Advocacy and Safe Schools Campaign

Advocacy can look like many things, be performed in different ways, and be applied in various situations. It is possible, even likely, that you will end up being an advocate in ways you didn’t expect. The following list encompasses just a few examples of advocacy in action:

• Speaking during the public comment period at a public meeting (i.e. school board, city council, legislative hearing)
• Having a one-on-one meeting with a school board member, councilmember, senator, delegate, other elected or appointed officials, or other influential leaders in your community
• Calling your representatives or community leaders
• Emailing or sending a handwritten letter to an elected or appointed official or community leader
• Creating and/or signing a petition or joint letter to present to an influential decision-maker
• Attending a rally, protest, or teach-in in your local community
• Sharing your story and perspective with others in your community
• Living authentically and creating spaces for others to do so, as well

Getting involved in advocacy does not come without some level of risk, and it is up to each person to consider both personal and collective risk as they navigate being an advocate. Here are a few things to think about:

1. Understand your situation - what are the risks and benefits of speaking out? Talk to other advocates to understand if there are risks or benefits that you may not be thinking of. Are the risks small, moderate, or large? What about the benefits?
2. Identify your needs - after weighing risks and benefits, think about what you need in order to feel safe advocating. How might you go about meeting those needs? What resources exist in your own life and in your community? Who are you in relationship with that you can reach out to for support? 
3. Prioritize needs - focus on getting to a place where you feel safe, supported, and resilient enough to advocate sustainably. If you have identified needs that you are unable to meet, decide if these will prevent you from advocating. Despite its difficulties, the goal is for advocacy to ultimately be an empowering experience, not a disempowering one.
4. Recognize the legal implications - if you choose to advocate by speaking out in a public forum, be aware of things like public meeting live streaming, personal details captured in public record via meeting minutes, Freedom of Information Act requests for public officials’ communications history, etc.
5. Secure your support system - who can be there for you physically, mentally, and/or emotionally? How will you provide reciprocal support? What might community care (vs. self care) look like for you and fellow advocates in your community?
6. Prepare for pushback - consider how you will respond and take care of yourself in moments of tension. Work with other advocates to develop a personal and collective plan for addressing difficult moments in advocacy. We’re in this together!

As an advocate, you will learn and continue to learn what approaches work best for you over time. The following tips might be helpful starting points:

• No one (and everyone) is an expert - even seasoned advocates are still learning, and everyone is an expert of their own story. View advocacy as “teachable moments”, or an opportunity to educate decision makers and others in the community.
• Each method of advocacy is important - no method is better or more effective than another. Choose what method or methods make sense to you based on your risk assessment, skill set, and your own evaluation of how change happens in your community.
• Speak from your personal experience or share knowledge you have gained - if you aren’t part of the impacted population, refrain from taking space and be sure to listen to impacted voices to understand appropriate terms, framing of arguments, etc.
• Your role in the advocacy space isn’t set in stone - it will likely change over time as your capacity, experience, and identities evolve and shift.
• Anticipate setbacks and prepare for the “long game” - take steps back when needed and trust that others will step up. The fight will be there and there will be more chances to engage - take care of yourself and each other so you can show up as whole as possible.

Equality Virginia offers a variety of resources to assist community members as they pursue advocacy:

1. Visit our School Board Policy & Meeting Tracker above for all of the information you need to keep up with your local school board, including meeting dates, times, and locations, how to sign up for public comment, and email contacts for your school board members. 
2. Attend an Equality Virginia advocacy training to learn more about advocacy generally, workshop your public comment, and understand best practices and messages for various kinds of advocacy. See the Training Schedule & Request Forms tab above for more information.
3. Take a look at our Research, Data, and Reports section below for information that you can use to educate yourself and others in your community on LGBTQ+ issues and experiences - including data that you can weave into your talking points to strengthen your advocacy efforts.