Building political muscle for kids: A case study of child advocacy in Oklahoma

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to provide a case study of child advocacy in the legislative arena in the State of Oklahoma by a private, not-for-profit advocacy organization. Specifically, this article (1} describes the events leading to the creation of the Oklahoma Institute for Child Advocacy (OICA}, (2) presents an effective strategy developed by OICA to engage a wide range of public and private stakeholders in an exercise to establish a children's legislative agenda for state legislators in advance of their legislative session each year, and (3) articulates the essential lessons learned during the process of formulating the children's legislative agenda. The approach discussed in this article is one of legislative advocacy as a way of benefiting large groups of children and youth across service settings.