Take Action to #AdvocateforArthritis

2019 Advocacy Summit Social Campaign

Did you know that theEmpowered to Live Yes! Advocacy Summitis taking place in Washington, DC this March 11-12? There, our Advocates and Ambassadors will gather together to be the voice for arthritis on Capitol Hill. We’re calling on you to help amplify the impact of our in-person meetings with legislators by participating virtually in our #AdvocateforArthritis social media campaign on Tuesday, March 12.

On Tuesday, March 12 our 2019 Advocacy Summit participants will be on Capitol Hill to meet their elected officials and their staff in person to discuss legislative priorities like reforming burdensomestep therapy practices,building the congressional arthritis caucus, and evensecuring funding for research for a cure!

You have an important role to play in making sure these messages stand out to our members of Congress—you can help us #AdvocateforArthritis by participating in our social media campaign. With over 97% of Congress using social media platforms like twitter and facebook to connect with their constituents and learn about what is important to them, we have an enormous power to influence our policymakers by uniting online!

You can take action in five easy steps:

1. Create your sign:打印出这个标志and in one sentence, written large and legible, tell us why you #AdvocateforArthritis!
2. Take your picture:Hold your sign and snap a picture- it’s important that your words are large and easy to read in the picture. Ask a friend to take your picture so they can help make sure your message is clear!

   

3. Set an alarm:我们的目标是在美国东部时间3月12日中午12点在互联网上传播我们的希望和决心。协调我们的帖子将有助于我们的标签在社交媒体上获得吸引力。在你的手机或日历上设置一个闹钟，现在提醒自己在东部时间3月12日中午12点上传你的照片!
4. Plan your Post:Your post can be simple, just reiterate the reason that you #AdvocateforArthritis! You’ll want to make sure to include the hashtag #AdvocateforArthritis and tag the Arthritis Foundation. You can find us onFacebook,Twitter @ArthritisFdnandInstagram @arthritisfoundation.
5. Send it live:On March 12 at 12:00 pm Eastern Time, your alarm will ring to tell you it’s time to share your story online. You can view all of the posts in our social media aggregator on ourAdvocate 101 web page.

If you want to take your post to the next level, you can:

1. 给你的国会议员贴上标签。你的帖子可以告诉他们为什么你#倡导关节炎，并关注我们在国会山的倡导冠军。

• Example tweet: “I #AdvocateforArthritis with the @ArthritisFdn because patients are the ultimate stakeholders in health care. @ SenatorCantwell& @PattyMurray, look out for our Arthritis Advocates on Capitol Hill this March 12!”

  

2. Share a Link to our Action Center.Encourage your friends to take action by your side by sharing a link to org/actioncenter. There they’ll be able to pick an action alert of their choice that will allow them to send a pre-formatted letter to Congress,emphasizing the asks from our Advocacy Summit. This will help us amplify the voices on Capitol Hill an encourage members of Congress to support our arthritis priorities.

• Example tweet: “I #AdvocateforArthritis with the @ArthritisFdn because patients are the ultimate stakeholders in health care. Take action with me by sharing your story with Congress at arthritis.org/actioncenter

3. Raise Awareness for your Walk to Cure Arthritis Team Page.By posting your reason to #AdvocateforArthritis with a link to your team or donation page, you have an opportunity to reach new people with your message and motivate them to help contribute to research for a cure.

• Example tweet, “I #AdvocateforArthritis because I am one of the 300,000 children in the United States with juvenile arthritis. You can support my @ArthritisFdn advocacy by joining or contributing to my Walk to Cure Arthritis Team. [Include a link to your team page]”

Post your pictures with our #AdvocateforArthritis hashtag and we will show the world that we are Empowered to Live Yes!

Here are some sample signs to help you brainstorm:

• I #AdvocateforArthritis because sharing my story gives me hope and purpose in my daily battle with this disease.
• I #AdvocateforArthritis because people with arthritis deserve a cure.
• I #AdvocateforArthritis because my child lives with JA & because of the Arthritis Foundation, she knows she/he is not alone.
• I #AdvocateforArthritis because I need to protect my access to my medications so that I can continue to walk.
• I #AdvocateforArthritis because I am the 1 in 3 military veterans that came home with this disease.

Related Resources:

• Social Media Print-Out Sign
• Advocacy Summit
• More About the Ambassador Program
• Advocate 101: Join the Movement