. Urge your elected representatives to VOTE NO and SAY YES to the Sex Trade Survivors Justice & Equality Model! Learn more from New Yorkers for the Equality Model.
April 4, 2024. Join the Warriors for an evening of take actions to raise awareness and provide resources about ending human trafficking in New York State. Learn more and tickets.
March 20, 2024.Calling ALL New York Warriors! Right now there are two bills in the New York legislature that are designed to protect our kids online. These important pieces of legislation have powerful, bipartisan support—but if we want them to cross the finish line, they need your support.
Common Sense Mediais holding a Day of Action in Albany on Wednesday, March 20 and the Warriors will be there!
If you can participate, you’ll have an opportunity to attend a media event at the capitol and meet with your legislators. For years, we’ve all seen the devastating impact that social media can have on kids’ mental health—and we have the research to back it up. But for too long, these giant companies have skirted accountability while profiting at the expense of children. Enough is enough.
If you live in New York City, we’ll provide transportation for you. After you sign up, we’ll send you all the details you need to participate.
March 11. It’s Never Too Early to Sound the Alarm! #onepillkills
March 8. Calling ALL New York Warriors. We Need You!
Two bills that would protect New York kids online are included in Governor Hochul’s budget. It’s great news that the governor is prioritizing this critical issue. But, we need to make sure that lawmakers in the Senate and Assembly are also on board.
The SAFE for Kids Act and the New York Child Data Protection Act would add significant protections for kids online by limiting data collection of young users, reducing those addictive social media feeds that everyone complains about, and cutting back on late night notifications that disrupt teenagers’ sleep.
This week, key lawmakers are deciding whether these two bills will be included in the final state budget. They need to know you care about this issue right now.
March is Talk To Teens Month! A MUST-READ from our colleagues at Bark Technologies. Recognizing the Signs of Disordered Eating in Teens. It is crucial for parents to recognize in today’s age of airbrushed influencers and celebrities with perfect bodies crafted by personal trainers, teens may feel pressured to live up to a certain body type.
February 2024 is Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month
One in three teens experience some sort of abuse – physical, sexual, bullying. Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Month, recognized each year in February, serves to raise awareness and promote safe, healthy relationships. TDV is an adverse childhood experience and a type of intimate partner violence. TDV is common, and some teens are at a greater risk than others.
02-25 Deadline is 02-26-2024. Facing Fentanyl. Take Action. #fentanyl #onepillkills #protectourkids
01-25 Urge Your Elected Representatives to Pass #KOSA – Kids Online Safety Act. First child safety bill in 25 years. This bipartisan legislation still needs our help get over the finish line. Join us. Make your voice heard. #protectkidsonline
01-02-2024 Start the New Year with Vetted Information. You are not alone. Always call 988 if you or a loved one are in crisis.
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June 4, 2024. June is Internet Safety Month. Form a Family Digital Partnership.
