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ICPGV TOOLKIT
Tactics, Tips, and Tools
Overview
Letters to Editor
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Guidelines
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Sample letter
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Contact info for major papers
Contact Your State Legislators
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Guidelines
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Sample letter/email
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Sample phone script
Overview
Please take
action to help support the policy goals of Illinois Campaign to Prevent
Gun Violence and to reduce gun violence in the state. Here are a few
easy ways that you can voice your support:
1) Write a
letter to the editor
2) Write or
call your state representative or senator and urge them to vote for
common sense gun policies
3) Join our
email list to be part of a “rapid
response” network.
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Letters to Editor
Print Section
Guidelines
In writing a
letter to the editor, you have a unique opportunity to discuss issues
or frame the debate on an issue in your own words. For every
comment a news outlet receives, they assume there are hundreds, if not
thousands of readers, who feel the same way. A few quality letters
can carry real weight and make a critical difference. Readers of
newspaper editorials and opinion pieces tend to be decision makers
sensitive to public opinion. Presenting information and ideas to them
in a coherent written form helps reach important and influential
audiences.
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Go to your
local newspaper’s web site (see below for contact info for
several Illinois papers) or call for information on how and where to
submit a letter to the editor. Most letters can be emailed.
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Be sure to
include your name, email and phone number with the letter to allow
the editorial staff to contact you if they have questions.
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Do not exceed
your newspaper’s word count. Most letters to the editor are about 200
words, but can vary. Edit the provided template as necessary.
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Without
exceeding the word count, try to personalize the attached sample
letter with a particular comment based upon your area of expertise or
personal experience. Make sure that any additions to the provided
template are specific, concise, and to the point.
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Sample Letter for Requiring Universal Background Checks
Every
year, thousands of guns are sold by unlicensed sellers without
background checks on the purchasers. This “private sale loophole”
results in guns getting into the hands of criminals who would otherwise
not be able to buy firearms. Nationwide, 40 percent of gun transactions occur
through unlicensed sellers and no-questions-asked private deals that
require no background checks. Roughly 20 percent of gun trafficking investigations involve transfers by unlicensed sellers who are not required to conduct a background check.
Requiring background checks for all private handgun sales will reduce
this illegal trafficking and allow for reporting and record-keeping
similar to the required reporting of gun shops. Closing the “private
sale loophole” for handgun sales would mean that all handgun buyers are
treated equally and help ensure that persons buying handguns are legally
eligible to do so, and it would also help law enforcement track the
owners of weapons used in crimes.
Eight
in 10 Illinois voters strongly support requiring private background
checks before the sale of guns to private individuals. Sixty percent of all voters
who are gun owners, NRA members, hunters, and FOID card holders also
support this common sense requirement.
Our
lawmakers should join the majority of Illinois voters and support
closing this loophole.
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Illinois Newspapers
Chicago Area:
Chicago Tribune
Email:
ctc-TribLetter@Tribune.com
Fax: 312-222-2598
Mail: Voice of the
People, Chicago Tribune, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL 60611.
Chicago Sun Times
Email:
letters@suntimes.com
Chicago Defender
Email:
editorial@chicagodefender.com
Chicago Suburbs:
To find the local
Sun-Times news source for your community, go to:
www.suntimes.com
To find the local
Chicago Suburban News source for your community, go to:
www.chicagosuburbannews.com
Daily Herald
Email:
fencepost@dailyherald.com
Please limit letters to 300 words. Letters must be signed and include the
writer's town, and day and evening phone numbers. No letters will be
published anonymously. Letters are subject to editing.
The Beacon News
Email:
BeaconViewpoint@scn1.com
The Herald News
Email:
HeraldNews@scn1.com
The Daily Southtown
Email:
Ed Koziarski, Director of
Editorial and Commentary
Call: 708-633-6788
Email:
John Hector, Director of
Editorial and Commentary
Call: 708-633-5944
Springfield:
The State Journal
Register
For letters to the
Editor, use
this form:
Northern Illinois:
Rockford Register
Star
Email:
opinions@rrstar.com
Call: 815-987-1359 Fax: 815-987-1365
The Rock Island Argus/The Dispatch/The
Leader
Email:
letters@qconline.com
Call: 309-757-4990
Southern Illinois:
The Southern
Illinoisan www.thesouthern.com
Email:
letters@TheSouthern.com
Letters policy: All
letters to the editor must include the author's name, address and
telephone number for verification. Those without telephone numbers will
not be used. Letters must be no longer than 250 words. We reserve the
right to edit letters for length and clarity. We will not publish
anything that we consider libelous or that does not meet our
requirements, and we do not guarantee when, where, or even if letters
will appear in The Southern Illinoisan or its accompanying Web site(s),
signed or otherwise.
