This blog is part of my ongoing effort to maintain a record of my written communication expressing concern about the actions of the current presidential administration that lead to unnecessary (and in some cases cruel) harm to others, to the U.S., or to the global community.
I am deeply concerned that because of automated electronic contact forms used by most if not all offices of U.S. Senators and Representatives that there is a lack of widespread understanding of who is ignoring their constituents. As a registered voter in Florida, I am unsure if the lack of town halls, the lack of response from my U.S. Representative (Anna Luna), and the tone-deaf responses from my U.S. Senators (Moody and Scott) are communicating that my voice is ignored, minimized, or something else.
But I am certain that this is not the way it's supposed to go. My voice and that of other Americans is supposed to be top priority for those who represent me. My concern prompted this letter, sent to multiple senators in other states, attempting to raise awareness of what is going on in other districts and U.S. States. It was sent via snail mail because it would have been automatically rejected had I tried to send it via electronic contact or email.
How to reach your U.S. Senators:
https://www.senate.gov/senators/senators-contact.htm
How to reach your U.S. Representative:
https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative
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Dear Senator,
I am deeply concerned that I am neither being represented by my representative in the U.S. House nor by my senators in the U.S. Senate. I am a constituent in one of the many districts in the country represented by a Republican representative (Representative Anna Luna in Congressional District #13 in the state of Florida) who will not hold town halls, who will not respond to my appeals, who is not communicating with her constituency, and who overall, via her silence, has sent a clear message that in my district, democracy has gone dark. My senators are similarly troubling. Senator Ashely Moody (FL) does not respond to me at all and my other senator (Senator Rick Scott, FL) brags at length to me in his weekly emails about many actions he is taking that are blatantly contrary to my opinions on legislation as well as my appeals for a more balanced and functional democratic government.
Unfortunately, the digital age has ensured that contact with a senator outside my state or with a representative outside of my district is rejected outright. Electronic contact forms simply do not allow communication from "outside" constituents to pass. Although I am not entirely certain of this, I believe this has created disturbing silos of representation, where senators from other states and representatives from other districts remain largely unaware of the sheer volume of voices that are being ignored, not tallied, and therefore not considered in Congress and in American government.
I regret that I have no clear solutions to this problem. I am sure, however, that our silenced voices combined with the disturbing actions of the current presidential administration are a clear and present danger to the continuation of democracy in this country. When constituents are ignored or bombarded with tone-deaf messages, many give up, and some become unproductively hostile. Only a few continue fighting via appropriate channels, but in the end, we, the American people, become less and less a force in the government of the U.S. as the days go by.
I beg you not to simply toss my letter in the circular file (digital or otherwise) because I am not a constituent in your state or district. While I continue to write letters to my representative and senators as a registered voter in Congressional District 13 in Florida, I ask you, on behalf of the many who are also writing letters and making calls, to help us understand how we can reclaim our voice.
In an age where protests seem to fall on deaf ears and our representatives in Congress are turning away from us, what can we do as "ordinary" Americans to be heard and respected? More importantly, what can we do to ensure that our collective voices are considered and acted upon?
Please help us to understand how our voices can be restored, and what we can do to support America returning to being America again.
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