Title: Don't Be Afraid to Speak Up
Original CoS Document (slug): don-t-be-afraid-to-speak-up
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Created: 2023-03-27 16:16:41
Updated: 2023-04-06 03:00:00
Published: 2023-03-29 00:00:00
Converted: 2025-04-14T21:23:50.897733247
Many people fear public speaking more than death, a punchline being that most people would rather be the subject of a eulogy than deliver it.
With each passing day, we come closer to the time when volunteers and supporters of Convention of States in Massachusetts will publicly testify in support of that resolution.
If you are reluctant to commit to testifying because you don't like public speaking or perhaps believe you aren't any good at it, do not succumb to such fears as the legislative process moves along.
The primary sponsor of the Article V resolution in Massachusetts, Rep. Steven Xiarhos, filed the resolution, which is known as H.3541, at the beginning of the latest session of the General Court this past January. It has been referred to the Joint Committee on Veterans and Federal Affairs.
At this point, the resolution already has nine co-sponsors. The Massachusetts team has been very active in visits to the state house, making calls, writing emails, and visiting in person with representatives and senators in order to build upon the momentum established in the previous session of the General Court.
On January 7, 2022, over 30 members of the team delivered testimony via Zoom in favor of the resolution to the Joint Committee on Veterans and Federal Affairs. That hearing can be viewed here.
The team's presentation was favorably received by the chair. Sen. John Velis remarked that he learned quite a lot about Article V and the Convention of States process during the hearing.
Following later deliberations, the committee passed the resolution favorably out of committee, marking the first time such a resolution had made it out of committee in a “blue” state.
We will be following a similar model for testimony during this session, in which the prepared testimony that you have likely heard or read during recent local meetings will be divided into three-minute segments and read into the record by COS volunteers.
The joint committee only has to give 72 hours notice prior to a hearing, so we must be prepared.
No matter your public speaking abilities, three minutes in defense of the Constitution and limited government is not much to ask.
If you are reluctant to testify in favor of H.3541, the Article V resolution in the Massachusetts General Court, please reconsider. As the team has demonstrated, you can become a part of history.
Testifying is a great way to fulfill the duties of a citizen in this Republic through civic engagement. One does not need to be a polished public speaker to help get our point across, and it is not a stretch to assert that many COS volunteers are just as articulate as those members of the General Court that they are addressing. They, too, are mere human beings.
Most – if not all – who testified in January 2022 will tell you that delivering testimony to their state representatives leaves a feeling of accomplishment and contentment.
It is not often that citizens have the chance to participate in such a manner, nor have the attention of their representatives concerning the direction of our Republic, which is at the precipice.
After testifying, you will know that you did–and are doing–your part to prevent the reading of the eulogy of our constitutional Republic, which is no laughing matter.
If you haven’t yet signed the petition but would like to get more involved (including possibly testifying on Beacon Hill), click here.