What do you do with a politician when he or she is hard to track down or non-responsive? Most people go to free social media sites, but one group of constituents has taken to crowdfunding to raise money for a billboard campaign. In this case, it’s Congressman Chris Collins whose face might end up on a couple of billboards around town. Collins is being criticized for being MIA and extremely elusive, and there are those who want to hold him accountable for his actions, or inactions.
In the billboard campaign, Collins is dressed in Where’s Waldo attire. The message is clear and simple – “WNY would like a word… Host a Town Hall meeting, Mr Collins.”
So far, $2605 of the $3070 goal has been met. The message on the GoFundMe campaign reads:
Chris Collins has repeatedly ignored pleas from his constituents to hold town hall meetings, and has deflected accountability. All funds raised will be used to post two billboards for one week, beginning February 13, to publicly call attention to Collins’s absence. The billboards will be in Hamburg (7 Corners) and on the inbound I-190 at Smith (near the 90). This campaign will be coordinated in conjunction with a “Missing: Chris Collins” poster campaign, and an attempt to cover his office doors in “Where are you?” post-it notes. This three-pronged approach will be shared with the media.
The billboard will include “Paid for by Citizens Against Collins” at the bottom.