For an extensive
list of Illinois newspapers
click here
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Contacting your State Representative
or State Senator
Print Section
How to
find your State Legislators
To find out what
district you’re in, who your elected officials are and how you can
contact them, go to:
http://www.elections.il.gov/DistrictLocator/SelectSearchType.aspx
Write or call the
Springfield Office (State Capitol) between now and June 2010.
Guidelines
Writing a letter
or calling your representatives is an important way to tell them how
the voters feel about certain issues. Constituent views are often
factored into votes.
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Keep your
comments brief. Try to limit your letter to one page and one issue,
your call to one minute.
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Identify yourself and the issue. In the beginning of your letter or call, say who you are and what issue you are concerned about. If you are referring to a specific bill, identify it by the bill number. Reference your home address in your call or letter so that your representative knows you are from their district.
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Focus on your
key points. Choose the three strongest points that support your
position and state them clearly and succinctly.
Know your facts.
Inaccurate or misleading information will hurt your credibility. A
sampling of facts on gun violence in
Illinois to
reference can be found here.
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Make it
personal. Tell your representative why the issue matters to you and
how it affects you and your community. Make a connection to the
representative – mention if you voted for him/her or if you
contributed to his/her campaign.
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Tell your
representative how you want him/her to vote and ask for a response.
Be sure to include your name and address on both your letter and
envelope
A Note About
E-mail
In general, the same guidelines apply to email as to written letters or calls. To send an email to your state Representative or Senator,
click here.
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E-mail your
representative only. Do not copy other representatives or send a mass
e-mail.
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Send a brief
message, with no special layouts or graphics. Do not include
attachments.
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Include your
full name and address so it is clear that you are a constituent, and
ask for a response. You might want to follow up with a hard copy of
your e-mail.
Follow the same
guidelines in writing an e-mail message that you would for a
hand-written or typed letter.
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Sample Letter to State Legislators
(Month) (Day), 2010
The
Honorable (First) (Last)
(Room Number), State Capitol
Springfield, IL 62706
RE:
Support Common Sense Gun Laws
Dear
(Representative/Senator) (Last),
As a
constituent and (job title) with (employer/organization) in (city),
Illinois, I am writing to urge you to support common sense gun laws to
prevent gun violence in our state.
(Add
a personal anecdote about the recent gun violence or how gun violence
has affected you, your family, friends, or community.)
The Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act passed in 1993 requires
background checks for all firearms purchased from federally licensed gun
dealers and Illinois law also requires background checks for all firearm
sales at gun shows. While these background checks are a vital tool in
helping protect the public, because of loopholes in the law, criminals
are still able to access guns.
The major source of crime guns is the illegal market. This market is
fueled by rogue gun dealers who knowingly sell firearms to criminals,
straw purchasers with clean backgrounds that buy guns on behalf of
criminals, private gun sales that do not require background checks, and
firearms stolen from law-abiding gun owners.
However, there are numerous common sense solutions that can put a dent
in the illegal gun market without impeding upon legal gun owners. One
solution is to close the private sale loophole in Illinois. Currently,
state law does not require background checks for the private sale of
guns, meaning that criminals and other prohibited purchasers are able to
access firearms with no questions asked. Thousands of guns are sold in
Illinois every year through private transactions without background
checks on the purchasers.
Across Illinois, voters are supportive of closing this loophole. A
recent statewide bipartisan poll found that 80 percent Illinois voters
are in favor of background checks for private gun sales, including
majority support from Republicans, gun owners, and even NRA members.
I
hope that you will not underestimate the gravity of the issue at hand.
We now have the opportunity to help prevent thousands more from being
wounded or killed by guns in Illinois in years to come. Please support
common sense gun polices.
Sincerely,
(First) (Last)
(Title)
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Sample Phone Script for Calls to Legislators about Universal Background Checks
Hello, my name is (First, Last) and I am a
constituent of Senator/Representative (Last).
I am calling today to express my concern
about gun violence in Illinois and to urge Senator/Representative
(Last) to support a proposed new law which can prevent further gun
violence and death.
This is a common sense measure that I believe
will reduce criminal’s ability to purchase firearms on our streets.
End call with key messaging points:
·
Nationwide, 40% of gun transactions occur through unlicensed sellers
and no-questions-asked private deals that require no background
checks.
·
Roughly 20% of gun trafficking investigations involve transfers by
unlicensed sellers who are not required to conduct a background
check.
·
Eight in 10 Illinois voters strongly support requiring private
background checks before the sale of guns to private individuals.
60% of all voters who are gun owners, NRA members, hunters, and FOID
card holders also support this common sense requirement.
·
Our
lawmakers should join the majority of Illinois voters and support
closing this loophole.
(Thank the staff
person and leave your name, title and phone number.)
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