LINCOLN SQUARE — In the aftermath of Saturday's Women's March on Chicago, the question on many participants' minds was "Now what?"
"Contact your congressman" was an oft-mentioned call to action, but marchers with like-minded representatives — those who support women's rights, the Affordable Care Act and the preservation of gay marriage, for example — wondered, "What's the point?"
"All feedback is valuable," including messages of support for a congressman's stance, said Tara Vales, a spokeswoman for Rep. Mike Quigley (D-Ill), whose district covers a large swath of Chicago's North Side.
So far in the month of January alone, Quigley's office has fielded 400 phone calls and 3,000 emails from constituents, Vales said.
Advice from a former Utah-based congressional staffer, which went viral following November's election, stated that phone calls, particularly to a representative's district office, are far more effective than emails.
"The sheer volume of emails is overwhelming" and often receive form letters in response but phone calls will get answered individually, wrote Emily Ellsworth, who spent six years working for various Utah representatives.
What about contacting a representative out of district? Is it worth a Chicagoan's time to share their opinion with a congressman or senator from, say, Ohio, whose stance they oppose?
Yes, said Vales.
"While the majority of correspondence comes from constituents, Rep. Quigley's office also receives communication from individuals outside of the Fifth District," she said.
The office prioritizes constituents' messages but "feedback from other parts of the country is beneficial in adding to the office's understanding of national sentiment," Vales said.
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