[NFBMT] How to write a resolution

[Sheila]

Your right, that is interesting. the correct grammar is interesting and 
at the very least complicated.

On 8/3/2021 4:48 PM, BRUCE&JOY BRESLAUER via NFBMT wrote:
> This is interesting reading about NFB national resolutions from the Braille
> Monitor                                               January 2014.  Joy
>
>   
>
> Resolutions and the Way Policies are Made in the National Federation of the
> Blind
>
>   
>
> by Gary Wunder
>
>   
>
> In the August-September issue Sharon Maneki, the chairman of the Resolutions
> Committee, wrote an article discussing the policy statements the convention
> had adopted in July of 2013. Following that article are copies of each
> resolution as passed. Not long after this issue reached Monitor readers, I
> began receiving suggestions about how we should talk about the importance of
> resolutions, how and why they should be drafted, and what happens to them
> once they are passed. This is a tall order, but let's at least start to
> answer these questions.
>
>
>   
>
>
> A resolution is divided into two parts.
>
>
> In the first part a case is made that certain events have taken place that
> require action. The events are described in short statements that begin with
> the word WHEREAS, and they may speak to some wrong that must be righted or to
> some good deed that should be acknowledged. These statements should clearly
> set forth the reason a resolution is being written, without being so detailed
> that they make the reader wish the resolution had never happened.
>
>   
>
> The second part of a resolution explains what will or should be done based on
> the argument laid out in the first section. Resolves are used to say what the
> NFB will do or what we will try to persuade others to do. Again this may be
> to condemn and deplore actions we find objectionable or to applaud actions we
> find meritorious. These, too, should be brief and to the point: long enough
> that they are not ambiguous and concise enough that they avoid repeating what
> has already been said. At the end of this article, when you've been convinced
> how important resolutions are and that you may want to write one yourself,
> we'll drop in a few guidelines prepared by Barbara Pierce, using her many
> years of experience in editing the final version of our policy statements.
>
>
>   
>
>
> Who writes resolutions?
>
>
> The simple answer is that resolutions are written by anyone who believes that
> the National Federation of the Blind should take a position on something and
> who wishes us to make this position public. Resolutions may come from members
> of our Advocacy and Policy Department, from our national board of directors,
> from divisions or committees of the Federation, or from members who feel
> passionately enough about an issue to take up their device of choice and
> write. Resolutions are submitted to the chairman of the Resolutions Committee
> or to the president of the National Federation of the Blind at least two
> weeks before the meeting of the Resolutions Committee. They are reviewed to
> determine, as best we can, that they are factually and grammatically correct
> and are then presented to the Resolutions Committee on what is sometimes
> called Registration or Resolutions Day. If they are passed by the Resolutions
> Committee, they are then considered on the afternoon of the second day of the
> convention and, if approved, become official Federation policy.
>
>   
>
> Like every system devised by man, this one has its problems. People who do
> not attend the meeting of the committee hear the resolutions for the first
> time that afternoon and are then asked to vote in favor of or in opposition
> to something they have had little time to consider. We have limited time for
> questions and discussion, and sometimes the volume of resolutions has meant
> we have had to read the resolve clause and have omitted the part of the
> resolution explaining the need for it.
>
>   
>
> At the most recent meeting of the board of directors, a decision was made to
> post resolutions passed by the committee on our website, clearly labeling
> them as resolutions being considered by the convention. In this way those
> with devices capable of reading information from the web can see what is
> being proposed for consideration by the membership, can decide how they think
> and feel about the resolutions, can get to the right people to ask their
> questions, and can be in a better position to vote when the resolutions are
> considered.
>
>
>   
>
>
> So what happens to resolutions once they are passed by the convention?
>
>
> To start with, all of them appear on our website and are available to those
> wanting to know if the Federation has a position on a given topic. They are
> published in the August-September issue of the Braille Monitor, along with an
> article explaining who introduced them and why they were introduced and
> describing similar resolutions passed in the current or previous years. As
> for implementation, some resolutions are sent to divisions of the Federation
> for action and follow-up. Others are sent by the president or his designee to
> the businesses and agencies they affect. Most are assigned to the director of
> policy and advocacy for action.
>
>
>   
>
>
> Do the resolutions passed really make a difference?
>
>
> The answer is most assuredly yes. Our resolution on quiet cars culminated in
> legislation, and that legislation will someday soon be incorporated into
> binding regulations that will make travel safer for the blind and all
> pedestrians and cyclists. Our resolution about the continuing inaccessibility
> of the Kindle resulted in a protest at the headquarters of Amazon in December
> of 2012 and subsequent improvements in the software Amazon produces. Our
> resolution on the payment of subminimum wages caused the introduction of H.R.
> 831 by Congressman Gregg Harper of Mississippi and the publicity we have
> received on the NBC television network and other media outlets.
>
>   
>
> Now that you know why we draft, discuss, and pass resolutions and what
> happens to them once they become Federation policy, here are some guidelines
> to use in creating them:
>
>
>   
>
>
> Guidelines for Resolution Writing
>
>
> Writing resolutions is a specialized skill. The resolution is one very long
