It's that time again...

That wondrous time when you drop four digits on text books, school fees, and the like; when freshmen roam campus with that lost/scared/excited look on their face; when you check OASIS every hour to see if that class you want has opened up; when you throw everything in the car and make the long (or short) trip back to Athens.

So here's a list of things you can do to make yourself feel better about the coming school year:

1. Well, ok, I can't think of anything to make you feel better about how much school fees are, but;
2. When you see that terrified freshman, invite them to IC. It's a great way to get involved and meet people.
3. All of that time on OASIS? Well, if you're going to spend that mad money on attending here, you may as well take a class you like, right?
4. As you pack up to come back to school, remember to bring your totally awesome Invisible Children shirts to look cool and promote the club at the same time.

And if you're still not excited, then just think of all the good you can be doing when you get back up here! The LRA Disarmament Bill is being debated in Congress right now! (By the way, if you wanted to write a letter to your representatives and senators, this would be a great time to do it.) And if you missed Lobby Days, like I did, you can catch up by reading former-fearless-leader Meredith's blog post from the event. And while you're there, you can read up about what she did in Uganda.

See you soon.

Shalom,
Drew

Chicago Rescued

Chicago has been rescued by none other than the queen of media herself, Oprah Winfrey.

They'll be on the show today.

Chicago

Gavin DeGraw rescued Richmond, VA, which means that Chicago is the only city left.

Two Cities Left

There are only two cities left to be rescued: Chicago, IL and Richmond, VA.

They've been at it for nearly four days now.

Head on over to the White House website and send President Obama a message encouraging him to rescue these cities.

And be sure to stop by the Rescue "Night Of" site to check for updates.

Shalom,
Drew

Rep. John Lewis Arrested

If you were at The Rescue on Saturday, you probably saw John Lewis, the congressional representative for Atlanta's fifth district.

Well, his support of peace in the African Great Lakes region didn't stop there.

Rep. Lewis and five other members of Congress were arrested during a protest in support of the Save Darfur Coalition. In a bold act of civil disobedience, the congressmen crossed a police line at the Sudanese embassy and refused to move.

Link.

Shalom,
Drew

We Are Rescued!

Congratulations, everyone! Atlanta got rescued! Jeff Foxworthy showed up, with a letter from the governor in hand. Senator Isakson sent an aide to read an official statement. Fox 5 covered the event. And Representative John Lewis (no relation to your less famous author) flew down from Washington to see us.

To everyone who made calls and wrote letters, thank you.

To those who went to help set up, thank you.

To those who went to abduct themselves, thank you.

And to Caitlin, who's hard work and dedication got everything done, thank you.

What a great way to end the year.

And now, just because I can, for something completely different:


Shalom,
Drew

The Rescue, Part Zwei (Which is German for "Two")

The Rescue is in less than a week!

Which means that you should have started writing letters. You can find a sample letter on the official Rescue website. Or, I'll post the letter I sent out to our local politicians (see below).

If you're interested in attending the Rescue with us, you need to stop by the meeting tomorrow so we can put together driving lists.

If you want to volunteer, see Caitlin.

And if you want to see Josh being awesome, you should check out the video of him winking at President Adams.

Finally, here's the official IC video containing last-minute details on the Rescue.

The Rescue Instructional Video from Jason Russell on Vimeo.

See you tomorrow!

***

Sample letter (written by your humble blogger):

Dear Person X,

For more than two decades, Joseph Kony has waged a war against the people of northern Uganda, abducting children and forcing them to fight his battles. He has taken the fighting into the Democratic Republic of Congo, where it grows bloodier with each passing day.

It wasn't until three college students from California visited the region in 2003 that the majority of the world became aware of this problem. Six years later, Invisible Children has worked tirelessly to motivate Generation Y to wake up, pay attention, and change the world.

Come April 25, that is exactly what we will do.

Many of us are younger than the war in Uganda, but believe we have the power to bring it to an end.

But we need your help.

It is only through political and media attention that this can be done.

In 100 cities around the world, children, many of whom have never been to Uganda or the Congo, will be abducting themselves and waiting for YOU to come rescue us.

I ask that you come to our rescue.

We will be waiting at Grant Park in Atlanta on April 25th at 3 pm.

(Your name goes here).
Invisible Children United, UGA

***

Shalom,
Drew