Please participate in this campaign to help bring justice to Rachel Corrie and to ensure the safety of international peace activists.
Fax, call, or email your representatives this Wednesday. Details below.
Pass this on...
-----Original Message-----
We received some recommendations on the Hill that the best way to pass this resolution is to "depoliticize" it as much as possible. This is
reflected in the model talking points.
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US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation
Support the Rachel Corrie Resolution
Contact Congress and Make Your Voice Heard!
Action Requested and Our Goal:
Fax, call, and/or email your Representative in Congress
and ask him/her to cosponsor the Rachel Corrie Resolution (House Concurrent Resolution 111). If your Representative has already sponsored or
cosponsored this resolution (see below), be sure to contact and thank him/her.
As of April 7, the resolution had 16 cosponsors and was sent to the House International Relations Committee upon introduction. The resolution is unlikely to move out of the committee without a critical mass of Representatives who sign the resolution as cosponsors. Our goal is to get as many Members of Congress as possible to sign on as cosponsors.
To find fax and phone numbers for your Representative, enter your zip code at: http://www.congress.org.
If you'd like to call, the Congressional Switchboard is either: 202-224-3121 or 800-839-5276.
To send an email to your Representative, see: http://www.cflweb.org/congress_merge_.htm.
Note: Faxing is considered to be the most effective way to influence Members of Congress. Phone calls are the next most effective way. Email is considered to be the least effective way.
Sponsor
Rep Baird, Brian - 3/25/2003 [WA-3]
Cosponsors
Rep Abercrombie, Neil - 3/31/2003 [HI-1]
Rep Blumenauer, Earl - 4/3/2003 [OR-3]
Rep Capps, Lois - 3/25/2003 [CA-23]
Rep Dicks, Norman D. - 3/25/2003 [WA-6]
Rep Dingell, John D. - 4/3/2003 [MI-15]
Rep Dunn, Jennifer - 4/3/2003 [WA-8]
Rep Eshoo, Anna G. - 3/25/2003 [CA-14]
Rep Honda, Michael M. - 3/25/2003 [CA-15]
Rep Inslee, Jay - 3/25/2003 [WA-1]
Rep Larsen, Rick - 3/25/2003 [WA-2]
Rep Lee, Barbara - 4/3/2003 [CA-9]
Rep Lewis, John - 3/25/2003 [GA-5]
Rep McDermott, Jim - 3/25/2003 [WA-7]
Rep Rahall, Nick J., II - 3/31/2003 [WV-3]
Rep Smith, Adam - 3/25/2003 [WA-9]
Rep Wu, David - 3/25/2003 [OR-1]
"Washington Wednesday" Tips:
When communicating with your Members of Congress, always mention respectfully that you will follow up on this matter with them at a later
date. Ask for a written policy statement from your Member of Congress on the particular legislative issue about which you are communicating. These steps will help ensure that Congressional staff will look carefully at the
issue and spend time on it.
Background:
Rachel Corrie was a 23 year-old American college student who was killed by an Israel Defense Forces bulldozer while trying to prevent nonviolently the
demolition of a Palestinian house in the Gaza Strip on March 16.
Rachel was a constituent of Rep. Brian Baird [WA-3], who introduced a resolution in the House calling on the United States "to undertake a full, fair, and expeditious investigation into the death of Rachel Corrie." (full text below.)
Talking Points:
· Rachel Corrie was an American citizen killed by a foreign army and a US investigation is necessary to determine the circumstances of her death and
ensure that this type of incident does not happen again.
· Rachel died trying to protect an innocent family's home from being demolished while engaging in an act of nonviolent civil disobedience. Rep. Jim McDermott stated that Rachel was acting "in the tradition of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King."
Sample Letter
Dear Representative __________,
I urge you to sign on as a cosponsor to H.Con.Res. 111, the Rachel Corrie Resolution. Rachel Corrie was a 23 year-old American college student who was killed by an Israel Defense Forces bulldozer while trying to prevent nonviolently the demolition of a Palestinian house in the Gaza Strip on March 16. Rep. Jim McDermott stated that Rachel was acting "in the tradition of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King."
This resolution calls for a U.S. investigation which is necessary to determine the circumstances of her death and ensure that this type of incident does not happen again.
I look forward to receiving a reply from you and will continue to follow developments regarding this important resolution.
Sincerely,
(Add personal contact information here)
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The US Campaign's Congressional District Coordinators Network
The US Campaign relies on a network of volunteer Congressional District Coordinators (CDCs) to help make these "Washington Wednesdays"
successful. These volunteers serve as the crucial link between the US Campaign on a
national level and the mobilization of local activists on a grassroots level. To date, we have 34 volunteer coordinators in 21 states covering 46
Congressional districts. If somebody from your activist group would like to join this expanding network, please send an email to
congress@endtheoccupation.org
. Our eventual goal is to create a nation-wide network covering all Congressional districts. For more information, please
see:
http://www.endtheoccupation.org/taskforces/legislative/documents/become_a_cdc.html.
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Text of the Rachel Corrie Resolution
H. CON. RES. 111
Expressing sympathy for the loss of Rachel Corrie in the Palestinian village of Rafah in the Gaza Strip on March 16, 2003.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 25, 2003
Mr. BAIRD (for himself, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. INSLEE, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mr. DICKS, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. WU, Mr.
HONDA, Ms. ESHOO, and Mrs. CAPPS) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing sympathy for the loss of Rachel Corrie in the Palestinian village of Rafah in the Gaza Strip on March 16, 2003.
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That Congress--
(1) expresses its sympathy to Craig and Cynthia Corrie and to their extended families, friends, and co-workers for the loss of Rachel Corrie in the
Palestinian village of Rafah in the Gaza Strip on March 16, 2003;
(2) calls on the United States Government to undertake a full, fair, and expeditious investigation into the death of Rachel Corrie; and
(3) encourages the Government of the United States and the Government of Israel to work together to determine all the circumstances that led to this
incident and to ensure that an incident of this kind never occurs again.
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Jewish Groups Call on Congress to Pass Rachel Corrie Bill
http://www.commondreams.org/news2003/0402-04.htm
Pressure Congress to act on the 'Rachel Corrie Resolution'
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article1313.shtml
Amnesty International Condemns Killing of Rachel Corrie -- Group Calls for Investigation, Suspension of Weapons Transfers