Care2 — The Power of Petition

Posted on September 22, 2008 
Filed under Communications, Internet, Journalism, Writing, collaborating, education and tagged , , , , , , ,




I received an email today from the producers of [Title of Show], a Broadway show I recently went to see that was terribly clever, funny and unique. The email announced that the show is scheduled to close in October, way too premature as far as I’m concerned, and asking me to sign a petition on behalf of the show to get them more exposure. Specifically, the producers hope to get a performance from the show on the “Ellen” show sometime in the near future, and thereby stave off the retreat of investors and the show’s demise.

I clicked on the link, which took me to Care2, a petition site that hosts petitions of all sorts, giving you a chance to sign, write a sentiment and press a big “sign” button to get the whole thing out there. Of course, you also get a chance to email your friends and ask them to pass it on.

After signing the petition on behalf of my Broadway pals, I started to roam around Care2 to look for more causes and petitions. What I found there was both educational and moving.

Care2 lists and features petitions and causes of all kinds, from the about-to-close Broadway show to hunger and poverty worldwide. Among the causes are human rights, poverty, women’s rights, political issues, children, and more.

How about a petition to urging Congress to protect the Arctic Refuge, now threatened by President Bush’s budget proposal, which calls for drilling to resume in the refuge in 2010?  Cool. The Arctic Refuge is the most important denning habitat for this country’s vanishing polar bears.

Oxfam America is there with a number of petitions, one of which asks the U.S. Senate to co-sponsor the Extractive Industries Transparency Disclosure Act, which would require the public disclosure of payments made between oil, gas and mining companies, and their host governments.

The William J. Clinton Foundation is also there, among its causes a pilot subsidy program in Tanzania, to combat the high rate of deaths there from malaria.
Care2 has its own petition, with more than 17,000 signatures, urging the UN Security County and countries neighboring Zimbabwe to put an end to the bloodshed in that country, in which more than 200,000 people have been displaced, 86 opposition supporters killed, 10,000 people injured, and 500 women and girls sexually abused or raped.

Teachers and students should jump on this bandwagon, which incidentally currently has more than 9 million members and more than 29 signatures on petitions. You can join Care2, participate in discussions, find friends, and learn about the world around you, the power of the written word and the Web.

How awesome is that?

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2 Responses to “Care2 — The Power of Petition”

  1.  John Resanovich on September 25th, 2008 6:56 pm

    Great Resource Evelyn, I’ll make it one of my sites of the week.

  2.  tempo on September 3rd, 2009 4:44 pm

    bushun gitmesi iyi oldu

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