congress

Communicating with your elected officials is not only your right, it is your duty. Too many people do not vote. The majority of those who do vote stop right there with their civic duties. Going to the polls is just the first step in being a good Appalachian American. Keeping congress abreast of your views is as important as voting. It is a darn shame to send people to Washington and then not even let them know what you want them to do.

Now is your chance to let your senators and representatives know that you are concerned about Appalachia's image in the media and the negative impact this image has on the economic health of the region. I have created a list of all the members of Congress who represent Appalachian counties. All you have to do is click on the link belonging to your senators or member of congress and look for the email link on the representative's web site. Just a short, polite note will really make a difference. I know from my own experience as a legislative aide that correspondence from constituents is given great respect.

If you are unsure of which congressional district you live in you can find out by following the link below to the main United States House of Representatives web site and then typing in your zip code in the search engine.

Main United States House of Representative Web Site
The United States Senate Web Site

Are you wondering what you should write in your email message? I have written a short message below that you may copy and paste into your email. Be certain to change the name and location and the greeting for a Member of Congress or Senator..

Dear Member <or Senator>:

My name is <YOUR NAME> and I live in <YOUR CITY OR COUNTY, YOUR STATE>. As an Appalachian I wanted to let you know that Appalachian issues affecting our state and region greatly concern me. Development in our region is a primary concern to all of us who live in Appalachia but I am also concerned with the image of Appalachia as projected by the media and others. Unfair depictions of our culture and region hampers our ability to draw a broad range of development. Certainly the First Amendment protects the rights of those who would insult the wonderful people of Appalachia but our citizens and our leaders should publicly censure those who would demean Appalachians for sport or commercial gain.

I appreciate the work that you do for the people of the state, the region and the nation. Thank you.

Sincerely,
<YOUR NAME>

If this were a news article or even a letter to the legislator, it would be helpful if not mandatory to supply actual examples of how the media unfairly depicts Appalachians. Email on the other hand tends to be much shorter than letters written the old fashion way. One has to imagine that an aide or intern in the member's office is the one who is actually reading the emails. Do not think for a second that this demonstrates a lack of concern for these messages. These aides are assigned this very time consuming job of logging in all of the emails because they are so important to the lawmaker. A short email that is to the point makes it easier for the staffer to identify your main concerns and log them in with the other concerns voiced by the other citizens who are writing to the senator or member. This is why example and other illustrations which would be customary in other longer forms of communication should be limited in emails.

The purpose of this type of correspondence is to bring the issue to the legislators attention. If this issue is mentioned often enough, the senator or member will have his or her staff actually research the problem.