Mid-Year Update 2021

THE FCNCL MISSION: To help NC Quakers and allies advocate for NC legislation that is consistent with Quaker values. We work on a model akin to that of Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL), although we are all volunteers. Our work is guided by a General Committee, an Executive Committee, and committees on Policy, Communication, Strategic Advocacy and Engagement, and Nominating.  

ACCOMPLISHMENTS SINCE OUR OCTOBER 2020 ANNUAL MEETING

CORE ACTIONS: Begun in 2019, we are mid-way through our second year. In Year 1 we developed the infrastructure and processes needed to fulfill our mission; in Year 2 we sent eight ACTION ALERTS asking participants to lobby for targeted legislation. Education is key to our work. We created many policy Fact Sheets and offered workshops on (i) how the NC legislative process works; (ii) what its priorities will likely be; and (iii) how to build relationships with one’s representatives.  We were a featured program at the 2020 Annual Piedmont Friends Yearly Meeting.  

OPERATIONAL IMPROVEMENTS: We’ve addressed several process needs. We created a budget process; completed a set of by-laws; and, at the request of the General Committee, formed a 10-member Antiracism Working Group. The Working Group is tasked with guiding us on a path that ensures our commitment to and actions around antiracism are sustained and continuously improved.

FUTURE AIMS: Going forward, we aim to (i) increase engagement with our General Committee (GC) members; (ii) continue to build our membership; (iii) develop relationships with like-minded organizations and key legislative staff members; and (iv) increase educational opportunities and group lobbying experiences for our participants. 

HIGHLIGHTS:

• Thirty-two people attended our Second Annual Meeting. Our next meeting is Oct 2, 2021.
• Committees: We have 27 General Committee members and 22 people engaged in our committee work (Committee memberships are posted at fcncl.org).
• Policy Priorities. Our priorities continue to be: (i) electoral reform; (ii) access to quality healthcare; (iii) environmental protection measures; and (iv) criminal justice reform. The General Committee approved these through 2022, and we will undertake policy priority discernment for 2023.
• Communication. We reach about 175 participants with Mailchimp alerts and messages. Alerts are also circulated on some meeting-wide email systems (Charlotte, Chapel Hill, Eno, Durham and Raleigh), which adds approximately 400 more people to our audience. We maintain an active website, a Facebook page, and a Facebook Group. The latter reaches about 250 participants, and lets them interact with each other.
• Education and Advocacy. Our first SAE-led workshop had 73 registrants We are aggregating participants by their county of residence so we can invite them to organize group lobby visits.
• We are ALL-VOLUNTEER. We have 27 General Committee members from 14 Meetings. We welcome others committed to Quaker advocacy in NC. We invite you to visit a committee meeting; team with us to craft policy Alerts; help our Communications group develop and issue our announcements; send friends to our website to grow our membership; and most importantly — respond to our Alerts and build relationships with your representatives!