Thread by @design__hole

THREAD: Amid all the recent conversation about what OR Rep Bill Post intended when he invited a gun extremist group to "Be ready, be there!" at @MomsDemand Advocacy Day, it's important to step back and explain/contextualize a few things:

@chargrille @fred_guttenberg #orpol

1/

Post's excuse is that he was just innocently inviting OFF to "debate" @MomsDemand at our #orleg Advocacy Day. This is is disingenuous.

Let's start with a definition: What is Advocacy Day? (Also sometimes called Lobby Day.)

2/

Most issue-based organizations plan Advocacy Days at their state capitols to advocate for their specific issue: Environment, Education, Labor, LGBTQ, Disability Rights, Criminal Justice Reform, Civil Liberties, Reproductive Rights, etc. It's a long-standing practice.

3/

Volunteers associated with the org come to Adv Day to meet with their state legislators. The organization makes appointments for constituents with their respective reps & off we go. It's a great way for citizens to show their support for an issue or piece of legislation.

4/

Having a mass of citizens at the state capitol to support an issue all on the same day shows our engagement and commitment. We meet our reps to discuss the issue respectfully and knowledgeably. It's also a way to counter the power of paid lobbyists.

5/

What Advocacy Day is NOT: It's not a rally, it's not a demonstration, it's not a protest. It's a series of meetings in our legislator's offices about a specific issue, all held on one day.

Sometimes a rally will be planned to coincide with Advocacy Day, but not usually.

6/

So for Rep Post to imply that he was innocently inviting Oregon Firearms Federation to @MomsDemand Adv Day to 'debate' gun safety is dishonest & disingenuous.

There is no opportunity for 'debate' at an Adv Day. The structure of the event does not present a venue for debate.

7/

If Rep Post wishes for 'both sides' of gun safety legislation to be discussed, he should be inviting Oregon Firearms Federation to organize their own Advocacy Day. I could be wrong, but to my knowledge OFF has not planned a Lobby Day.

8/

What they *have* planned is a rally in March, where they'll show up armed to the Capitol steps. Armed demonstrations appear to be their preferred manner of engaging their elected officials and the public at large.

9/

Don't get me wrong - I believe in the power of protest. But it's most effective when done in conjunction with legislative outreach, by working *with* our legislators to find solutions. This is how successful organizations effect real policy change in the real world.

10/

The other venue where these issues can be debated is in legislative hearings. The various gun safety bills currently winding their way through the #orleg will have public hearings. OFF regularly encourages its members to testify at these hearings, so they know the drill.

11/

To recap:
• Advocacy Day is a series of meetings, not a rally or forum for debates.
• OFF should organize their own Advocacy Day so they can lobby legislators for their cause.
• Rep Post knows all this & therefore his "both sides/free speech" rationale rings hollow.

END/