This update is a call to action for the 550 petition signers in VA and the all the other supporters of the redesignation legislation.

We have been working diligently to get Virginia’s senior Senator Mark Warner to cosponsor the Senate version of the redesignation legislation (SJ Res 35) that was introduced by his VA colleague Senator Tim Kaine. While we’ve been told verbally that Senator Warner supports the bill, he has yet to become a cosponsor. He is the only Democrat in the Virginia delegation who has not come out formerly in support of the legislation.

Many of you have asked what else you can do to help. This is where the “power of the petition” can have a huge and lasting impact. We need your help right now.  Use your voice to help us show the Senator and others the large number of his constituents that care about this issue.

Please take 5 minutes out of your busy schedule to do the following: 1) send a message to Senator Warner telling him you support SJ Res 35 and you want him to become a cosponsor; 2) send a message to Senator Kaine thanking him for his leadership; and 3) tell a friend about the petition and ask them to add their voice to the chorus of supports who want to see this legislation passed.

If you do not live in VA, send a note to the two Senators who represent you and your State.

This is an easy task. It is not time consuming. But, this is an extremely important task at this point in our journey to pass this legislation.

Find contact information for your Senators, here. Here is some draft language you can use in your message seeking support.

Senator Warner, I am a constituent residing in ______.  I am writing to ask you to cosponsor S.J. Res. 35 introduced by Senator Tim Kaine to redesignate the National Park Service site known as the ‘Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial’ to the ‘Arlington House National Historic Site.’  The decisions made by Lee at Arlington House and after the Civil War are important to interpret. That history cannot and should not be excluded. However, the history at Arlington House and the space around the historic site is much broader than Lee. It includes the lives and narratives of dozens of people who were enslaved by Lee and his wife that also should be interpreted. Doing so will share all of the history and be attractive to all visitors. Congress established the current name of the 'Arlington House, the Robert E. Lee Memorial' and only Congress can redesignate it. Senator Warner, I encourage you cosponsor this legislation, take up this matter with your fellow legislators and pass the resolution to redesignate Arlington House as a National Historic Site.