Amnesty International
Missouri State University Chapter
Missouri State University’s Chapter of Amnesty
2007-2008
MEETINGS:
Tuesdays 7:00 P.M.
PSU 312C*
*Except the month of September. On 4 and 11 September, we will meet in 315A.
On 18 and 25 September, we will meet in 309.
OFFICERS:
President- Dana Sitterson
904-315-2036
What does MSU’s Amnesty Chapter Do?
• Hold weekly meetings where we discuss current human rights abuses, plan events, and write letters to free prisoners of conscience.
• Petition for people experiencing some form of injustice related to human rights.
• Attend or host candle light vigils for those being wrongfully executed.
• Host Poetry Readings.
• Host movies with a human rights theme.
• Host concerts with a meaning.
• Attend Regional Conferences in the Midwest in locations such as St. Louis, Minneapolis, and Cincinnati.
What is Amnesty?
“Amnesty International (AI) is a worldwide, voluntary movement of people who campaign for human rights. Our vision is of a world in which every person enjoys all the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international standards.
“More than 1.8 million Amnesty International members worldwide are leading the struggle to defend human rights and save lives. Members in more than 150 countries create public pressure to stop human rights abuses by organizing campaigns on specific issues and developing programs of action for specific countries. By writing letters, lobbying government officials, publicizing abuses and organizing events, AI members are actively fighting for human rights. Nearly 350,000 of the worldwide members are in the U.S..”
Amnesty is “independent of any government, political ideology, or religious creed. It does not support or oppose any government or political system, or the political opinions of the victims whose rights it seeks to protect. AI is concerned solely with the protection of human rights in each case, regardless of the ideology of the government, opposition forces, or the individual's beliefs.
“AI unconditionally opposes the death penalty on the grounds that an execution is a cruel, inhuman and degrading form of punishment that violates international human rights standards. The application of the death penalty is arbitrary and unfair, and it is applied in a discriminatory manner against the poor or against racial or ethnic minorities. Furthermore, the chance of executing an innocent person is too high. Since 1973 in the U.S., more than 100 people have been released from death row after they were found to be innocent.”
from Amnesty International USA’s website
Write a letter, save a life.