My 2025 A to Z Challenge theme is activism. I’ve been a Black Lives Matter activist for over a decade. I’m not an expert. I do have experience to share and I’m hoping to learn from your experiences, too. We’re all in this together.

If you can write two to six paragraphs that flow coherently, you have all the skills that you need to write op-eds, letters to the editor, and public statements. This includes every single one of my fellow bloggers. Y’all are awesome writers and it’s a privilege to count myself among you.

Op-eds

Op-ed is short for “opposite the editorial page” (I just learned that!). Many newspapers reserve the page that faces their editorial content for opinion pieces. These can be written by regular columnists, local officials, or ordinary people like you and me. Typically they are about 500 to 700 words — longer than a letter to the editor, but shorter than an investigative article.

Writing op-eds can be a volunteer opportunity, too. Organizations sometimes delineate someone prominent that they would like to write an op-ed. If that person doesn’t have the time or wherewithal to pen the piece, volunteers will draft it for them.

Letters to the Editor

A letter to the editor is shorter and punchier than an op-ed. There is less room to write a reasoned argument in support of a position, but plenty of space to state an opinion and reasons why you believe others should share and act on it.

Public Statements

Public statements are meant to be read aloud. They are delivered during the public comment period of school board meetings, city council meetings, and committee meetings at the state capital.

Generally, there is a time limit of two or three minutes for these statements. That means that they are roughly the same length as a letter to the editor. Often, 80% of the work for a letter to the editor can be applied to a public statement and vice versa. So, it can be an efficient use of our time to do both.

Years ago, I wrote a whole blog post about how to speak before a school board. Those tips still apply and work as well for other political entities.

Making a public statements is a good way to engage a group. The group that I work with most, often has one volunteer write the statement and a different one read it – each playing to their strengths. We also try to bring a crowd to support the speaker. The speaker mentions that they brought along a group of people who care about the same issue, which increases the impact.

To make this sustainable, I keep copies of statements and letters so that we can use them as templates for the next time that we want to take that action.

Does anyone have ideas that would make good public statements, letters to the editor, or op-eds? Do you have other ideas of how to use your writing skills in service to resisting tyranny?