Retirement Insecurity Savings - IRAs have been decimated by recession Loss of Home equity – speculative mortgages, home equity lines of credit & reverse mortgages Pensions – Eliminated thanks to corporate restructuring Social Security – proposed cuts to benefits

We need to Expand Not Cut Social Security Social Security

CCC & Retirement Security There was a fight in Washington with all the usual suspects: Liberal and Conservative think tanks, Labor unions & corporate lobbyists. CCC was asked to engage organizations that have deep relationships in communities and could bring everyday Americans into the debate – real people.

First we picked states & groups for a set of varied reasons: States that factor large in Presidential politics: IA, NH, (early primaries ), OH – key battleground We wanted states where Senators were in ( or will be in ) tough races and would need to take a stand: ( 2012) ME, MO, MT, VA, FL, ( 2014 ) MI, NC We wanted a few places with key Congressional champions IL ( Schakowsky), MN, ( Ellison) WA, ( Murray), OH ( Brown), IA ( Harkin) We wanted to bring in some states and communities that other national groups were not adequately engaging: AL, LA and Manufactured Home Park Communities

: 445 events., 12,900 directly engaged 221,000 people have received multiple s, phone calls and hard copy newsletters with information about Social Security. Roughly 3,177,000 people have on multiple occasions listened to, read, or seen on TV media coverage from our perspective or covering events organized by our partners. An additional 20 million or more have read, watched or heard media coverage of a few breakthrough events conducted by our field partners. Lots of Activity in 2012 Michigan, North Carolina Washington State all added in 2013

Our Theory of Change Good information isn’t enough – Think Tanks Never Change Policy on their own, We need to educate, mobilize and organize real people to build power to make change. Stories are powerful - Lift up people’s real experiences Defense is a losing plan – We need an offense: Social Security Can and Should be Improved Action Is Essential & Making People in Government Uncomfortable is Usually Necessary Change is not made over night – we need a committed cadre of grassroots leaders who will own & carry the fight

With few exceptions, the real local leaders are completely unknown outside of the community. Many people may know the names of the top local labor leader or banker or businessman, but rarely do we know the names of the many natural leaders who possess a following of twenty or thirty people. Saul Alinsky Why Grassroots Ambassadors ?

Well Intentioned Policy People Can Not Make Change On Their own, We need peer Organizers and Educators to Get Out the Word and the Information, To Excite and Mobilize Their Families, Neighbors, and Networks – Real People Make Change Stories are powerful - Lift up our own stories and each others – see our experiences in other people’s lives Change is not made over night – we need a committed cadre of grassroots leaders who will own & carry the fight

Grassroots Ambassadors Peer Organizing: Tabling, speaking at community meetings to recruit & inform other people, informally recruiting other people through social networks, and structured outreach such as phone banking list, canvassing neighborhoods Advocacy: Persuading & Motivating local institutional leaders, mayors, state representatives to make them agents of change for our cause – getting them pointed at our targets Spokespeople: Get our message & the policy content out in the media to shift the public and the politician’s idea of what is possible

More Change Requires More Action Michigan, North Carolina Washington State all added in 2013 Grassroots Ambassadors Allow Us To:  Reduce Dependence On Staff,  Get More Done,  Reach More People  Change the Public’s Idea of What Is Possible