Hey friends! Happy official summer for all of our trimester friends! Would you believe that you can listen to two people with degrees talking at you this week?? (We didn't have them at the time of recording so don't expect us to sound smarter yet or anything). Special guest and friend, Sara Kim, joins us this week to talk about dealing with anxiety a family that stigmatizes mental health, the struggle of not being on neutral ground, and being overwhelmed by media.
We recognize and detest the injustice that we see on the basis of skin color. As a podcast and as humans, we stand with our peers and BIPOC communities in these days when human rights continue to be violated daily.
Sara Kim has compiled a list of resources for BIPOC and those who may benefit from it, as well as insider tips on how to be an effective ally. We love and hope that you are safe.
This is a link to Oregon BIPOC Organizations.
Campaign Zero is an organization that is working to end police violence in 10 different areas. While Oregon and the US have worked to pass a few laws on this issue, it's still not enough.
The People of Color Caucus is currently working on a few police accountability measures to pass in Oregon.
Here are a few effective ways you can communicate with your legislator, council member, or local government official -
As tempting as it is, I would encourage against using an automatically filled email from a website - many people use auto-filled emails to send to their legislators and while it's a good way to show how many people care, it's not effective in communicating why you care about that topic. If you send an auto-email, you will probably get a copied and pasted response. Take some time and write a thoughtful email to your legislator and explain why these issues are important to you.
Include your name and your address or at least the town you're in - legislators typically only look at emails from their constituents unless they are holding higher positions of power in committees. They want to hear from their constituents because that is who they are representing in their district, you may even get the chance to testify! Use this tool to find out what district you're in and who your legislators are.
Know your legislator and where they stand on certain issues - do some research and find out what your legislators value and what kinds of positions they hold. From there, you can leverage your experiences to be catered to what they're familiar with. Most legislators typically have a personal website that you can find by Google, or you can their Oregon Legislator profiles here for the Senators and the House members. Most legislators also have a newsletter that you can sign up for which you can use to learn about what's going on in the Capitol and where they stand on certain issues.
Vote and stay informed - it's crucial that you vote and show your legislators and your community members that you care. It's so crucial that we all use our voices to stand up for what we believe in and tell the legislators what they should care about. Be sure to also follow the news to learn about any developments on certain policies that you really care about! 
