Further Funding for Darfur

Dear ANNIE,

Last week, Congress passed an emergency supplemental funding bill which includes $150 million to support the peacekeeping effort in Darfur through the end of September.

While we applaud this decision, we are very concerned that this funding will run out on October 1st, leaving peacekeeping forces in Darfur stranded without adequate resources.

The Administration has failed to request any funding for Darfur in the fiscal year 2008 budget, which starts at the beginning of October 2007.

Will you please join us in calling on the President and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to urge them to fix this upcoming shortfall now before it's too late? Click here to send your message now.

Congress has agreed that the President failed to address the full funding needs of Darfur peacekeeping in his recent budget request for fiscal year 2008.

To quote the official language of the recently passed funding bill, Congress "is concerned that the Administration has not adequately planned for future peacekeeping activities in Sudan/Darfur in FY 2008 and urges the Secretary of State to work with the Office of Management and Budget to submit a budget amendment for FY 2008 addressing these urgent needs."

Please join us and Congress in urging the President and his Office of Management and Budget to provide the funds to prevent this budget shortfall that would threaten the Darfur peacekeeping effort.

Click here to send your letter to President Bush and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget today.

With your help, we can work with our government to ensure adequate support for the essential peacekeeping effort in Darfur.

Thank you again for your commitment to ending the violence in the region.
Best regards,

David RubensteinSave Darfur Coalition

P.S. Join Global Days for Darfur, a world-wide week of rallies, marches and vigils from April 23rd to April 30th. Click here to find or host an event in your community and help alert the world that time has run out for the people of Darfur.

Picking Up Pennies in 2007

Celebrities and Cash for Darfur

After emptying my box of 'picked up coins' from 2006, and sending the money to the Save Darfur Coalition, I instantly began picking up coins for 2007 to refill my box.

I must say, with a keener eye this year than I had last year, the box is filling up really quickly this year and we're only 3 months into 2007. Already I have found one $1 doller bill and lots of coins. Last year I found a $20 bill on the ground in Manhattan.

Everywhere I go I find coins on the floor. Just tonight I was in our local post office in Westwood, New Jersey, and there on the floor was a 10 cent piece.

When I go to the mall, which is about twice a week, I nearly always pick up at least 80 cents in change, many times even more! Not much I know but as I have said before, times that by 7 nights a week and a million people doing it, it soon becomes big money for the people of Darfur.

I read today on a website called www.yuddy.com that Robbie Williams (of Take That fame) held a charity football match last year at Manchester United's ground at Old Trafford, Manchester, England to raise money for the people of Africa.

Robbie Williams' fund raising football match at Old Trafford

With so many celebrities becoming active in the fight against the genocide in Africa I find it hard to understand why more ordinary people dont take a bigger interest.

There's Angelina Jolie, Brad pitt, Bono, George Clooney, Robbie Williams and Anderson Cooper (off CNN) all trying to highlight the plight of these people. If they were releasing a new perfume, album or movie we'd all support it, so lets support the charities they support aswell.

Anderson in Africa Bono in Africa George Clooney in Darfur Angelina in Africa

All you have to do is, bend down, pick up the coins and send the total to the Darfur charity at the end of the year.

Get the details from: http://www.democracyinaction.org/dia/track.jsp?key=311148085&url_num=3&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.savedarfur.org%2F

Simple!

Dear ANNIE,

As a member of the Weekly Action Network, you are one of our most committed supporters.
That is why I'm writing to ask you to help build our network of activists.

It's easy - just hit "forward," delete this introduction, and then send the message below to everyone in your address book who might be willing to join you in standing up for the people of Darfur.

The more voices we have speaking out on behalf of the innocent people in Darfur, the better our chances of stopping the violence and restoring stability to the region will be.

We can't thank you enough for everything you do to help stop the violence in Darfur.

Best regards,

Ben ProchazkaSave Darfur Coalition
---------------------- PLEASE FORWARD MESSAGE BELOW ---------------------
Dear friends,

Did you know that 2.5 million people have been driven from their homes in Darfur, Sudan? Each day, they face threats that are hard for us to even imagine including rape, disease, and starvation.

These people need our help to put an end to the genocide and they need it NOW.
Please join me in taking the first step to stopping the violence.

Click the link below to sign the Save Darfur Coalition's petition urging President Bush and UN Secretary-General Ban to take immediate steps to stop the killing.http://action.savedarfur.org/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=7071
Together, we can make a difference in the lives of millions of people in the region who desperately need outside help.

