Operation Main Street Website is Live
Make the difference in your community with #OpMainStreet
The National Coalition for Homeless Veterans is pleased to announce that our Operation Main Street website is up and running!
Taking place during Hunger and Homelessness Week, Operation Main Street is the first ever NCHV led, nation-wide advocacy push. Much like a Capitol Hill Day when members come to D.C. to talk to their Representatives and Senators about veteran issues, #OpMainStreet is a grassroots advocacy program, designed to bring that same idea to your local communities. The week after Veterans Day (Nov. 12-18) veteran service providers, CoC partners, and clients all across the country will take meetings with Mayors, City Council Members, County Executives, and even state level legislators or executives to tell those elected officials what needs to be done in their own back yard to end veteran homelessness. These topics of discussion can be anything, from affordable housing creation or preservation, to criminalization, or court barriers. You can even talk about how national level changes in policy affect your communities – whatever it is that you need in your community, you should plan to discuss.
All you as a volunteer have to do is sign up, schedule the meeting, and post about it all on social media using the hashtag #OpMainStreet! NCHV will be there to help prepare you for the meeting with webinars on how to successfully advocate on behalf of the veterans you serve, and to connect you to research and white papers to inform your conversation.
The week of the events, NCHV will also be acting as a force multiplier to amplify the message across social media and the traditional press. We will have dozens and dozens of communities taking these meetings all at once, and the goal is to get as much press attention on the issue as possible – both locally for the benefit of your programs, but also nationally for the benefit of all of us. A crucial part of this puzzle is your willingness to take photos with your local elected official and share it online using the hashtag #OpMainStreet.
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