After many late nights of pondering where to hold a Day of Action Stand-Up event to let Congressman Lewis know that his constituents really do care, I chose to conduct the event at Loma Linda University. I happened to luck out by coming in contact with Melani Fellows, the VP of Social Activities with the School of Public Health Student Association.

The event at Loma Linda University will bring together people from all over California’s District 41, of all faiths, political affiliations and ethnicities. The day promises to be a dynamic and educational experience, with speakers touching on the subjects of global health, extreme poverty and the importance of following up with your representative to let him or her know that you care. There’s even some entertainment thrown in the mix.

Yet another example of Loma Linda University living up to it’s motto “to make man whole”. Thanks, Melani, for helping to make it happen.

Right now my house looks like a ONE warehouse. It’s stocked with ONE banners, wristbands, voter pledges, flyers, and tons of copies of fact sheets – plus emails from volunteers, new members, city officials and the media – all wanting more information about tomorrow’s event!

One of our event speakers, Derreck Kayongo from CARE, arrived today from Atlanta. A great friend to ONE, I always look forward to hearing Derreck’s personal stories about life in Uganda. I hope his message will inspire everyone to keep moving forward in this fight.

So what can you expect on the 15th? When you arrive, volunteers will welcome you and ask you to sign the ONE Voter Pledge. (These volunteers are not only members of ONE but also volunteers from local aid groups who want to help out.) Too young to vote? Then move to the next table where you can sign the ONE Declaration.

Next, we’ll hand you a ONE wristband. The gift is a thank you from us to you for joining us at our Stand-Up event.

Finally, step on over to the art area where we’ll trace your footstep. During the event, everyone’s footprints will be displayed, as a symbol of Orlando’s support of ONE.

Then stay a while. Enjoy live music from two awesome bands, purchase food from Dandelions Communitea Cafe and listen to our dynamic speakers – including members of ONE Orlando, Derreck Kayongo from CARE International, Joe Perry, from RESULTS, and Natasha McIntosh, from Fair Trade for a Greater Orlando Coalition.

What will take place at the moment of the actual ‘Stand-Up?’ You’ll have to be there to find out. It’ll be a great day to be inspired by speakers, create art, enjoy music and “Stand-Up” together to make poverty history.

As Product (RED) launches in America, opening a new front in the war against AIDS, a few words from Bono:

“Sometimes when I’m walking down the street a passer by will say “love your work on Africa Bono, great cause.” Sometimes, they wish they hadn’t. I’m Irish, I love to talk to strangers. I love to talk about Africa. It can be hard to get away. . . Each time it makes me think we need to do much more to get the message across that this is not a ’cause,’ this pandemic that we and so many others are working on. 5,500 Africans dying a day of AIDS, a preventable, treatable disease is not a cause. 5,500 Africans dying each day is an emergency.

Enter Product (RED). Red is a new idea we’re launching to work alongside the growing ONE Campaign to Make Poverty History. Over the past year, almost 2 million Americans have joined ONE, in churches and chatrooms. . . on soccer pitches and movie sets. . . at NASCAR races and rock concerts. By 2008, we’re aiming to have 5 million members – that’s more than the National Rifle Association. Just think for a moment of what that kind of political firepower could achieve for the poorest of the poor. . .

Where ONE takes on the bigger, longer-term beast of changing policy and influencing government, (RED) is, I guess, about a more instant kind of gratification. If you buy a (RED) product from GAP, Motorola, Armani, Converse or Apple, they will give up to 50% of their profit to buy AIDS drugs for mothers and children in Africa. (RED) is the consumer battalion gathering in the shopping malls. You buy the jeans, phones, iPods, shoes, sunglasses, and someone – somebody’s mother, father, daughter or son – will live instead of dying in the poorest part of the world. It’s a different kind of fashion statement.

You might think (RED) sounds too simple. But AIDS is no longer a death sentence. Just two pills a day will bring someone who is at death’s door back to full health, back to a full life. Doctors call it ‘the Lazarus effect’. I’ve seen it myself and I have to say that it’s nothing short of a miracle. These pills are available at any corner drugstore. They cost less than a dollar a day, but the poorest people in Africa earn less than a dollar a day. They can’t afford them, and so they die. It’s unnecessary. It’s insane. . .

As Product (RED) launches in America, opening a new front in the war against AIDS, a few words from Bono:

“Sometimes when I’m walking down the street a passer by will say “love your work on Africa Bono, great cause.” Sometimes, they wish they hadn’t. As I’m Irish, I love to talk to strangers. I love to talk about Africa. It can be hard to get away. . . Each time it makes me think we need to do much more to get the message across that this is not a ’cause,’ this pandemic that we and so many others are working on. 5,500 Africans dying a day of AIDS, a preventable, treatable disease is not a cause. 5,500 Africans dying each day is an emergency.