The Save Darfur Coalition is urging President Bush and the UN Secretary-General to prevent further killings, displacement, and rape by deploying UN peacekeepers, strengthening the understaffed African Union force that is already in Darfur, establishing and enforcing a no-fly zone, increasing humanitarian aid, and ensuring access for delivery of food, medication and other essential supplies.

Please do not stand by while the violence continues - you can make a difference.

Click below now to get involved.http://action.savedarfur.org/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=7071
Then please forward this message to your friends and family and ask them to join you.
If you'd like to make a donation to support the campaign, click the link below.https://secure.democracyinaction.org/dia/organizations/darfur/shop/custom.jsp?donate_page_KEY=2083

Thanks for your help.

The Save Darfur Coalition is an alliance of over 175 faith-based, advocacy and humanitarian organizations whose mission is to raise public awareness about the ongoing genocide in Darfur and to mobilize a unified response to the atrocities that threaten the lives of more than two million people in the Darfur region.

To learn more, please visit http://www.SaveDarfur.org

Dear ANNIE,

Activists across the world have come together to plan "Global Days for Darfur" - a week of rallies, marches, vigils and other events designed to alert the world that "time has run out" for the people of Darfur.

Will you please join us and thousands of Darfur activists around the globe the week of April 23rd - 30th? Click here to find an event taking place near you.

At the web page, locate the "Find an Event" section on the right-hand side of the page, enter your zip code and the numbers of miles you'd like to search within, then click "Find Events" to see what will be taking place in your area.

If you find that there are not yet any events taking place in your town or city, we encourage you to host your own event for others in your community to join.

Click here to organize your own Global Days for Darfur event in your town or city. You can get started by locating the "Create an Event" section on the right-hand side of the page (right above "Find an Event"), entering your zip code, and clicking "create event."

If you are willing to organize an event, we encourage you to register your event by Sunday, March 25th to give us enough time to promote them to the rest of the community.

As you know all too well, time has run out for the people of Darfur.

We must call attention to the escalating violence and the continued failure of the international community to adequately respond to this crisis. The Global Days for Darfur week of action and events offers a perfect forum to help raise awareness of the crisis and to call for the immediate deployment of an international peacekeeping force to Darfur.

Please support your fellow activists in speaking out for the people of Darfur by joining an event in your area. Or, if there are currently no activities planned in your community, we hope you will consider creating your own event during this important week.

Once again, thank you for your incredible commitment to stopping the violence in Darfur.
Best regards,

Ben ProchazkaSave Darfur Coalition

Dear ANNIE,

Join Me in Calling the White House
Dial 1-800-290-2662 to urge President Bush to save lives in Darfur by launching "Plan B" immediately.

Once you've hung up, click here to report your call back to the Save Darfur Coalition.
Each year I travel to Africa as a medical missionary. I've just returned from my latest trip, a deeply troubling visit to the Sudan.

Due to a series of increasingly violent attacks on foreign aid workers in Darfur over the past six months, international efforts to protect civilians and provide them with food, clean water, shelter, and medical care are in a state of crisis.

Countless men, women, and children are in real danger of falling prey to violence, starvation, or disease as a result of these attacks.

The U.S. must take the lead in working with the international community to end the violence. The lives of millions hang in the balance.

Please join me in calling the White House comment line today to urge President Bush to launch "Plan B," his tough, three-tiered plan to push Sudan to end the genocide, before more lives are lost in Darfur.

It will only take two minutes of your time and could make a world of difference for millions of people in need. Just follow the steps below:
Dial 1-800-290-2662 (toll-free)
Once you've been transferred to the comment line leave your comment using the talking points below:
I'm calling to urge President Bush to implement "Plan B" to help bring an end to the genocide in Darfur. Specifically, I am asking him to:

Enforce tough sanctions against Sudan;

Work with the UN to authorize and enforce a no-fly zone over Darfur to protect civilians from Sudanese bombers; and

Press the UN for faster deployment of UN peacekeepers to protect civilians in Darfur.
Click here to report your call back to the Save Darfur Coalition (this step is crucial - please don't skip it.)

The U.S. and the international community are all that stand between millions of civilians in Darfur and the Sudanese regime's policy of genocide. Hundreds of thousands have already been killed, and time is running out for millions more.

Without tough "Plan B" measures to accompany diplomatic efforts, the international community's efforts to end the violence in Darfur are doomed to fail.

Please follow the steps above to join me in calling the White House comment line to ask President Bush to launch "Plan B" without further delay, then click here to report your call back to the Save Darfur Coalition.

