by Rene Murry
The 2022 Legislative Session for Washington State began on January 10! It is a short session this year (sixty days) that happens every other year in Washington unless the sessions are extended for special projects.
YDEKC has been engaged in our state legislative work with the Youth Development Strategy Table (YDST), and you can see our legislative priorities here. While the YDST is not making any specific large asks this session, we want to continue advocating for young people and create equitable funding streams and programs that support Black, Indigenous, and Young People of Color to ensure they’re thriving.
Join us in the next few weeks in legislative Advocacy during the Youth Development Advocacy Week (January 31 to February 4) and two events this week prior to prepare! Guneeta Chadha, our YDEKC Policy Coordinator, will be holding a Youth Boot Camp for Advocacy training on January 25 for young people, and we have an Advocacy 101 training geared at providers on January 27. We have a kick-off for the week on January 31 at 4:30 p.m.
You can sign up for one or all of these events and check the box to set up a meeting with your legislator! Here is the link for the events.
Three simple but essential tips for Advocacy are to:
- Show up!
- Tell your story!
- Share your piece from the coalition you represent.
Advocacy during the legislative session is about taking 3-5 minutes to share your passion with the policymaker. The best person to meet with is one that represents you! You are their constituent. Here is the link to put in your address, and it will show you who your two State Representatives and one Senator are.
Join us in stepping up for Youth Development in 2022!