Day 38.

Knowing the game is a long one and feeling like you’re getting somewhere are two different things. The actions I’ve been taking are effective, if loads of people are doing them, over a long time. But there may be ways to take the actions of fewer people further.

One of those is by learning from the past. An example: I have written before about reading Engines of Liberty, a book by my former professor, David Cole. The book talks about how citizen activism can change constitutional law. I’m in the first section, which talks about the fight for gay marriage. One of the things that I took to heart about this section was the reminder that this struggle, a relatively recent one, was not a steady march toward success. Hawaii was the first state where plaintiffs sued successfully for the right to marry; the state legislature almost immediately passed a constitutional amendment banning it. There were steps backward before there were strides forward. That’s encouraging at a time when things seem dark.

So how can I turn learning from the past into action? A friend posted this Google doc recently. It’s a bit long but worth a read – it takes the tactics used by the Tea Party, and adds manners, thus turning them into a progressive handbook for action that will have the biggest impact on Members of Congress.

Today, I read the document. I also decided to sign up for the regular newsletters of my Members. I’m also going to try to see about attending an event with a Member of Congress in the near future. An in-person connection means something, and it’s more than a phone call.