[stop-imf] FW: [jubilee-usa-net] Ask Your Rep. to Co-Sponsor the JUBILEE Act!

[robert.weissman@essentialinformation.org]

Jubilee USA Network
Countdown to Freedom from Debt Campaign
July 15, 2004

Greetings, Jubilee supporters! Congratulations! Together, we sent more than
640 fax messages to the US Treasury Department yesterday calling on Treasur=
y
Secretary John Snow and Undersecretary John Taylor to support 100% debt
cancellation for impoverished countries. Thanks for your great efforts.

We have more great news =96 groundbreaking new legislation, the JUBILEE Act=
,
has been introduced into the US House of Representatives. We need your help
to move this important bill forward. Please call your Member of Congress an=
d
ask them to co-sponsor the JUBILEE Act.

Apologies for another request so soon =96 but we want to act fast, before
Congress leaves for recess on July 23rd... so we have moved up this action
from its original date of July 26th in the Countdown. ** Please call on
Friday July 16 and the week of July 19-23 for most impact, though you can
call throughout July and August. **

Read on for all the details on the Jubilee Act, and see www.jubileeusa.org
for talking points, and much  more! And please send any replies/questions t=
o
Marie Clarke at marie@jubileeusa.org or Lisa Vu at lisa@jubileeusa.org as I
will be away from e-mail for the next week.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Action Alert: Ask Your Member  of Congress to Co-Sponsor the JUBILEE Act

"Should gold sit wherever the IMF keeps it? Or should the money that that
gold represents be used to alleviate some of the most desperate poverty in
the world. I don=92t know how anybody can think that=92s a hard question,"
=96    Representative Barney Frank (D-Massachusetts), speaking about  the
JUBILEE Act, announcing the bill=92s introduction on June 3, 2004

"It=92s the right thing to do for us. It=92s the right thing to do for the
countries that are heavily indebted. For us it=92s a good thing because it
makes the world safer. It makes the world more stable. And it is the right
thing to do for growing democracies because the greatest threat, I think, t=
o
democracy and freedoms is poverty."
-- Representative Spencer Bachus (R-Alabama), June 3, 2004

Summary of Requested Action: Call your Member of Congress and ask him/her t=
o
co-sponsor the JUBILEE Act (HR 4793), which calls on the IMF, World Bank,
and regional development banks to cancel 100 percent of the debt for 50
impoverished countries. You can reach your Representative via the Capitol
Switchboard at 202-224-3121. You can also get their phone number from the
web  via www.house.gov.!

We need to get dozens of additional Congressional co-sponsors to join the 6
initial co-sponsors listed above! For the remainder of July, our strategy i=
s
to focus on encouraging Republicans to co-sponsor the bill, to ensure that
the bill maintains a bipartisan balance. When making calls, mention to your
member of Congress that Representatives Bachus (R-AL) and Leach (R-IA) are
initial co-sponsors, which may influence him or her to support the JUBILEE
Act. Though we especially want to outreach to Republicans at this time,
please feel free to ask your Democratic member to co-sponsor as well.

We need a strong bipartisan list of co-sponsors to build up the support for
this bill and to help to educate Congressional staff and members about debt
cancellation. The more co-sponsors we have, the more likely the bill will b=
e
able to move through committee this year!

Please call your Representative and/or a Republican on the target list at
www.jubileeusa.org today and ask them to co-sponsor the JUBILEE Act, H.R.
4793. When you call, ask to speak with the legislative aide who works on
international debt, or IMF and World Bank issues. For talking points to use
when calling, see the Jubilee USA website. To co-sponsor the bill the staff
should call Kathleen Sengstock in Representative Maxine Waters=92 office at
(202) 225-2201. If your Representative has already co-sponsored the bill,
please call to thank them. For more information, feel free to contact Marie
Clarke at 202-783-0215 or email marie@jubileeusa.org.



Find all the resources you need to call today online at www.jubileeusa.org
including:

* A summary of and talking points on the JUBILEE Act
* Frequently Asked Questions about the JUBILEE Act
* A copy of the actual bill HR 4793 in PDF format
* A target list of Members
* Some recent press coverage of the JUBILEE Act
* The press release announcing the legislation
* Quotes from Members of Congress who support the bill
* Links to Educational Resources and more on debt!

These resources are at:
http://www.jubileeusa.org/jubilee.cgi?path=3D/take_action&page=3Daction0726=
04.ht
ml

Remember, please send any replies/questions to Marie Clarke at
marie@jubileeusa.org or Lisa Vu at lisa@jubileeusa.org as I will be away
from e-mail for the next week.


Neil Watkins
Outreach and Communications Coordinator
Jubilee USA Network
(202) 783-0129
www.jubileeusa.org

** Join Jubilee USA Network's once monthly news/action email list - go to
http://www.stfrancisa2.com/jubileesignup.htm to sign up! **