[Nfbf-l] Call for Resolutions with corrected deadline date of December 28, 2015.

[Denise Valkema]

Guidelines for Resolution WritingPRIVATE 
 
​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 must not provide direct instructions to any group other than the NFB or its president and board of directors. The actions or other recommendations are contained in the resolves 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 possible.
 
​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, 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 thinking 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 resolve sections, are also indented and written in caps. Note that WHEREAS is followed by a comma, but the two versions of be it RESOLVED are not.
​2. Each WHEREAS before the final one ends with a semicolon and the word “and.” This is true of the RESOLVES as well.
​3. The final WHEREAS ends with a colon, the words “Now, therefore,” and a hard return. Please note that Now is capitalized.
​4. The final RESOLVE 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.
​5. A blank line separates the elements of the resolution.
​6. In the beginning of the first RESOLVE 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 capitalized.
 
​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 “persons 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 do not 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” should not be.
 
​Resolutions often pile up nouns as adjectives. When this happens, the terms should be hyphenated: Web-site creators, access-program producers.
 
​Bill numbers are written H.R. 0000 or S. 0000.

Sincerely, Denise Valkema by iPhone 

> On Dec 2, 2015, at 5:01 PM, Dan Hicks <danjhicks at yahoo.com> wrote:
> 
> Attention, NFB of Florida Chapter Presidents, Division Leaders, and all NFBF Members: This letter concerns Resolutions for the NFBF 2016 State Convention. Please read it carefully and circulate it as widely as possible.  
> 
> Dear fellow NFBF Members:
> 
> NFBF President Denise Valkema has appointed me as chairperson for the 2016 NFBF Resolutions Committee. 
>  
> The Resolutions Committee meeting will take place, probably on Friday evening, January, following the NFBF Board Meeting. (Please consult your convention agenda to confirm the date and time.) I will serve as chairperson of the committee. We will be inviting NFBF President Mark Riccobono, who will be serving as our National Representative, to sit in with us, as well. All convention attendees may also attend the meeting. Additional meetings of the committee may be necessary, although this almost never happens. We will do our best to take care of all business before or during this one meeting.
> 
> I am sending you this letter to request that all proposed resolutions be sent to me via e-mail at danjhicks at yahoo.com, as soon as possible.
> 
> If you have an idea for a resolution but are not sure how to develop it, now is the time to get help in turning that idea into a resolution. Numerous examples of Resolutions can be found in past issues of the Braille Monitor as well as on the NFB of Florida Website, at
>  
> http://www.nfbflorida.org/resolutions/ 
>  
> and on the NFB website at:
>  
> https://nfb.org/resolutions
>  
> There is also a "Guidelines for Resolution Writing" at:
>  
>  http://www.nfbflorida.org/resolutions/guidelines.html 
>  
> I am stressing all of this because we need people to turn in written resolutions, not just ideas for resolutions.
> 
> I am asking that all resolutions be sent to me in advance, at least three weeks  before the Convention. The latest that a resolution may be submitted directly to the committee is Monday, December 28, 2015. Please note that this deadline is to give the committee enough time to work with you on your resolution before the start of convention.  
> 
> If your Resolution concerns late-breaking matters and must be turned in after the December 28 deadline, it may be turned in any time until the start of the Resolutions Committee Meeting, but only if it has been pre-approved and endorsed  by at least three Chapter Presidents or three State Board Members, or a combination thereof. 
> 
> Resolutions MUST be in writing and they must be in resolutions form. This does not mean that the committee cannot or will not propose changes to the resolution, however these changes are subject to the approval of the person or group presenting the resolution to the committee. The committee will vote either to recommend or not to recommend that the resolution be approved and adopted by the Convention, but you, the presenter of the resolution, have the option of bringing your resolution to the floor of the Convention, even if the committee has voted not to recommend it.
> 
> Please keep in mind that each and every resolution must have a person at the Resolutions Committee meeting and at the General Convention sessions to speak for and take responsibility for that resolution. If you plan to submit a resolution, but are unable to attend the Convention, then you must find someone who will speak and take responsibility for your resolution before the committee and the Convention.
> 
> Resolutions are the means by which we, the members of the NFBF, set the policies that will govern our organization for the coming year and beyond. That is why it is very important that all chapter presidents share this letter with your members. I encourage you to start thinking about Resolutions you would like to see adopted and get them written and send them to me as soon as possible.  Let's look forward to making the resolutions process run as smoothly at this convention as it has in the past. 
>  
> I look forward to seeing all of you in Tampa. Please remember to contact me if you have any further questions or would like further information.
> 
> Sincerely,
>  
> Dan Hicks, Chairperson
> 2016 NFBF Resolutions Committee
> danjhicks at yahoo.com
>  
>  
>  
> “If you don't stick to your values when they're being tested, they're not values: they're hobbies.”
>               ― Jon Stewart
>