Door-to-Door Solicitors: Go Away

I don’t like door-to-door solicitations of any kind. This includes when schools send their kids out into their own neighborhoods to raise money for the school by selling magazines, candy, etc. I am more than happy to support any family members that are trying to do something like that for their school, but I just cringe when some stranger comes to my door and tries to sell me something.

But the people that really take the cake are the Jehovah’s Witnesses. They are a particularly annoying and persistent bunch. They have been coming to my home for as long as I’ve lived here – and that’s been over 30 years. There have been times where I’ve been working in the yard and they drive up to my house, try to leave me one of their booklets or tell me about an upcoming gathering, and then they drive off. Not to another house, mind you, they drive off and don’t seem to stop to any other homes near mine. Sometimes I feel like I'm being targeted.

I can’t tell you how many times I have told them I am not interested. I’ve also told them that I was raised Catholic (which is true), and while I don’t tell them that I don't practice any "structured" religion any more, I make it clear to them where my loyalties lie. What annoys me is that they came back again today, after just hearing me tell them I was not interested at all just two week prior when they came to my house.

Our community allows door-to-door solicitations if a permit is granted, but if I don’t want to be solicited; I still have to put up a “No Solicitation” sign on my door. Personally, that would look pretty tacky. I think that people should be able to opt out (or maybe even opt in) of any solicitation with their respective city hall, and that solicitors would have to refer to those lists before they solicited anyone. In a way, it would be just like the “do not call” list” for telemarketers.

Somehow, I think that religious solicitors may still be able to get past the no solicitation signs. Is there anyone out there that has had success in getting Jehovah’s Witnesses to stop visiting their homes? If so, I’d be happy to hear your suggestions.



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