My First Time Lobbying on the Hill

Advocates’ intern, Juliana, went to the Hill to discuss the REHYA and the Global HER Act with elected officials. Here she shares her experience and tips for other young people who want to lobby for change.

A few weeks ago, I lobbied the offices of Senators Booker (D-NJ), Menendez (D-NJ), Coons (D-DE), and Representative Pallone (D-NJ) about the Global Health, Empowerment, and Rights (HER) Act, Real Education for Healthy Youth Act (REHYA), and Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. I won’t lie, the thought of speaking on Capitol Hill made me nervous. As a high schooler with only local and regional advocacy experience, I was unsure about walking into the federal buildings to speak so directly with people who could make actual, nation-wide change. To my astonishment, however, it was very straightforward and I was not at all intimidated during the discussions. I was pleasantly surprised to see those who I spoke with take notes as I conveyed my opinions on these issues and recounted my experiences that contributed to these opinions. They asked me questions about my experiences and nodded along as I spoke. While I was expecting them to be polite, I wasn’t expecting such an overwhelmingly encouraging and attentive response.

While my first time lobbying was very positive, I know that I was set up for success. I lobbied as part of a program through the organization I am interning with this summer. The program provided me with a plethora of resources to conduct research beforehand and plan my meetings to ensure I was confident and prepared. I also visited the offices of Senators and Representatives with values and mindsets very much in line with my own. In some cases, the officials already sponsored the bills I was advocating for and for those who didn’t, they were considering doing so. Explaining this is not to discredit the work I, and the other interns I was with, accomplished, but is to highlight how the experience isn’t as positive for many people.

For many Americans, especially young people, there is a disconnect between their views and those of the government officials serving them. While offices on the Hill are available to meet with their constituents, not everyone knows about how simple it is to arrange meetings with someone from those offices. Or, for people of minority groups such as LGBTQAI-identifying individuals, people of color, and immigrants, it’s downright scary to speak with people who don’t respect your existence or identity. Regardless of political affiliation, it’s imperative that government offices clearly convey how people can get in touch with them. There should be a streamlined process, simple enough for teenagers to follow, rather than requiring constituents to Google how to do it and be left discouraged. There should be an emphasis on inclusion, promising respect for every individual. Regardless of race, sexual orientation, gender identity, presentation, disability, and legal status. No one should be afraid to speak with those who have the influence to change their life.

After all, they are in this position of political power because of their constituents. For that, the young people they serve should be able to speak with them, without fear. That is how change happens.

Because I don’t know how I would have been able to lobby Congress my first time without help, here are a few tips for anyone thinking about doing it themselves!

1. Make an appointment by looking through the legislator’s website. There should be outlined instructions to do so on all of their sites.
2. Research your legislators! Learn about the issues they care about and what committees they’re a part of. Make sure you check what they’ve done regarding the issue or legislation your planning to talk about.
3. If they already sponsor a bill you want to promote, for example, thank them but then encourage them to champion the bill — ask them to reach out to their colleagues to garner more awareness about it.
4. Keep in mind that it is highly unlikely you will be able to speak directly with the legislator; you will probably meet with someone in their office who specializes in the issue.
5. Dress how you feel powerful (the advice of Preston Mitchum of Advocates for Youth)! Most people on the Hill are in formal business attire (pant suit, skirt and blouse, etc.) but dress in whatever way you will be most confident in.
6. Determine the structure of the meeting beforehand. If you’re in a group, assign speaking portions to each person based on what each of you can speak best to. If one of you is particularly charismatic, ask them start off or close the meeting. If alone, determine how you want present your piece and what points you want to accentuate.
7. Example: introduction (name, pronouns, city and state), introduce issues/legislation you’re planning on speaking about and explain why they’re important to you, include some statistics, closing (respectful thank you, final message, leave contact information)
8. Keep the conversation organic! You don’t want to sound too rehearsed as that could come across as disingenuous.
9. Get personal! Don’t be afraid to incorporate your experiences into your argument as this makes your message stronger. Officials are more likely to take action if they see it’s an issue that is really affecting the people they represent.
10. Prepare materials to leave behind. Putting together a folder to summarize what you spoke about with credible research leaves a good impression. You can also include your contact information if you want!
11. Follow up! To prove you’re really passionate about the issue, organize a phone banking or letter writing session in your community or within your group of friends. This also empowers other people to get more politically aware and/or active.
12. And finally, enjoy the experience and make sure you’re learning something from it!