Are You My Rep? - Another Way to Tell Congress "No Taxation Without Representation"

Revolution Messaging, a social media firm in Washington, D.C., launched “Are you my Rep?” a Facebook page that encourages D.C. residents to call members of Congress and ask them to support voting rights for D.C. citizens.

The Facebook page, available at http://www.facebook.com/myrep, allows visitors to enter their phone number into a form field, generating a call-back.  The call connects participants to a random Congressional office, so they may ask if the Representative is willing to support D.C autonomy or voting rights.

Users of the page are encouraged to share feedback as well as share the page with their friends and co-workers. Over 600,000 Washington, D.C. residents find themselves without a voting representative in Federal government, making DC laws and budget issues vulnerable to Congressional oversight.

“It’s really ridiculous that Washington, D.C. residents have their own elected government, and yet Congress has the ability to overturn the laws agreed upon by DC citizens,” said Courtney Sieloff, Senior Strategist for Revolution Messaging.  “Like anyone living in the 50 states, I pay both local and Federal taxes, but because I choose to live in DC, there is no member of Congress that I can call when I’m upset about a particular issue.”

The Congressional budget battles once again makes residents of Washington, D.C. pawns in a giant chess game. This Facebook page provides an avenue to voice frustration with the outcome of the budget cuts. Revolution Messaging hopes this initiative sparks a conversation that will help DC residents to receive the representation that is standard for all other Americans.