Interfaith Advocacy Day 2023
Interfaith Advocacy Day in Olympia Energizes FAN Action!
We’re still celebrating the groups that joined us at IFAD 2023 and who continue to raise their voices! You can see other photos of the day in our Facebook album and watch the video of the morning sessions at our YouTube page. We have updated our Blog with an inspiring prayer that FAN Governing Board Chair Rev. Carol Jensen delivered to legislators in the House chamber on the morning of IFAD. May it inspire our continued advocacy!
We are grateful to the amazing advocates who made the trek to Olympia February 9, 2023, for Interfaith Advocacy Day (IFAD) – a joyful return to in-person advocacy! We are also grateful to those who viewed online and took action remotely. With the sun shining, there was a palpable spirit of connection and passion for justice. From Bellingham to Vancouver, Port Angeles to East Wenatchee and Yakima, and all along the I-5 corridor, 207 people from 36 districts attended over 87 meetings with their legislators. They brought their experiences, knowledge, and passion for justice to decisionmakers.
We started the morning at United Churches of Olympia, welcomed by United Churches’ staff person Jane Appling and Interfaith Works’ colleague Rev. Corey Passons. Lutheran Bishops Shelley Bryan Wee of ELCA Northwest Synod and Rick Jaech of ELCA Southwestern Synod shared reflections on how we are called by our faith traditions to learn and to act for justice. FAN staff provided overviews of the day and our legislative agenda. We were delighted to be visited by 41st District Rep. My-Linh Thai, whose passionate message resonated with ours: that love guides her policymaking decisions as she calls on her colleagues to do what is right. Workshops on each category of our legislative agenda were expertly presented by our coalition partners and FAN leaders. Advocates caucused with others from their legislative district and planned their afternoon meetings. Lunch was served, sunny-day photos taken on the Capitol steps, and legislators dropped by Cherburg conference room to say hello during the afternoon. We are grateful to the WA Poor Peoples’ Campaign for bringing members to advocate with FAN, as we echoed their chant: “Forward Together! Not One Step Back!” Let’s keep the momentum going through the rest of session and throughout the year.
In addition to IFAD, we hosted pre-legislative-session trainings to help prepare for the session. You can view the recordings of our 2023 legislative preview and Advocacy 101 Zoom training on our YouTube channel. View the slide deck from Advocacy 101 Workshop and our Advocacy Toolkit page. We also joined the Eastern Washington Legislative Conference, Saturday, January 21, in Spokane. See The Fig Tree for videos of the panels and workshops from that day.



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