Ohio's Voice on Mental Illness Stateaffilliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness

Making Connections: How to Approach Elected Officials

Think you can't advocate effectively for persons with brain  disorders with elected officials? Here are lots of tips on educating your  elected officials. Its really easier than you think. Establishing a Relationship with Your  Legislator With the onset of term limits in the Ohio General Assembly, the  NAMI grassroots advocacy program has never been more important.  Legislators will depend not only on information they receive from NAMI Ohio, but also on relationships with local grassroots advocates as the experts on mental health issues in their districts. As hard as it is to believe, most people do not know who their state representative or state senator is.  Many confuse state legislators  with their federal counterparts.  Because most people are not exercising their rights as constituents by communicating with and educating their state legislators, when you speak up your voice will be  even clearer. Find your  Ohio legislators here: 125th Ohio General Assembly.  Learn about how bills are passed here: The Legislative  Process Advocate: "A person who pleads another's cause; a person who speaks or writes in support of something." Print the  following pages for future reference:

The 5 Ws of  Advocacy

Basic Guidelines for Advocates

Legislative  Education

Effectiveness  Rules

Visiting Your  Legislators

Writing/Calling  Your Legislator

Holding an Event for Your Legislator

Working With the Media

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