Don't Just Talk. Speak Up
At Crossing Party Lines, members get a chance to dig into the issues, gaining insight into the nuance and complexity by hearing multiple perspectives.
As concerned citizens, we want our voices to be heard more broadly. This page provides several ways you can do that, from getting more involved with CPL to writing letters and making calls to our representatives.
Speak Up in a CPL Podcast or Video Series
Join The Conversation
Share your thoughts and feelings about politics, society and everything in between.
Have a Curious Conversation
TWO PEOPLE with opposing viewpoints meet for ONE HOUR for a CURIOUS CONVERSATION.
Tell Your Story of Choosing Hope
Share YOUR STORY of when YOU CHOSE HOPE & LOVE over fear and despair.
Support Bridging Work!
The Building Civic Bridges Act (BCBA) is is a bi-partisan bill (Yes, there is such a thing!) that, if passed, will provide funding for programs that help get people talking again.
You can help get this bill passed by sending an email expressing your support. And to make that easy for you, here’s a tool that will guide you through the steps and send the message for you. It will take you less than 5 minutes. And remember: for maximum impact, tell YOUR story. Write a sentence or two about WHY this matters to you personally.
One-pager here. ** Official Bill from the 117th Congress here. ** Official statement from Rep. Derek Kilmer’s office here.
Contact Your Representatives
Believe it or not, our elected officials do pay attention to letters and phone calls from their constituents. If you would like to share your thoughts with your representatives and you haven’t contacted yours before or don’t know how, here are some resources that should help:
- Find Your Congressman by ZIP
- Find your Senator
- How to Write a Letter to Your Member of Congress
- Get their phone numbers and make calls through the 5 Calls App
Get the Apps That Keep You Informed
- Common Ground Scorecard – Learn which officials and candidates are actually seeking common ground.
- Vote411 – Register to vote, see what’s on your ballot.
- OpenSecrets – Get the facts about the flow of money in U.S. politics and elections:campaign finance, political ads, dark money, lobbying, and more.
- AllSides – View the news from multiple sides.
- PolitiFact – Search by state, topic, person, media, and level of truthfulness.
- ActiVote – Get information on when the next elections in your district will be, who is running, and what party each candidate affiliates with. Includes links to candidates’ social media profiles and campaign websites and more.
- Causes – Find summaries of the most-viewed Congressional bills each week, including the bills’ status, an overview of how the bills would address issues, their main contents, and what supporters and opponents have to say about them.
- Unusual Whales – Track stock trading for every recorded trade by members of Congress through this app’s Politics section
- Data.gov – Go to the source — the U.S. government’s open data initiative database.
- Pocket Congress – Stay current with what’s happening on the House and Senate floors.
