This morning I recieved this email from a ONE.org representative asking me to please call my Senators and House Representative today to help ONE fight for a billion dollars in Funding to combat AIDS, TB, and Malaria.

I just made my calls and it took about 10 minutes. If you've never called your elected officials before, this can seem kind of scary, but don't be shy. The person who answers your call may ask you for your address so they can verify you are a constituent in their region, and then they may ask about the nature of your call. They may just say Senator Dole's office, or something like that. Then, all you do is read the script below. You can read it word for word if you want and that makes it easier for you.

I was admittedly a little nervous when I made the first call. I kind of struggled through the script. Then, I realized I was just on the phone with some random person, maybe someone like Sam Ed. It made it a lot easier on the subsequent calls. The fact that something so easy can help fight poverty arond the world is pretty awesome.

So, make your calls today, and let me know how they go.

1-800-786-2663

Here's the info and the script from the email:

Please call (TODAY) January 09, and fight for life-saving AIDS Funding!


Right now $1 billion in funding to fight poverty has been eliminated from the United States budget. Congress is set to pass a year long Budget Continuing Resolution which will keep government funding at 2006 levels through 2007. This means that almost a billion dollars to fund the fight against AIDS and extreme poverty could be lost. Please call your Senators and congressperson now to ask that they support funding that fight against Global AIDS. Urge your leaders to fully fund the fight against global AIDS and extreme poverty.

Call 1-800-786-2663 today and ask your two senators and congressman to support fully funding the fight against global AIDS and extreme poverty.

It is not too late, if we work together as ONE we can make a difference. Currently, there is a bipartisan and bicameral effort to support life saving funding. Senators Richard Durbin and Sam Brownback and Representatives Barbara Lee and Christopher Shays are circulating “Dear Colleague” letters to protect additional funding allocated to fight global AIDS, TB, and Malaria in 2007. Urge your congressional leaders to sign onto this “Dear Colleague” letter today!

Make the difference and call your members of congress today: call 1-800-786-2663 today to be connected to your senators and Representative. Remember to tell them:

*I am a constituent of YOUR TOWN in YOUR STATE.

* You're calling with the ONE campaign- an effort started by Americans to unite as ONE voice to fight extreme poverty and global HIV/AIDS.

* You're calling to ask your Members of Congress to sign on to the Senate’s Durbin-Brownback and House’s Lee-Shays “Dear Colleague” letter to protect $1 billion in life-saving funding to fight extreme poverty, AIDS, TB, and Malaria.

Thank you for joining ONE in taking action to fight global AIDS and extreme poverty. Your voice will make a difference!

Other information you can share:
* Please also tell them it is imperative that this funding be additional to other poverty fighting assistance.

* Make sure to emphasize the urgency of this issue. Those living in extreme poverty can not wait a year for assistance, they need the help now.

* Without this additional funding as many as 350,000 people with HIV/AIDS will not receive life-sustaining treatment. Nearly 1 million anti-malarial bednets will not be distributed, and 120,000 people will not receive treatment for tuberculosis.

Kimberly Smith
ONE Regional Field Organizer
kim@one.org
502-475-5564

Labels: activism, politics