I hope you will help me spread this message of urgent action by forwarding my email to your friends, family and co-workers and asking them to join you in taking two minutes to call the White House.

Thank you for your ongoing advocacy on behalf of the people of Darfur.
Sincerely,

Senator Bill Frist, M.D.

P.S. Check out our new t-shirts and sweatshirts! Click here to visit the Save Darfur Coalition's online store to browse our merchandise, including a new selection of t-shirts and sweatshirts featuring our new logo. The logo is an acacia tree, which often serves as the only shelter for Darfuri refugees whose villages have been destroyed, and is therefore a powerful symbol of hope that our work together will result in lasting protection for the people of Darfur.

Donate to Help Save DarfurHelp build the political pressure needed to end the crisis in Darfur by supporting the Save Darfur Coalition's crucial awareness and advocacy programs.

Click here now to make a secure, tax-deductible online donation.

http://www.savedarfur.org/

Picking Up Pennies For Darfur

January 25th 2007





Today I took the coins I had collected to the post office and changed them for a money order which I have now mailed to Save Darfur, in Washington, D.C. The grand total was $63.16.









Now, this may not be a huge amount of money but if it was collected by 1,000 or 5,000 or maybe 1,000,000 people each year in America, just think of what that amount of money could do to help the starving, displaced people of Darfur?

So, make today the day that you start picking up pennies when you see them on sidewalks and in the malls.

In my experience the best places to find dropped pennies are at shop registers where people are handed their receipts and coins and drop the coins when exiting the store.

I have found many, many coins in the foyer of cinemas too.

In a mall close to where I live there is a 'ski simulator' ride. After it has turned its occupants up side down and round and round they seem to lose coins from their pockets. At the close of the day at the mall, I often scramble under the machine and collect the dropped coins. I have, on occasions, picked up over $1.00 in loose change just from under the machine. Times that by 365 nights of the year and you can see the total growing!!!!

Another great place for finding dropped coins are in noisy music stores such as Virgin Mega Store. I think people drop the coins and cant hear them drop above the noise of the music. But I know they're there and I pick them up for Darfur.

Let me know if you find any special places where people drop pennies and just walk away. Maybe this year more of us can make use of these disguarded coins and make a difference to Darfur.

http://www.savedarfur.org

Picking Up Pennies - "Tonight thank God its them, instead of you!"

PICKING UP PENNIES FOR DARFUR


"Tonight thank God its them, instead of you!"


Like so many people, I have been guilty of being a bystander who watches the news coverage of the genocide in Darfur and then overting my eyes and carrying on with my own life
But I can no longer stand by and turn a blind eye and a deaf ear to the atrocities that are being allowed to continue in Darfur.

This isn't a normal plea for help for the people of Darfur who are suffering at the hands of their government. It was born out of living in a country where so many people have so much that they can afford to drop money in the streets and not pick it up!

I watched with great interest the reports on CNN during June 2005 when Anderson Cooper was reporting from Niger. I couldn't believe that while we lived in a world with so much, that we could stand by and watch other human beings live in such terrible conditions. These people don't only have no idea where there next meal will come from or whether they will make it through the next few days to eat it.


After that broadcast I became more and more aware of not only the starvation that was effecting that part of Africa but the genocide that was taking place in the Sudan.

Most people have no idea where Darfur is, what is occurring there or why. We see 2 minute news items on the ABC, Fox, BBC and NBC news channels covering the very basics of the situation, then the commercials kick in or an item on Nicole Richie being arrested for driving under the influence or Michael Richards or Mel Gibson making insulting remarks about a group of people and that becomes so much more interesting....... because its in 'our world'.
The charred remains of a village in the Darfur region of Sudan

But there's another world, a world in which most of us can not even imagine living. Where every day is a fight for survival. Not just because there is a famine but because the government of the country is working against the very people who live there. A government who supply arms to the militia who systematically destroy villages, burn crops and houses and then murder men, rape women and then kill them and their children.










A starving child in Darfur

History and Geography of Darfur.

Sudan is the largest country in Africa with a population of 37 million. It shares its borders with Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Chad, Libya, Congo and Central African Republic. Darfur is a Western region of Sudan. It is just over two thirds the size of Texas. It is mainly an arid plateau, with volcanic mountains and sandy soil. Part of the Sahara Desert and the Nile River are located here. The official language is Arabic and the main religion is Muslim. Sudan gained its independence from Britain and Egypt in 1956. Since then it has been mired in a series of conflicts, one of which lasted 21 years until a peace treaty was signed in January 2005.

