Election season is right around the corner – do you know where your issues are? Goodwill International’s Goodwill Advocate recently posted a great piece on finding your values in the campaign chaos. Take a look and, once you’re ready, take a stand – your voice matters to your community, so be sure to speak up:
What issues will make you run, not walk, to the polls this November?
What’s Important to You in This Election Season?
Campaign season is fully underway as both major political parties prepare for their respective conventions… There is certainly no lack of issues critical for nonprofits and supporters like you that can be discussed.
The stakes for nonprofits during this election are substantially high. Given our country’s fiscal crisis, high unemployment rates, percentage of people in poverty and failing social safety nets, nonprofits will be relied on more and more. While there aren’t many things that the candidates can agree upon, they can find common ground when listening to nonprofits and realizing that work conducted by agencies like Goodwill® will be essential to the country’s economic recovery.
Politicians on both sides of the aisle have proposed restricting charitable giving when trying to solve the deficit. Severe cuts and/or consolidation of job training programs of importance to Goodwill and the people we serve will likely take place, negatively impacting seniors, veterans, people with criminal backgrounds and people with disabilities to name a few. States and localities are also imposing new payments and services in lieu of taxes on nonprofits.
These are just a few examples of why advocacy and education is so important. As supporters of Goodwill and perhaps beneficiaries of Goodwill’s services, what would you tell the candidates to focus on?
Chime in below with our comments section. And if you’d like to go further: www.contactingthecongress.org has a map and a state-by-state list of contact information for Congress while www.senate.gov is a good resource for reaching out to the Senate.
Of course, the most obvious way to support your issues in the near future is to research your candidates and local issues, show up at the polls and VOTE. We’ll see you there, Goodwill fans!
