Carry the Message: Hard times are the wrong time to shred the safety net
I have the privilege of serving on the Steering Committee of the Affirmative Options Coalition, which has put together two critical action steps that organizations and individuals can take in the next week to protect the safety net in Minnesota.
 When the legislature convenes early next year, it will face a state budget deficit that current estimates count by billions – not millions. Recent history has taught us how willing state government is to focus cuts on the most vulnerable of our neighbors, friends and families. Our best hope for changing that dynamic is making a case NOW, while legislators and candidates for the legislature are working to win our votes. They are listening. They are assessing what matters to their constituents. Help carry a message that Minnesota must stop shredding its safety net. There are two important opportunities to take action: as an organization; as individuals.
What we as organizations can do: If you are in a leadership position in your organization, read the letter developed by Imagine Minnesota. Colleagues from non-profits serving low income, elderly, disabled and young Minnesotans developed this letter. If your organization is willing to add its name to this letter, contact Kirsten.Anderson-Stembridge@lssmn.org before Wednesday, October 15. This letter will go to the legislative leadership.
What we as individuals can do: Join in a grassroots petition effort to shore up the safety net and safeguard the supports that help people get and keep jobs. We have made it easy: the petition, links to contact information for legislators and candidates, and some simple instructions. The most important thing is that all of our local legislators and candidates hear from their constituents. They need to see tangible evidence that there are many, many Minnesotans who believe that hard times are the most important times to take care of each other. Click here for everything you need.
Make sure your values are heard in the next 31 days. Too many of us remember and are still living with all the damage that was done by deep state cuts in 2003 – after empty political promises not to balance the budget on the backs of the poor and vulnerable. With all eyes focused on the contest for president, we must remember that state and local elections are also crucial to our quality of life here in Minnesota. The outcome of those elections will have immediate impacts on which values will drive decisions in tough times.
| 
