Fellow NC blogger Betsy Muse of Democratic Muse has created a tool that makes it easy for people to write Letters to the Editor (LTE) to North Carolina newspapers — to share thoughts about the discriminatory ballot initiative Amendment One.

http://democraticmuse.com/letters-to-editor

Betsy:

I put together an LTE tool that has 87 newspapers listed.  Most are accessible by unregistered users to the site because they are links to newspapers that require submission of LTEs via their own webform. The other newspapers that allow submission via email are listed on a form that does require registration (to help eliminate spam).

Currently I have Amendment One talking points, but the form can be used for any issue. I built the list of newspapers by hand; hopefully will help make it more convenient for people to contact a larger number of publications.

The fact is, letters to the editor are a powerful way to reach many people around the state, neighbor-to-neighbor. It can be used to counter ignorance and disinformation expressed in op-eds, and educate people about the harms of the Amendment. Betsy, as she noted, included anti-Amendment talking points, as well as best practices for writing a LTE.

Tips:

  • Keep your letter concise and make your point early.
  • Suggested word count is 250. Precise word count is given in parentheses if available.
  • Don’t be overly flippant or sarcastic.

So give it a whirl, activists for equality. And thank you, Betsy!

Amendment One Talking Points

  • A vote AGAINST Amendment One preserves protections for all families in our state, including women, children and seniors.
  • Amendment One will strip health benefits from some unmarried couples, many of them opposite sex couples.
  • Amendment One could erase legal protections from children, including healthcare provided by unmarried parent and custody or visitation by an unmarried parent.
  • Amendment One could challenge domestic violence protections for unmarried women.
  • Amendment One could force widowed seniors to choose between their pensions and legal protections offered by the state.

And speaking of LTEs, a big shout out to one tireless North Carolinian, Steve Bocckino, who has already organized a letter-writing brigade of concerned residents to write and respond to Amendment One-related editorials and LTEs in Triangle. They have been doing a bang-up job of spreading the word of its harms and the need to get out vote (during early voting beginning on April 19 or the May 8 primary day).