(Weekly Update #203)

Dear Members and Advocates,

The theme of last week’s update was “can’t we just get along?”. In it, we focused on negative comments and thoughts that have permeated our movement, our forum and ourselves. We left you with the plea to try harder to get along and focus on positivity. In this week’s update we will try to provide some tools to do so.

You don’t need to have a degree in psychology to tell that very often the tone of people’s comments and writing reflect anger and frustration. We’ve been dealing with this registry for a long time. It’s extremely frustrating and we are all very angry. It is alright to acknowledge those feelings because you have a right to feel that way. However, allowing yourself to consistently complain and vent your frustrations in our forum might not be the best way to deal with your emotions. While venting can be a healthy outlet, it’s not the only outlet.

We’d like you to try something… If you experience or read something here that angers or frustrates you, instead of posting a knee-jerk comment, let’s try something different. Step away from your computer or put your device down and walk outside the room. If you can, step outside for a few minutes and get some fresh air to try to disrupt the thoughts that are swirling through your mind. Count to 100, do a few push-ups, walk around the block or do something to expel the rush of energy that’s fueling you.

Then, after you’ve taken that break, we want you to think of a productive counter-measure to what’s frustrating you. If you’re angry about a misguided article that we share, send an email to the author letting him know he got it wrong, or post a comment on the news site for everyone to see he got it wrong. If you hear of a business being picketed because the owner or an employee is on the registry, give the business a positive Yelp or Google review. Sharing your anger about how unjust the situation is with our forum isn’t productive, but by using the same time and energy to share that “I wrote to the author of this story and told him… you can contact them also by emailing…” or “let’s see if we can help get this business to 100 five star reviews!” will accomplish several things.

First, it’ll bring something positive out of a negative situation. Second, it will take our advocacy efforts outside the forum (where we are “preaching to the choir”) and to the public (who needs the education). But most of all, it’ll make you feel better. Consider writing a member submission. Writing can be very cathartic, so if you have a thought or idea that is brewing inside of you, write about it and share it with the rest of us. Send your member submission to [email protected]. We can definitely use the help with site content and when you lie down at night, after you’ve had time to give yourself some emotional distance from the moment your anger was triggered, you can think about the 1, 2 or 10 things that you did to fight back.

Finally, if you feel yourself overwhelmed with anger or frustration, sometimes the amount of time you need to step away might be longer than it takes to count to 100 or walk around the block. Sometimes you need to take a few days or weeks – a mental vacation. Our job is to share news and information. Good or bad. Sometimes the news is great, but often it’s disappointing. We can’t take a break, but you can. If you’ve become obsessed with reading and responding to every post and you find that’s impacting your mood, turn off the alerts and tune out for a few days. See if you feel better. Or, dedicate a time each day for dealing with advocacy/registration issues and limit it to that window. The rest of the day spend living your best life.

If you can learn to treat this like a job instead of a lifestyle, you will hopefully turn out much healthier.

Sincerely,

The Florida Action Committee

ANNOUNCEMENTS

See Calendar of Events – Click Here for Calendar, and double click on the event to view details and RSVP instructions. Keep up with Meet-and-Greets in your area, Support groups, Membership Calls, and other events.  For questions, contact [email protected] or call 833-273-7325,Option 1.

• Join the County Coordinator Team.  Only requirement is your desire to HELP us organize your county.  Training for new Coordinators is available April 1-30,   Choose best day/time for you, join once or as often as you can: Sundays 7-8pm, Wednesdays 7-8 pm and/or Thursdays 1-2pm:  Dial (760) 548-9898.
• Meet and Greet in Fort Myers Saturday April 23 from 1:00-4:00 pm.  For details and location, RSVP to [email protected] or call/text 941-315-7914.

SOME HEADLINES FROM THIS WEEK

Missouri proposes bill to create registry of murderers

For those who always asked, why isn’t there a registry of Murderers, Missouri is proposing to create one. HB 1705 has just passed through the Missouri House and is headed to the Senate for consideration. The bill specifies that the State Highway Patrol must maintain…

Brevard County to Allow Registrants at Government Meetings

Brevard County Commissioners approved a motion during public hearing to allow individuals on the sex offender registry on the Commission meetings and at the Viera county government center premises. The amendments were first introduced during the March 22 meeting by…

How giving formerly incarcerated people a second chance benefits employers

The month of April is historically recognized as Second Chance Month — a time to raise public awareness about giving those who have been convicted of crimes and completed sentences the opportunity for an honest second chance at successfully reentering society. For…

City Council hopeful on sex offender registry, says he is running in part to correct failures in justice system

A candidate for Greenville City Council said his conviction in 2009 for indecent liberties with a child, which landed him on the state’s sex offender registry, was due to systemic problems with the judicial system. William Charles Shiver, 68, of Greenville was found…