Subject:
Together We've Been Making a Difference
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 2003 13:03:37 -0800 (PST)
From: TrueMajority <alerts@truemajority.org>
To:
contact@lightmillennium.org
Together
We've Been Making a Difference:
Thanks
to You, TrueMajority Is Having an Impact
Dear
Bircan,
We
have made a commitment to send you only a few emails
a month, so usually we only send out messages with an
action. But so much has been going so well that we wanted
to take a moment to tell you about it, and to thank
you for all of your help.
First,
the Virtual March last week was a huge success. The
Win Without War coalition (TrueMajority is a founding
member) generated nearly a million phone calls, faxes,
and emails. Our piece of this Virtual March was handling
the free faxes and over 140,000 people registered to
send over 280,000 faxes to their Senators. This public
outcry against a rush to war has tied up fax machines
for days, and many of the faxes are still trying to
get through. That is a powerful and lasting message.
The media took note of this huge chorus of disapproval
and I've posted links to a few examples at the end of
this letter.
What's
needed now is an immediate, massive display of ongoing
opposition to the War.
And
we can do it-Quickly and Easily-with a Blue Ribbon.
Blue for the United Nations. Blue because we can Win
Without War.
If
even a fraction of all those who oppose this unilateral
war wear a blue ribbon on their lapels, shirts, or dresses
and tie it to their cars (and anything else), we will
create a force that can no longer be ignored. You can
get the ribbon to make your own in any craft
or fabric store, or to learn more and purchase one or
a bunch of these cheap, check out our store at:
http://store.yahoo.com/truemajority/blueribbon.html
The
Blue Ribbon Campaign is a project of the Win Without
War coalition.
In
other news, TrueMajority's members, working along with
many other groups, have achieved the following successes...
Opposed
Trent Lott as Majority Leader
48,000
faxes Sent
December
20, 2002 Lott Steps Down
Opposed
the Total Information Awareness Network, an enormous
database with info about everyone in American
55,000
faxes Sent
February
11, 2003 Congress Dismantled the Program
Supported
a Filibuster against the nomination of Extreme Right
Winger Miguel Estrada to Washington, DC Court of
Appeals
67,000
Faxes Sent
On
February 12, 2003 Filibuster was mounted.
At
the time it seemed unlikely that the Democrats would
mount a filibuster to block this nomination, but that
is exactly what 33 thousand TrueMajority members asked
their Senators to do. As of this writing the filibuster
is still holding. If you haven't sent a fax to your
Senators yet on this issue, then you can by going to:
http://www.truemajority.com/index.asp?action=2437&ms=Estr6&ref=16892
Each
of these actions has led to a surge in membership as
friends pass along our alerts to friends. Just in the
past two months we've doubled to 260,000 members.
So,
thanks for caring about our country and our world. And
thanks for spreading the word. We've already shown that
together we are making a difference. And the bigger
TrueMajority grows the more impact we will have. If
you know of anyone else who might want to join this
movement, just send them to www.truemajority.com and
they too can sign up for free alerts.
Thanks again,
Ben
COHEN, President of TrueMajority
Co-founder Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream
I
am writing this email on my own and not on behalf of
Ben & Jerry's, which is not associated with the
TrueMajority campaign.
* * * * *
Here
are just a few of the scores of articles the Virtual
March generated:
WASHINGTON
POST:
ANTIWAR
PROTESTERS FLOOD SENATE PHONE LINES
by
Juliet Eilperin
http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A6032-2003Feb26.html
Thousands
of antiwar protesters flooded Senate phone lines today as part of a "Virtual March" on Washington.
The
phone-in campaign was sponsored by the "Win Without
War" coalition, which told Web site readers
they could "join a
massive march on Washington without leaving your
living room."
--------
BBC:
US
'VIRTUAL MARCH' OVER IRAQ
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/2802531.stm
Thousands
of anti-war activists have been bombarding the White
House and senators with phone calls and e-mails in a
virtual protest over the Iraq crisis. Backed by a number
of
celebrities, volunteers jammed switchboards in Washington
DC in an effort to force US politicians to think again
over the prospect of war in the Gulf.
--------
NEW
YORK TIMES:
AN
ANTIWAR DEMONSTRATION THAT DOES NOT TAKE TO THE STREETS
by
John Tierney
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/26/national/26CND-MARCH.html
WASHINGTON,
Feb. 26 - The Mall was quiet, but the switchboard on
Capitol Hill was swamped today as anti-war protesters
conducted what they called the first "virtual march"
on Washington. The organizers, a coalition called Win
Without War, said that hundreds of thousands of people
were sending messages by email, fax and telephone to
the Senate and the White House.
--------
ROLL
CALL:
WAR
PROTESTORS VIRTUALLY OVERWHELM SENATE OFFICES
by
Nicole Duran
http://www.rollcall.com/issues/1_1/breakingnews/653-1.html
[Subscription
needed to view full article.]
.
. . An informal survey of Senate offices found nearly
all available bodies busily answering incessantly ringing
phones as
a group called Win Without War carried out its "virtual
march
on Washington."
The
group, led by former Rep. Tom Andrews (D-Maine), arranged
to
have at least 140,000 constituents call their Senators,
as well
as the White House, all day with the same message: "Don't
attack
Iraq."
"I'm
sorry, sir, but we're just taking a tally because our
phones are ringing off the hook," a patient but
clearly tiring staffer in Sen. John McCain's office
told a war protestor back in
the Arizona Republican's home state.
In
most offices, front-desk aides had ticked off hundreds
of calls on scratch sheets by midday, intending to just
give the Senators a final number when the protest ends
at 6 p.m.
