Working Together to Advocate For Child Care on Social Media

April 10, 2024
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As Congress begins negotiating the next round of appropriations to ensure the government is funded for the upcoming fiscal year, it’s important that we work together as child care advocates to amplify our collective voice. When we collaborate and share unified messaging about what’s most important to us as a field, Congress takes notice. Strong, positive policy change happens when we work together. An easy way to get started—or continue previous advocacy efforts—is by reaching out to your members of Congress through social media.

Here’s how:

For their official communications and accounts, most of Congress tends to stick to Twitter/X, Facebook, and Instagram. Interacting with a member’s account can come in many forms:

  • Sharing or retweeting their post
  • Commenting on their content
  • Tagging their account or using their branded hashtag
  • Sending them a direct message
  • And more!

Remember the following tips and tricks when advocating on social media:

  • Always make sure that you are positive, kind, and helpful when you are directly interacting with a member’s account in any way. Remember, you want them to view you as a trusted advocate and resource—someone they can turn to when they want to learn more about a topic. Keeping your interactions positive is vital to creating this dynamic.
  • Personal stories will always be the most powerful tool for advocacy, so include them anywhere and everywhere you can.
  • Say THANK YOU whenever you can. Members rarely get thanked so it will stand out when you do it. When thanking them, be as specific as possible. Did they introduce or vote for a child care-friendly policy, visit a child care program, or just say something positive about early childhood in general? Mention it!
  • Members of Congress tend to have communications staff that run these accounts for them. They are often the ones that post and keep track of interactions the public has with these accounts. While this is common, keep in mind that there is a very good possibility that the member will see what you have to say, either directly or shared with them by a staff member. Many do login to their own accounts, monitor, and even respond personally.
  • When a social media toolkit is provided, feel free to use it. They are often written by people who are experienced at using social media for advocacy and are made to be shared widely. When relevant, you can combine your personal stories with language from the toolkits, too!

Join me today in advocating for the highest levels of funding possible for child care by sharing the statements below with your members of Congress on social media:

  • A message for [@AddYourMemberTagHere]: As Congress starts making important decisions about appropriations for 2025, please protect and prioritize funding for child care and early learning programs. Families, employers, and young children in our district are counting on you!
  • Our child care system needs more funding to ensure all families have access to affordable, high-quality child care. [@AddYourMemberTagHere], please protect and prioritize this funding that impacts working families, young children, and employers!
  • 🚨Congress is making decisions about child care and early learning programs that will impact working parents and children. Contact Congress now and tell them to protect & prioritize programs that educate and care for our  youngest learners!

To stay up to date on how the Council is engaging in policy and advocacy efforts, subscribe to our Council Policy Spotlight here.

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