GRASSROOTS ADVOCACY TRAINING & LOBBY DAY
February 1 - 2, 2009 · Washington, DC
Congressional Meeting Thank You Letter
Template for Email or Fax
Copy and paste the following template to send Thank You Letters to the Congressional Offices you met with on February 2. You should email the letter directly to the staffer you met with and/or fax it to the office.
Contact information for your Members of Congress, including the fax number and the name of the scheduler, can be found at www.congress.org
Make sure your personalize the letter. Feel free to add or remove bullet points as is relevant to your own meetings. It is recommended that this letter be sent within one week of your meeting.
Follow-up your letter with a phone call to make sure the staffer recieved it and is preparing a response. Book another meeting in Washington or with your Representative's local District Office.
DATE
The Honorable ____[NAME OF REP/SENATOR]_____
United States House of Representatives/United States Senate
House/Senate Office Building _______
Washington, DC 20515/20510
Dear Representative/Senator:
I am writing to thank you/your staffer, ____[NAME OF STAFF]____, for taking time out of his/her busy schedule to meet with us about the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli defense Force’s use of US weapons, and the importance of Israeli-Palestinian peace-making. It was a pleasure to have the opportunity to discuss these issues in person on Monday, February 2, 2009.
Our group included __[number]___ constituents from ____[state/congressional district]____. We represent a large and diverse portion of our community and we thank you for taking our concerns seriously. Please update me on your work on the following issues which we discussed in our meeting:
- Humanitarian Aid to the Gaza Strip: Considering that the United States provided Israel with the weapons that it used to kill more than 1,300 Palestinians, injure more than 5,000, and destroy an estimated $2 billion in civilian infrastructure, the United States bears a political and moral responsibility for providing immediate humanitarian aid to Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and to opening the borders for free commerce of commercial goods. What actions has your office taken to ensure that humanitarian aid is delivered swiftly and in sufficient quantities?
- Potential Violations of the Arms Export Control Act: Representative Dennis Kucinich has sent a letter to Secretary of State Clinton requesting a State Department investigation into potential violations of the Arms Export Control Act during the recent hostilities between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. We asked your office to send a similar request to Secretary Clinton and to push for hearings on this issue. What actions has your office taken to investigate these potential violations?
- Place Conditions on Foreign Military Financing (FMF) in FY2010: We asked your office to work with congress to place conditions on Foreign Military Financing for Israel and to introduce an amendment to the FY2010 Foreign Operations Appropriations Bill restricting Israel's use of military aid to the following language: “funds may be used “only to support activities in the geographic areas which were subject to the administration of the Government of Israel before June 5, 1967." This language, taken directly from the loan guarantee legislation, would prevent Israel from misusing U.S. weapons to maintain its illegal occupation of the Palestinian West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip, and committing human rights abuses in these territories. Please send me updates of any progress you have had in pursuing this important condition.
- Contact the State Department and Israeli Embassy to save the village of al-Aqaba: We requested that your office call or write the State Department and Israeli Embassy to ask that the demolition orders issued by the Israeli army are lifted and the master plan for the village is approved to ensure that it will not be subject to future demolition orders. Have you made these requests and what responses have you received?
As the materials we left at your office demonstrate, the issue of Israeli-Palestinian peace is a crucial question for our current government. We represent a growing consensus in our community that the status quo has resulted in far too much pain and suffering and that the US government must take an active and even-handed role in pursuing peace with justice. This requires that not only Palestinian actors, but also the Israeli government be held responsible for its actions. The above actions are the least you can do at this time.
Again, we thank ____[YOU/NAME OF STAFF]____ for ____[YOUR/HIS/HER]____ time and consideration. I am happy to send additional materials and supporting documents like those we left at your office on Monday, February 2. Should you or ____[NAME OF STAFF]____ have any questions or need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me, ____[name], [phone number], [email]____.
I look forward to a follow-up meeting and further work with you on this critical issue.
Sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]____
[YOUR TITLE/ORGANIZATION]____
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This event is sponsored by:
Interfaith Peace-Builders and the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation
This event is endorsed by:
The Fellowship of Reconciliation (USA), Global Exchange,
and the Middle East Resource and Information Project