​Move to Amend is a grassroots movement to amend the US Constitution to make clear corporations are not people with constitutional rights and money is not free speech. We have local organizations and representatives growing in communities across the country who are working to educate their local communities and elected officials, bring people together to join the movement, and mobilize their communities to pressure state and federal legislators to take action on the We the People Amendment.

Our grassroots leaders come from all walks of life in support of our mission to amend the Constitution! The first step is to become a local Advocate and represent Move to Amend in your community! 

What You Need to Know to Become an Advocate with Move to Amend

Move to Amend's grassroots activities fall into three main categories:

• Education - Polling shows that 80% of American public agrees with us that corporations shouldn’t have same rights of human beings and campaign spending should be limited, but they don’t know about our campaign or how to do it. That's why we need to educate! We table at local events and go door-to-door with campaigns like We the People Listening Project to gather individual stories about their struggles with corporate rule. We write and publish letters to the editors of local and state news sources to highlight the destructive impacts of corporate rule in our daily lives. We organize public talks, teach-ins, artistic engagements and presentations to other groups connected the dots between current issues they care about and the nature of corporate rule.
  
  
• Lobbying & Bird Dogging - We engage candidates for local, state and federal office with questions at campaign forums, candidate surveys and letters to the editor to help raise awareness about Move to Amend and the We the People Amendment amongst candidates and the public at election time. We write, call, and visit our elected officials at their offices and in public events to support the We the People Amendment, and advancing the principles of participatory democracy. Ultimately, we need the We the People Amendment to be seen as a litmus test issue for whether people will vote for a candidate or incumbent official running for office. 
  
  
• Resolution & Ballot Campaigns - These serve as an organizing tool to mount pressure, which put local, state and federal representatives on notice that their constituencies want to see them pass the amendment. We have helped passed resolutions in over 700 towns, cities, and counties across the country calling for the Amendment, including 8 state legislatures! We've been on the local and state ballot over 300 times -- in liberal and conservative communities alike -- and we have won almost every single time, usually in landslides of over 60% and even 80%! 

All MTA Advocates work to build excitement at the local levels about being part of a larger movement, and about the process of movement building itself. Move to Amend National staff will provide training and support through resources for organizers of all experiences. 

The Advocate Onboarding Process

The goals of this process are to assure that Move to Amend applicants understand:

1. The Move to Amend campaign, its goals, values and strategies
2. The criteria we expect them to fulfill as local representatives of Move to Amend
3. The resources available from the Move to Amend National Team to assist them in organizing to build power in their communities.

Application Process

1. Before filling out the application, all applicants should read these articles to be sure Move to Amend's principles and background is understood:
   
   
   • How Corporate Constitutional Rights Harm You, Your Family, Your Community, Your Environment, and Your Democracy
   • Why Move to Amend Centralizes the Work of Dismantling Racism and Other Oppressions
   • Why We Need a Democracy Movement
   • Move to Amend Background and Founding
     
     
   • Memorandum of Understanding:
     
     • MOU for Advocates
       
       
2. After reading and/or discussing the articles, please fill out the application and submit it to [email protected] for review by the National Move to Amend Team. 
   
   If you're applying to be an Advocate, please download the Advocate Memorandum Of Understanding and Advocate Application. 
   
   We will then schedule a conference call with applicants. This call will provide a chance for applicants to ask questions, and serve to establish shared goals, ideas and expectations. 
   
   
3. Upon approval by the National Team, applicants will be asked to return their signed Memorandum of Understanding within two weeks. 

If you have any questions, please contact the Affiliate Support Team at [email protected] or call 916-318-8040. 

Important Information

Support for Advocates Provided by Move to Amend National

• Material generation for local organizing, national action and event opportunities
• Web, telephone, and in-person conferencing/networking opportunities
• Access to Move to Amend petition signers within a group's geographic area
• Database infrastructure to support local organizing and public engagement
• Online and in-person training opportunities and strategy discussions
• Transparency on decisions made by the MTA National Board and Co-Directors.
• Support and mentorship via telephone and email as much as possible within our resources

Advocates are also eligible to participate in national organizing work through our National Committees and Caucuses, provided those individuals meet requirements and expectations as outlined by the Committees.

Move to Amend Organizing Principles

Move to Amend is a national, non-partisan (not affiliated with any political party), grassroots coalition and welcomes engaging communities of people with diverse viewpoints. In our vision to make real the promise of democracy, Move to Amend adheres to the following Core Principles:

1. Anti-Oppression and Solidarity Organizing helps us develop relationships with those on the front lines of struggle against the impacts of corporate rule, including communities of color and other marginalized communities, our essential and immediate allies in the work ahead. Only through the talents, experience and wisdom of all persons is mutual governance and a system rooted in justice possible.
2. Coalition and Movement Building is integral to connecting numerous issue communities to the legal roadblocks of corporate constitutional rights and money as protected political speech. The power of a movement rests on the common ground, the shared vision and strategies, among its participant members and groups. That ground is the result of focused listening, learning, talking, and evaluating together.
3. Grassroots Organizing is the key to building capacity. Personal relationships are still the best way to spread our message and find support. Deep change takes root from below and is nurtured by the life and community around it. That nurturing is delivered through the arts and skills of local democratic organizing.
4. Dedication to Political Education is an ongoing, necessary process to absorb the lessons of history and the successes or failures of past people's movements and move forward to victory with intentionality. We cannot change where we are unless we know how we got here. What's the story? What went wrong? What were the forces at work? Through this mutual understanding we are better equipped to rethink that story and engage one another in creating a new story that makes real the promise of democracy.
5. Political and Economic Independence allows us to go forth unencumbered by partisan politics or the quid pro quo associated with corporate or wealthy funders. It is essential to attaining and sustaining government of, by and for the people.

We believe we will only succeed if local MTA individual Advocates their part to build a broad-based movement in communities across the country. To this end, all MTA Advocates are encouraged to gain the skills needed to build a movement that is inclusive across lines of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, and socio-economic class. 

To assist local MTA Advocates in this process, the national Move to Amend organization will provide training and support through the Movement Education Program and other resources. 

Expectations & Responsibilities for Advocate

• Share local membership/supporter/organizing lists with the national Move to Amend organization by collecting petitions and regularly uploading data to the Move to Amend database
• Regular use and enhancement of MTA's database infrastructure
• Encouraged to participate in monthly Coalition Conference Call
• Recommends active participation of MTA's Movement Education Program 
• Submit brief periodic reports to keep MTA National updated about your local activities (monthly, bimonthly, or quarterly)

The above expectations are outlined in more detail in the Memorandum of Understanding, which must be signed by all advocates before your affiliation.

Criteria for becoming an Advocate with Move to Amend

• Acceptance and support for the We the People Amendment and our Core Principles
• Support for Move to Amend's emphasis on movement building and grassroots organizing
• Has a history of networking with other organizations (eg. social justice, labor, environmental, faith, etc.), or is involved in that networking from the start of formation.
• Evidence of good faith efforts to empower individuals and groups from oppressed communities, through, for example leadership responsibilities and alliances with community-based organizations.