|
|
Julie and I met a few years ago. I took home her highly praised book, an incredible body of work and reference tool titled Get Political for Animals and Win the Laws They Need. Inside, I discovered easy to understand strategies that anyone who cares about making life better for animals can use to win strong state and local laws. I wondered what sparked Julie to lead a national animal advocacy organization that promotes political involvement. And what happened in-between? Julie: I've always loved animals in the traditional sense. When I was living in Hartford, I found a Pit-Bull/Doberman mix puppy chained to an area littered with broken glass. This dog was sad and severely neglected, and I began calling agencies, though I was afraid of the owners and what they might do… Julie's resolve to alter the miserable circumstances of one chained dog's life led her to an opportunity to work with Cleveland Amory, founder and President of the Fund for Animals. (I stopped Julie here, and admitted reading the Black Beauty Ranch story Ranch of Dreams by Cleveland Amory at least three times.) Julie loved working with Cleveland, and admired his singleness of purpose and focused approach to what he wanted to accomplish for animals. Eventually she became a skilled lobbyist in the Statehouse working on bills like banning leg hold traps (she also lobbied for the ASPCA, the Humane Society of the US, and the Connecticut Humane Society); but because of the Fund's charitable tax status, Julie's work was limited to what charities can legally do. While at the Statehouse, she saw that no other interest group lobbied through charities; rather, they lobbied through political groups that endorsed candidates. She realized that to influence and win laws and policies that animals desperately needed, she would need freedom. Freedom to organize politically. Soon after, Julie made the hard and frightening decision to leave the Fund for Animals and launched a political lobbying organization. Not only did she immediately have more power in the Statehouse, she found that political lobbying can be fun! In 2002, in order to train advocates across the country to function politically, and to fill a critical need in the animal advocacy arena, Julie founded NIFAA, the National Institute for Animal Advocacy. I asked Julie if her work resulted in making a difference for Nick, the chained dog I thought of repeatedly throughout our conversation. The outcome can be found in the personal journey portion of her book. "Back to Nick. I cared for him daily all his eleven years. My neighbors even let me walk him the last year of his life (he needed a muzzle, which he hated). I vowed to pass a state law banning the 24-hour chaining of dogs before I died. Through AACT, I passed the first state law in 2003 ." Bonnie: We witnessed increased political momentum, unprecedented media attention, and big legal wins for some of the larger animal organizations last year. Does this kind of good news energize you in your daily work? Julie: I'm always energized! I applaud these groups and what they've accomplished for animals of course, but local groups just don't have their resources. What I show through my presentations and in my book is how animal advocates and rescue people can help win local and state level laws and their aggressive enforcement while keeping their day jobs. Bonnie: What did you mean when you said in your book "My own goals are radical, but my methods are mainstream, because I've learned they are the most likely to work." Julie: My own goals are animal rights goals. I show people how to work through the mainstream legal process to reach legislative and policy goals. I wrote the book to revolutionize how animal rights and advocacy are pursued in this country. We have the potential of wielding extraordinary political power. Political power is required for legal power. But we are squandering that power, and the animals are paying the price. Bonnie: What do you mean by "squandering power?" Julie: We squander our stunning potential power by not pursuing laws, policies and their enforcement through political groups that endorse candidates. This breaks my heart utterly. We are still at a very low level of what we can accomplish for animals even though we've had some victories. In nearly every community, we have the numbers to be a powerful political force. I want to correct the crippling misconception that it takes many people. If you organize them into a political group, it takes remarkably few people. You can win strong laws even if the majority of residents opposes your goals. |
Bonnie: How can someone concerned about a specific animal issue become an effective political advocate for animals? What would you consider to be a good first step? Julie: It's imperative to learn political and lawmaking basics. My book, GET POLITICAL FOR ANIMALS AND WIN THE LAWS THEY NEED, is praised and recognized as an essential primer by lawmakers and advocates alike. It's available through www.nifaa.org. I also do workshops around the US. And soon NIFAA will have webinars, which will hugely expand accessibility to our workshops. So often I receive desperate pleas from animal rescue and rights groups around the US, who suddenly are hit with proposed local laws or policies that would prohibit the feeding of feral colonies, or establish a deer hunt on town property. They are not politically organized, have no voice, have no knowledge of the local government process - and they lose. Another reason to form a political group. Bonnie: Is it difficult to form a political group? Julie: Rescue and rights charities can form affiliated political groups very easily, practically overnight. Even if they're not prepared to expend real time on organizing or the political group, they could at least feed in supporters' names and contact info. to be ready when the time comes. If Terryville Cat Society, a charity, also has an affiliated Terryville Votes for Animals political action committee that is largely inactive, it would make quite the impression on lawmakers in emergencies; and when/if the group wants local laws, policies to expand help and protections for Terryville's animals. Bonnie: What (in your experience) persuades the public to care enough about an animal rights or advocacy issue to vote? Julie: The vast majority of potential voters have at least a small soft spot for animals, and this soft spot can be the deciding factor. The book explains how a political group conducts a simple "Get Out the Vote" effort. Bonnie: Is there one thing that you'd like every animal advocate to understand about the political process? Julie: Power in the lawmaking arena is entirely about Election Day math. The lawmaking process and Election Day math are one and the same. A political organization routinely transforms aloof and opposing lawmakers into champions for your cause. After a long, lively chat with Julie, I opened her book to the dedication page, which says simply In Memory of Nick and Luke, and for the desperate animals who wait The next time I'm feeling like change will never come, I'll think of Nick, and the woman determined that no dog in Connecticut would ever again be allowed to spend eleven years bound by old ordinances and a chain. Julie Lewin's book can be ordered through the NIFAA web site at www.nifaa.org. She's available to deliver presentations detailing why and how to launch a voting bloc for animals in your town, city, county or state. In addition, she plans to offer webinars (web-based interactive seminars) to help groups organize virtually, and politically, for animals. |