Recent events involving police violence, riots, and COVID-19 have forced nonprofit leaders to reevaluate their mission, programs, and operational structures, so this is the perfect time to refamiliarize yourself with the concept of advocacy. “Advocacy” is one of those words which has a bunch of different meanings, especially depending on the person you ask. This week on the Nonprofit Jenni Show, Jenni invites nonprofit advocacy expert Meredith Benton from the Healing Trust to explain the legal definition of advocacy and which nonprofits should engage in advocacy efforts. We also hear from Nicole Lynch, a nonprofit professional who coordinates the advocacy efforts of the Saint Louis-based nonprofit Voyce.
What is Advocacy, Really?
First of all, none of the information included in this podcast episode or blog should be considered as legal advice for your specific nonprofit! Please contact your attorney or an expert at the Bolder Advocacy program for legal advice.
Meredith Benton is the Vice President of Programs and Advocacy at the Healing Trust, and she helps manage their Multi-Year Advocacy Grant. I asked her to define “advocacy”, and she said she likes to look at systems change advocacy, which acknowledges that we can’t serve our way out of our problems; we also need to look at the issues in the system that are creating the problems in the first place.
She encourages nonprofit leaders to look beyond your organization and the people you can serve directly, and look upstream at the contributing factors so you can prevent those problems from happening in the first place.
What’s the Difference Between Advocacy and Lobbying?
Meredith acknowledges that nonprofit leaders often mix up the terms “advocacy” and “lobbying”, but lobbying is just one form of advocacy, but there are many other ways to engage in advocacy efforts.
How Are Nonprofits’ Lobbying Efforts Restricted by the IRS?
Many nonprofit leaders believe they aren’t allowed to lobby, but there are limited restrictions on nonprofit advocacy efforts:
You can’t engage in partisan political activity or endorse a specific candidate, but you can host forums and meet with candidates.
You may not be able to engage in certain lobbying activities if you have restrictions from funders, but generally funders won’t restrict you from advocacy work in general.
The IRS restricts the amount of money you can spend on lobbying activities, which are specifically defined as communication with a policy maker (generally a legislator or someone who oversees the budget) that takes a position on a specific piece of legislation. All four of these factors must be present for an activity to be considered as a lobbying activity. (Note: Sometimes the general public can be put into the role of a policy maker if you are asking them to take a specific stance on a specific bill.)
You can also engage in lobbying if it’s in self defense, such as if a bill has been created which would dictate how 501c3 organizations operate in your region.
What are Some Examples of Forms of Advocacy, Other Than Lobbying?
Meredith encourages nonprofit leaders to look at some of the elements required for systems change as you decide how you want to engage in advocacy, including:
How organizations practice -- For example, the #MeToo movement helped nonprofits work with universities to change their sexual assault reporting practices.
Resource flows -- For example, many communities are challenging resource flows related to the criminal justice system. Leaders are asking questions like, “Does it make sense to incarcerate people on the back end of a crime, or to increase the budget for programs involving workforce development and restorative justice efforts to help prevent the need for incarcerations?
Relationships and connections -- For example, could you help strengthen and amplify the voices of your clients by building relationships with the media, policy makers, business leaders, or whomever has the power to support your clients’ needs?
Power dynamics -- Who has power over your cause area? How could power be more equitably distributed?
Mental models -- When organizations try to change mental models, it’s important to strategically build awareness about a specific issue and specific solutions among a specific audience. For example, advocates for children impacted by Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) should make the most of limited resources by focusing their awareness efforts on educating school leaders about the negative impact of removing “problem children” from the classroom through exclusionary discipline practices, and provide training on more equitable and effective practices. For help focusing your awareness efforts, Meredith recommends the article “Stop Raising Awareness Already” from the Stanford Social Innovation Review.
For more help understanding systems change advocacy methods, Meredith recommends you check out the FSG webinar about the Six Conditions of Systems Change.
Which Nonprofits Should Be Involved in Advocacy Work?
Meredith believes most organizations should be involved in advocacy somehow. Your nonprofit should have an advocacy program if:
You’re dealing with more clients than you can handle, or
You’re seeing issues outside your organization which impact who your organization serves and/or how you serve them.
Where Can Nonprofits Find Support to Start Their Advocacy Work?
Meredith recommends looking into the Justice Alliance’s Bolder Advocacy program. Specifically, she loves three tools they offer to nonprofit organizations for free:
Ask an Expert -- Chat with an Advocacy Coach to get specific answers to your questions
Advocacy Capacity Tool -- Identifies 36 different types of advocacy so you can self-identify where you have strengths, where you need to partner with others, and how you can grow your organization’s strengths
Playbook for Foundations -- Helpful for grantees to educate foundations about advocacy work and lobbying
Two Real Life Examples of Advocacy
My second guest this episode was Nicole Lynch, the Grants and Public Policy Coordinator at VOYCE. She told me about two different methods of advocacy Voyce uses to support older adults living in the Saint Louis region.
Nonprofit Advocacy Example: Lobbying
Nicole offers two examples of lobbying your nonprofit could engage in:
Direct Lobbying -- In this type of lobbying, your nonprofit would ask people to vote on a bill, or even propose legislation to a lawmaker who may like to sponsor the bill.
Grassroots lobbying -- In this type of lobbying, your nonprofit acts as a go-to place for education on a specific issue. As you educate community members about the problem and solution, you would also encourage them to contact legislators (and other change-makers) and ask them to take action.
At VOYCE, Nicole coordinates state-level advocacy and lobbying efforts. She visits the state capital to address policies which may be beneficial or hurtful to VOYCE’s clients (and all Saint Louis residents living in long-term care facilities). She also coordinates with other nonprofits in the same field of work to see how they can partner together to best serve older adults in the St. Louis area.
Nonprofit Advocacy Example: Direct Practice Advocacy
The Ombudsman program at VOYCE is an example of direct practice advocacy. VOYCE organizes volunteer and staff who each act as an Ombudsman for residents in long-term living facilities. An Ombudsman visits residents, ensures they’re being treated with respect, and helps ensure their rights are being upheld. If an Ombudsman suspects a resident is being denied their rights, VOYCE provides advocates to help remedy the problem.
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