Enter Product (RED). Red is a new idea we’re launching to work alongside the growing ONE Campaign to Make Poverty History. Over the past year, almost 2 million Americans have joined ONE, in churches and chatrooms. . .on soccer pitches and movie sets. . .at NASCAR races and rock concerts. By 2008, we’re aiming to have 5 million members – that’s more than the National Rifle Association. Just think for a moment of what that kind of political firepower could achieve for the poorest of the poor. . .

Where ONE takes on the bigger, longer-term beast of changing policy and influencing government, (RED) is, I guess, about a more instant kind of gratification. If you buy a (RED) product from GAP, Motorola, Armani, Converse or Apple, they will give up to 50% of their profit to buy AIDS drugs for mothers and children in Africa. (RED) is the consumer battalion gathering in the shopping malls. You buy the jeans, phones, iPods, shoes, sunglasses, and someone – somebody’s mother, father, daughter or son – will live instead of dying in the poorest part of the world. It’s a different kind of fashion statement.

You might think (RED) sounds too simple. But AIDS is no longer a death sentence. Just two pills a day will bring someone who is at death’s door back to full health, back to a full life. Doctors call it ‘the Lazarus effect’. I’ve seen it myself and I have to say that it’s nothing short of a miracle. These pills are available at any corner drugstore. They cost less than a dollar a day, but the poorest people in Africa earn less than a dollar a day. They can’t afford them, and so they die. It’s unnecessary. It’s insane.

You might think it’s too difficult to get these drugs to the people who most need them. A couple of years ago when DATA (Debt, AIDS, Trade, Africa) lobbied President Bush, Tony Blair and Jacques Chirac to do more on AIDS we went to experts about this. From Bill and Melinda Gates, to Dr Paul Farmer working in the poorest places on the earth, to Dr Coutinho in his AIDS clinic in Uganda. Is it easy? No. Is it impossible? No. Can we do it? Absolutely. In 2001, there were 50,000 Africans taking ARVs. Now there are over one million people getting these life saving drugs thanks to President Bush’s AIDS initiative, and thanks to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.

There are though still 4.3 million Africans without drugs, which is why 100% of (RED) money is going directly to the Global Fund to support the work they are doing. (RED) uses the power in your pocket to keep people alive. ONE uses the power of your voice to create a more just world where people can earn their own way out of poverty. This means tackling more than AIDS. It means fighting corruption. Insisting on good governance. Getting kids in school. Changing trade rules. Getting businesses to invest in Africa. Myself and Ali started a company called Edun – a fashion line that makes clothes in Africa – because so many Africans we met said what they wanted more than anything was a job.

All of this is ganging up on the same problem – the greatest health crisis in human history and the extreme poverty in which it thrives. The Number 1 question we get asked is, what can I do to help? From today, you can do one more thing than you could do yesterday. Shop (RED). And if you haven’t already, join the One campaign at one.org.

As I said, this is an emergency. And in these dangerous times, how we in the West respond is an opportunity to show what we stand for, as well as what we stand against. If we’re successful, we will not only transform millions of people’s lives, we’ll transform the way these people see us … and in turn, the world in which we live.”

Join the ONE Campaign:

For more information on the campaigns Bono mentioned:

Joinred.com
Product (RED), founded by Bono and Bobby Shriver in 2006 to engage consumers and the private sector with its marketing prowess and funds in the fight against AIDS. Money raised from (RED) Products goes to the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria.

ONE.org
The ONE campaign to make poverty history was founded in 2005 and is now 2.3 million members strong representing Americans from all 50 states. The goal of this movement is to persuade the US government to spend an additional one percent of the federal budget on tackling AIDS and extreme poverty.

Data.org

DATA (debt, AIDS, trade, Africa) is an advocacy organization founded in 2002 by Bono, Bobby Shriver and activists from the Jubilee “Drop the Debt” campaign to fight extreme poverty and AIDS in Africa. DATA’s mission is to tackle the three issues that most adversely affect the African continent — unpayable debts, the spread of AIDS and unfair trade policies – by raising public awareness and working with leaders in the U.S. and throughout the G8 to bring more resources to the region.