> sentence directing the organization to take a stand or engage in some action.
> It can also commend or take exception to actions of other entities. It cannot
> provide direct instructions to any group other than the NFB or its president
> and board of directors. However, it does call upon those entities to make
> changes. The actions or other recommendations are contained in the RESOLVED
> clauses at the close of the resolution. The argument for taking the action is
> laid out in a series of WHEREASes. Ideally each argument, and only one
> argument, should be placed in a single WHEREAS. These should be arranged in
> the most logical order.
>
> The most efficient way to write a resolution is to make a simple outline or
> list of premises which you will turn into the WHEREAS clauses and a similar
> simple list of phrases for the RESOLVED clauses. In fact, you should begin by
> determining what your RESOLVED clauses are, that is, how many there should be
> and what their basic thrust is. You will know how many by the number of
> entities we need to address or the number of problems we need to fix. After
> you decide specifically how you want the problem fixed, determine the
> smallest number of concepts you need to explain to a person unfamiliar with
> the problem that there is a problem. The best resolutions can be picked up by
> a person unfamiliar with the issue and hold that person's attention (in other
> words, they are as short as possible) while still actually explaining the
> problem and the solution or solutions. This method, deciding the ending first
> and then crafting the arguments to reach it, will result in the simplest and
> clearest resolution. Then, when you actually write the formal resolution, you
> can focus on the writing and the style, having already done the planning
> part.
>
>   
>
> Here are the punctuation and layout rules for writing resolutions:
>
> 1.	Each argument begins with the word WHEREAS, indented and all caps. BE
> IT RESOLVED and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, which introduce the RESOLVED
> sections, are also indented and written in all caps. Note that WHEREAS is
> followed by a comma, but the two versions of BE IT RESOLVED are not.
>
>   
>
> Each WHEREAS before the final one ends with a semicolon and the word "and."
> This is true of the word "RESOLVED" as well.
>
> 2.	The final WHEREAS ends with a colon, the words "Now, therefore," and
> a hard return. Please note that "Now" is capitalized.
> 3.	The final RESOLVED ends with a period. This reflects the fact that
> the entire resolution is a single sentence. Sometimes one is taxed to refrain
> from writing sentences within WHEREASes, but inserting a complete sentence is
> not playing the game fairly.
> 4.	A blank line separates the elements of the resolution.
> 5.	In the beginning of the first RESOLVED, surround the year and the
> state with commas. The formula looks like this: "BE IT RESOLVED that the
> National Federation of the Blind in Convention assembled this eighth day of
> July, 2000, in the city of Atlanta, Georgia," Note also that the c in city is
> not capitalized.
>
> Remember that the resolves are couched in the subjunctive mood, which is
> rarely used in English. This means that the third person singular verbs look
> like plurals when they are actually singular: the organization urge, the NFB
> condemn and deplore, etc.
>
> The rather strained form of the resolution makes it sound unnatural and
> formal. Do not attempt to add to this effect by indulging in jargon and
> verbosity. Even though resolutions are frequently long, brevity is a virtue.
> Each argument should be made concisely but clearly. Jargon never helps this
> process. Substituting "utilize" for the short, vigorous word "use" and always
> referring to people as "persons" or "individuals" are good examples of
> counterproductive inflation of the pomposity quotient. On the other hand,
> because resolutions are formal statements of a policy position, you should
> avoid slang or informal words like "exams" instead of "examinations" or
> "quotes" for "quotations." Verb forms like "hunker down" or "get going" are
> also a bit too casual for use in resolutions.
>
> You will remember that the NFB is on record as opposing people-first
> language, except as it happens for some reason to sound euphonious. Despite
> this fact, we are increasingly saddled with awkward people-first language in
> our resolutions that serves no function but to lengthen the argument, sound
> pompous, and contradict our own policy. Remember that there is nothing wrong
> with the terms "blind people" or "blindness field." Yet increasingly our
> resolutions are cluttered with "persons who are blind" or "individuals with
> blindness or visual impairment."
>
> Capitalization should be consistent. Do not capitalize words for emphasis.
> Quotation marks should not be used for this purpose either. "Federal" is not
> capitalized unless it is part of an actual title or is the first word of a
> sentence. Since WHEREASes begin with capital letters, federal is almost never
> capitalized in resolutions. "Congress," on the other hand, is, as are "House
> of Representatives" and "Senate." Names of departments and organizations are
> capitalized, but terms like "departments of education" or "vocational
> rehabilitation agencies" are generic and should not be.
>
> Resolutions often pile up nouns as adjectives. When this happens, the terms
> should be hyphenated: access-program producers.
>
> Bill numbers are written H.R. 0000 or S. 0000.
>
> There you have Barbara Pierce's sage advice about the content and format of
> resolutions. So now you know why we have resolutions, the process we go
> through to consider and pass them, what happens once they are passed, and the
> way you can author one. When resolutions are being considered, make sure you
> are a part of the process, and be sure to meet the deadlines.
>
>   
>
> Joy Breslauer, President
>
> National Federation of the Blind of Montana
>
> Web Site: http://www.nfbofmt.org <http://www.nfbofmt.org/>
>
>   
>
> Live the life you want
>
>   
>
> The National Federation of the Blind is a community of members and friends
> who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation's blind. Every day we work
> together to help blind people live the lives they want.
>
>   
>
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