Writing Letters to the Editor

A letter to the editor is written by an individual in response to an article, editorial or cartoon printed in a particular newspaper or magazine. It must be timely. Most papers won't consider something they receive beyond four days of the day it was published, so when you want to respond, you can't put it off! Below is the format most papers usually want:

Speak Up! “Speak up for people who cannot speak for themselves. Protect the rights of all who are helpless.” —Proverbs 31:8 “What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” —Micah 6:8

[Date]
[Your return address]
[Your phone number]

Dear Editor:

Thank you for the article ["title of the article"] by [writer's name] on [date]. It was [bridge to the point you want to make and issues you want to discuss].

[250 - 300 words]

Sincerely,

[Your signature]
[If you are an LIRS ambassador include, "Member of the LIRS Ambassadors Circle, volunteer advocates for Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service"]
[Your name printed]

How To Do It

1. Review the LIRS advocacy positions and message points you are working on.

2. Scan your local newspaper daily for relevant news about LIRS issues--legislation regarding asylum seekers, a refugee profile, a story about community support for an immigrant family, an item about someone discriminated against because he or she looked Arab, etc.

3. Write a letter to make an LIRS advocacy point that relates in some way to the story in the paper. Include your own experiences to make your point personal and powerful.

4. Call the paper and ask for their guidelines on letters to the editor and follow them carefully.

5. Three days after sending the letter, follow up with a phone call to the paper to see if they will use it. Small papers are much friendlier and responsive to phone calls than big ones. You have the right to send them a letter and the right to ask what they will do with it (within reason). If they aren't going to use it, politely ask why not. You may learn what to do next time to get it accepted.

6. If your letter is published, send a copy to

LIRS Communications Unit
700 Light Street
Baltimore MD 21230

Be sure to include the name of the paper and the date the letter was published.

Thank you for your advocacy on behalf of LIRS!

More Practical Advocacy Tips
Contacting legislators in writing or by phone.
Visiting legislators in person.
Writing op-ed articles.
Setting up editorial board visits.

Page updated June 16, 2003.