Edun.ie
EDUN, which has just produced a ONE Campaign t-shirt raising money for AIDS drugs in Lesotho, is an ethically-sourced high fashion clothing company. It was created in 2005 by Ali Hewson, Bono and designer Rogan Gregory in an effort to increase trade opportunities and sustainable long-term employment in developing nations. With factories located in Africa, South America and India, EDUN believes in respect for and investment in the people and places where its clothing is made.

We are just two days away from the October 15, 2006 Day of Action Stand-Up event here in Louisville and I am working on the final details. The event will highlight the local community’s work to fight extreme poverty and HIV/AIDS and will feature Kentuckians from all walks of life – to show that this fight is something all Americans, from the left and the right, can do together.

Two people who have agreed to speak together at Sunday’s event are leading Kentucky political bloggers Mark Nickolas, of the liberal BluegrassReport.org, and Jefferson Poole, of the conservative Bluegrass, Red State.

Strange bedfellows? Perhaps. But ONE is not your usual campaign.

Check for a Day of Action Stand-Up event or house party in your area for this Sunday, you will be surprised at how many different types of Americans will be there.

Our members already knows that we’re giving
a sneak preview of the new ONE TV Spot at the October 15 ‘Day of Action’’house parties.

To quote today’s email: “They won’t let me send this email out if I give too much away before the sneak preview, but I can tell you a few things. The spot includes one or more of the following: Hollywood actors, faith leaders, a professional athlete, a musician, a Republican, and a Democrat. Most importantly, they all join together with everyday Americans to pledge “ONE Vote” to help fight global AIDS and extreme poverty.”

Surprisingly, they won’t let me reveal any more about the spot on the ONE Blog either, but if you host or attend a ONE house party on October 15, you can see for yourself.

USA Today is running a story today on the U.S. launch of Product (RED) tomorrow – when (RED) products will be available in stores and Bono will appear on Oprah.

From the article: “Starting Friday, shoppers who buy Converse Chuck Taylors made with African mudcloth, RED clothing from Gap, certain Motorola cellphones or items from a special Giorgio Armani collection will automatically make a contribution to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis. Up to 50% of the revenue from RED sales will go to the Global Fund. Bono, Oprah and other celebs will kick off the buying spree by doing their own shopping today in downtown Chicago.”
Read the full article here.

When ONE Columbus heard that Jeffrey Sachs was coming to Ohio, we were definitely excited. After all he wrote “The End of Poverty,” is the special advisor to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the director of the Earth Institute at Columbia University and the director of the U.N. Millennium Project.

Since the “Day of Action: Stand-Up Against Poverty” events are taking place on October 15, we thought a ONE table at Dr. Sachs’ lecture would be a great way to spread the word. We called the event’s coordinators but got no immediate response. Determined to keep trying, Mike Beaumont, leader of the ONE Columbus volunteers, my mom and I decided to attend with flyers in hand.

When we arrived student volunteers graciously displayed our ONE materials on the official event table. That was great, but we were hoping for a little more visibility. Luckily, we were seated in the second row, directly behind the VIPs. It was the perfect opportunity.

Mike, feeling a little extra confident on this, his 30th birthday, walked directly to Jeffrey Sachs and introduced himself before the lecture began. Mike talked with Dr. Sachs about the Columbus October 15 event and hinted that mentioning the event to a crowd as receptive as this one could help a lot with outreach.

A smiling Jeffrey Sachs nodded his support and at the end of the lecture, we got what we wanted. Click here to hear it for yourself.

For more information about our Columbus event, go to www.onecampaigncolumbus.org/standup or click here to find a Day of Action event near you.

Our October 15 house party count is at 518 and yesterday we picked up two parties in Alaska!

Now we only need parties in South Dakota, Wyoming and Montana to cover all 50 states. Who can make it happen?

Hi everyone,

Tim here from ONE Partner Oxfam America. I thought you’d be interested in MySpace’s largest humanitarian effort to date.

MySpace.com, the world’s leading lifestyle portal, recently announced “Rock for Darfur,” a campaign to raise awareness and funds for the humanitarian crisis in the Sudan. Through a partnership with MySpace bands nationwide and Oxfam, a leading international relief and development organization, the campaign marks the company’s largest philanthropic effort to date and will include a Rock for Darfur 20-concert event, a public service announcement featuring Samuel L. Jackson, and interactive components found on the Rock for Darfur MySpace profile at www.myspace.com/RockForDarfur.

To check out the concerts and to find out what you can do, go to the Rock for Darfur site or check out the Oxfam America website at www.oxfamamerica.org. You can also connect with Oxfam at MySpace by clicking here.

And don’t forget to tell your friends!

Tim Fullerton
eAdvocacy Coordinator
Oxfam America