Was surfing the net earlier today and came across this image on the Organizing for America blog. Organizing for America succeeds Obama for America, which helped elect the 44th president.
Honoring King by helping Haiti 01/15/2010
“Happy birthday, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. What are you doing to honor his memory?” was a friend’s Facebook status update I saw earlier this morning.
Today is the birthday of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Monday is the official holiday in honor of the slain civil rights leader whose pastorates included Atlanta’s historic Ebenezer Baptist Church. Text, audio and video of King’s most famous speech.
This year’s observance will mark King’s 81st birthday and the 24th anniversary of the national holiday, which is celebrated in some form in more than 100 countries, according to the King Center in Atlanta.
“The greatest birthday gift my husband could receive is if people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds celebrated the holiday by performing individual acts of kindness through service to others,” Coretta Scott King, who died in 2006, said in a message posted on the King Center Web site.
Last year, on the eve of his inauguration, President Barack Obama recognized the holiday as a national day of community service, encouraging Americans to serve then and make an ongoing commitment to service. The call for service persists. One of the best ways to honor King’s quest for justice this year is to help earthquake-shattered Haiti.
On Tuesday, a magnitude 7.0 quake struck 10 miles outside the capital city. The temblor devastated Port-au-Prince with collapsed buildings and people trapped beneath the rubble. The Red Cross estimates 45,000-50,000 died, but an official death toll isn’t available. Full reports of need and damage assessments are also unavailable. A list of aid groups working on the ground to provide medical care, access to safe water, shelter, energy supplies. Also, guidelines on how to help Haiti are available by visiting the Center for International Disaster Information and more information is available at InterAction, a coalition of U.S.-based international nongovernmental organizations serving poor and vulnerable people around the world.
“Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, ‘We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.’ As we prepare to honor Dr. King by serving on his holiday, let’s take those words to heart, and support the people of Haiti in this time of great need,” Nicola Goren, acting chief executive officer for the Corporation for National and Community Service, said in a message posted online Thursday. The Corporation for National and Community Service is coordinating with the State Department, USAID, FEMA, and other agencies as the United States responds to the crisis.
Right now, the Caribbean nation needs immediate assistance, but the quake also forces a re-evaluation of policies allowing many countries to abandon it.
Obama Promises $100 Million in Quake Relief 01/14/2010
The United States is investing $100 million to help earthquake-shattered Haiti, President Barack Obama said Thursday morning as he gave an update about relief efforts.
“This will mean more of the life-saving equipment, food, water and medicine that will be needed. This investment will grow over the coming year as we embark on the long-term recovery from this unimaginable tragedy,” Obama said.
On Tuesday, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake devastated the Caribbean nation. The Haitian Red Cross estimates 45,000 to 50,000 died because of the temblor, the region’s largest on record.
Armed forces from the United States are on their way to join rescue teams and aid organizations in the ravaged capital city Port-au-Prince. The quake was also felt in neighboring Dominican Republic.
“To the people of Haiti, you will not be forsaken. You will not be forgotten,” the Obama said.
To inquire about family in Haiti, call 888-407-4747.
Turkey Pardoning at the White House 11/26/2009
During the ceremony Wednesday, the president acknowledged that despite having reasons to be thankful, many families, this year, are also hurting financially.
“There’s no question this has been a tough year for America,” he said. “We’re at war. Our economy is emerging from an extraordinary recession into recovery. But there’s a long way to go and a lot of work to do.”
In an era of “new perils and new hardships,” Obama said Americans are “a people of endless compassion, boundless ingenuity, limitless strength. We’re the heirs to a hard-earned history and stewards of a land of God-given beauty. We are Americans. And for all this, we give our humble thanks — to our predecessors, to one another, and to God.”