The region of Darfur is populated by some 7.4 million people. Since early 2003, Sudanese government forces and "Janjaweed" militias have waged war against two loosely allied rebel factions - the Sudanese Liberation Army and the Justice and Equality Movement, both located in the western Sudanese region of Darfur. It appears that the government forces have waged a deliberate and systematic campaign of "ethnic cleansing" against civilians who come from the same ethnic groups as the two rebel groups.

To date the United Nations have refused to call the atrocities, "genocide". Kofi Annan has only referred to the situation as "the worst humanitarian crisis in the world." Sadly, the fighting has seen the deaths of many thousands of people and rendered more than one million homeless. Many have fled to remote desert locations making the delivery of shelter, food, water and clothing a challenge for aid agencies.

The genocide in Darfur
In addition, the agencies say that they do not have enough money to effectively respond to the crisis. The United Nations' Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says that over $400 million is needed by the end of the year to respond to the most urgent needs. The situation is so serious that the U.S. Agency for International Development said recently that, without help, one million people may die, and
that 300,000 will probably die no matter what is done. In addition to this more than two million people have been displaced by the ongoing violence plaguing the region. Even those who have not been directly affected by the violence are still in need of aid as the local economy has collapsed and thousands are on the brink of starvation.

A group of starving displaced refugees in Darfur
In recent months many celebrities have ventured into the area to highlight to the rest of the world the atrocities that are occurring there. Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Bono, George Clooney and his father and several journalists who hope to bring the world's attention to the plight of the people of Darfur.

As New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof remarked recently, " Perhaps the most striking distinction in the history of genocide is not between those who murder and those who don't, but between 'bystanders' who overt their eyes and 'up standers' who speak out".

Its easy to see why we would divert our eyes. No longer does the sight of a starving baby, a raped woman or a village raised to the ground stir feelings of humanity in us. We've all seen it too many times before. But with everything that is unpleasant, if we can find a fun way to achieve a result, the effort is never so great. As Mary Poppins said, 'a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down'. Take 'Band Aid' and Live Aid'. We all loved seeing our favourite stars giving it their best in the name of charity which in turn made us give our best. Millions of pounds and dollars came flooding in to the charity.

Well, in a very small way I too have found a way to make giving to Darfur a more worthwhile experience.

When I first arrived in America from the United Kingdom, (Southampton England to be exact), I was surprised to see how many pennies were just lying on the sidewalks, on shop floors, at the candy counter, in the movie theatres, and just about anywhere that people reach into their pockets.

So last January, 2006, I set myself a mission to pick up all the dropped pennies that were overlooked by the Natives. To my further surprise it didn’t just stop at pennies. I was picking up 5 cent, 10 cent and 25 cent pieces, $1 bills and once I even found a $20 dollar bill.

The final coin collection January 4th 2006, $53.16c.
All through 2006 I have kept a separate box in which I collected all the ‘lost pennies’. Whenever I went out with friends who were visiting from England I would be a constant source of embarrassment to them as I picked up all the coins I saw. But eventually they would be scanning floors in an effort to boost my funds.

I decided that I would collect the coins for one year and then at the end of the year I would count them up and donate the total to a charity. But as the year progressed and the amount increased I began to think about how much money could be raised if hundreds, even thousands or millions of people were to take the time to pick up these lost coins.

When I totaled up my stash of coins they totaled $53.16c. I thought if that could be multiplied by 5,000 other people ever year we could have a total of $265,800. There are now 300,000,000 people in the USA, if just 1,000,000 people collected lost coins think of the money we could raise for Darfur. If every person managed to collect the same as I did it would total, $53,160,000.00.

My partner and I also had a bet on who could guess the closest to the total amount of coins collected in the box. If I won he promised to put a further $10.00 into the collection. I won!

While at a local mall one night, waiting to go the movies, in just half and hour I picked up 65 cents. Not a lot of money! But, in a nation of $300,000,000 people, if on one day a week just $1,000,000 people picked up 24 cents that would equal $24,000. That makes ‘Picking up Pennies’ seem like a worthwhile pastime.....

So I chose to donate my coins to the charity supporting aide to Darfur. Darfur has been referred to as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

The Horor of a Refugee Camp in Darfur

The face of genocide in Darfur

George Clooney and his father on recent visit to Darfur.


If you are touched by what you have seen and read and watched on the television please click on the link below to find out how you can help the people of Darfur. Maybe you too could start picking up pennies or find another way of raising money for Darfur. As it says in the BandAid song, 'Tonight thank God its them instead of you!'





http://www.SaveDarfur.org.


www.darfurgenocide.org/darfur.php