Getting Started**

What Is Advocacy?

The dictionary defines it as "the act of speaking, writing, or acting in support of something or someone. There are many ways you can advocate.

Personal Advocacy:

This includes helping consumers (people with mental illness) to get services, understand their rights, file grievances, etc. It also includes helping families work through their problems with the system. Personal advocacy ranges from sharing ideas in a support group to accompanying the person to a meeting with service providers, law enforcement personnel, bureaucrats or others. So personal advocacy is closely tied to support.

Public Advocacy:

Unless the public understands and sympathizes with our issues, it will be very difficult to get officials (the public's representatives) to change the system. Every time you speak to a club, church or other organization about the needs of people with mental illness, you are doing public advocacy. Every time you write a letter to the editor or send an article, you are doing public advocacy. You can see that public advocacy is part of education.

Legislative Advocacy:

This is the activity most of us think of when we say "advocacy." Legislative advocacy is working to influence legislation on a national, state or local level. This includes legislation to provide more funds or to create or improve services.

Doing legislative advocacy is easier than it sounds. Every time you write, call, or meet with your elected representatives, you are doing legislative advocacy

**Source: Alliance for the Mentally Ill of Wisconsin Legislative Advocacy Handbook