Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Support Our Work and Get a Gift!

Dear Friend of Out4Immigration,

We don't often send out requests for donations.

As a grassroots, all-volunteer organization, we only do this when we know the money raised will be put to immediate use or for crucial events where we feel we need a presence to make a difference. Now is one of those times! We are now down to our last roll of stickers and with Pride events happening all across the Country, we really need to replenish our stock. Our stickers have been an awesome tool in reaching out to the public to raise awareness about our issue.

Your donation will be used for several key items that will help us reach more people about the important work of Out4Immigration. The first item will be printing about 15,000 stickers, which will cost about $1,100. In addition, we need money to help us pay for registration fees for Pride events. Can you help us by donating $10, $25 or $50 to support these activities? Your generosity helps us continue our efforts to change America's broken immigration system and continue to work toward legislation and administrative fixes that will stop the deportations, exiles and struggles same-sex binational couples face.

You can donate online directly and securely from our webpage at Out4Immigration.org - make sure you indicate "Out4Immigration" under Project. Our fiscal sponsor, Peace Development Fund, will handle the transaction and provide you with the necessary tax exempt receipt for your donation.

If you don't feel safe donating online, you can also send a check (instructions are on the Out4Immigration donate page).

All money raised goes directly towards these crucial expenses! Please consider making a donation today. No donation is too small, and every donation is both greatly needed appreciated.

As an added bonus, Judy Rickard has kindly autographed 10 copies of her book, TORN APART, and we will present you with a copy of the book when you donate more than $75!

Thank you!
Amos Lim, Treasurer and Director, Community Outreach

1 comment:

RCANelson said...

And even better? Find ways to get involved with Out4Immigration!

Out4Immigration is an all-volunteer organization. With what is often less than a handful of actively involved people at any given moment in time, O4I has represented the issue at Pride Parades, community gatherings, online, and in outreach to other communities interested in immigration and equality for all. We post petitions, maintain a website, blog when we can, and send out email blasts relative to actions, news, and related developments. We collaborate with other groups to advocate for equality. We post a weekly online petition targeting members of Congress and Federal officials, moderate a yahoo group, speak, write, meet with other immigrant rights and faith groups—to name a few things that the group does. This is all on top of members having full lives, careers, children, and other obligations. Imagine what we might accomplish if more of us get involved!

O4I is an all-volunteer organization and needs help in whatever way you can give it. It is time for all people who yearn for equality to start standing up, speaking out, and representing that, where it comes to our families, we are not going to take no for an answer any longer. I am not advocating being risky, but I am advocating being ballsy, in whatever way you can. You are right to want to deserve the love you’ve found, to live where you want to live, yet are expected to accept hurtful, compromising choices to have our families. Why?

We are taxpaying citizens and we deserve the right to commit our lives to whomever we choose, without giving up the right to live here. I want to see us willing to acknowledge ourselves for what we are: a community of citizens who, despite all the different paths we walk, the different lives we lead, and all the different ways we belong to families and have roots here as well as there, are singled out for a unique and cruel discrimination. And there is no good reason for it. The time to remain silent about the injustice has passed, and I’m trying to do what I can. But I need your help. We need your help. If you don't do it, who will? If not now, then when?

So let me say again: Out4Immigration is an all-volunteer grassroots organization. In addition to looking into your purse to see about making a donation, look into your heart, open it, ask the universe to show you what you need to be doing, and trust in the love you've been given. At moments of anger I am of the opinion that the law bullies us. To come to a point of power on this, I believe we have to become active in the “No” response to the way things have been, and a “Yes” response to how it’s going to be. Contributing to O4I is great and you should do it if at all you can, but getting involved however you can is even better.