[Sfbay-video] SF/Oak Hurricane Relief Caravan Needs You

[Crescent Diamond]

This is a letter from a friend who is helping to organize a caravan to the
Gulf Coast in two weeks.  They are looking for volunteers to come with them
who have medical skills, legal skills, media skills and carpentry skills.
Here is a list of the kinds of items they need:

-Tents (Do you have a huge dome sitting in your garage?)
-Medical supplies
-Laptop
-Biodiesel or Diesel
-Radios
-Internet/Radio/Video equipment

Please forward this email far and wide.


Hello Friends,
I'm writing to you tonight because we seek your help with our urgent
Hurricane relief project, the Counter Current Coalition (www.c3relief.org).
CCC includes 5 Bay Area arts and activist organizations. And on behalf of
Gulf Coast Hurricane survivors in need, we now call out for your help.

We are bringing a supply and highly skilled volunteer and veggie-oil powered
bus caravan to the hardest hit areas of Louisiana and Mississippi to work in
solidarity with grassroots community leaders and Hurricane survivors.

This is a direct action relief mission and we need your support. We are in
communication with and will work with many of the groups already there such
as Common Ground, the New Waveland Cafe, Community Labor United, the
People's Hurricane Relief and Reconstruction Project, and the Houma Nation.
But we need support from you, to ensure a successful mission.

Our main focus is to strengthen and further current grassroots movement in
The South East. Many people have not been reached by any of the large aid
organizations. Our contacts from the United Houma Nation said that they
have a devastated Reservation, that there are 7,000 Native people in need
and have basically been ignored by FEMA and big name aid orgs. And this is a
common story.

For these communities we will provide a kitchen, 7,000 pounds of food, tank
after tank of propane, establish communication centers (computers, VoIP
phones, wi-fi internet, radio capabilities), do social outreach (music, art
activities). We will lead skill-share based appropriate technology and
rebuilding workshops (home fixing, building rocket stoves, and off the grid
technology). We aim to bring a fully stocked tool lending library. In
addition, we will use our buses for supply runs and to transport people back
to their former homes.

We call on you to support Counter Current in bringing direct aid to these
survivors. We have basically 3 weeks to raise $20,000 in donations and
supplies. We leave October 21st but will accept cash donations through
November.

How You Can Help:
.	Make a Donation:
We need funds to purchase large quantities of bulk food, diesel (because
There will be little veggie grease in these areas), propane to use in our
public kitchens, tools and medical and hygiene supplies.

We ask supporters to make a $20, $50, $100 or greater donation to this
cause. No amount is too large or too small and all donations are tax
deductible under our 501(c)3 sponsor.
.	Host a benefit (dinner, show, dance party, etc.) at your space or
home
.	Donate medical or hygiene supplies, tools, temporary
structures/camping
Gear (see our website for specific items)
We have 5 donation stations: Mama Buzz, New College, Cell Space.
Shade structures, like items can be brought to the Noodle Factory.


We truly appreciate any type of support you, your arts collective, your
collective house, your business, local union or activist group can muster.
This is grassroots. And as we all know, grassroots is many common folks
coming together resulting in significant change. Please help us make this
change and assist survivors in filling more than just their basic needs.

By focusing on a holistic community-empowerment ideology, we will offer
these communities tools and resources they need to self-directedly build
towards a sustainable future. And help them to project a global voice and
most importantly, hold ground.

Please check out our website and follow our progress, www.c3relief.org
Donations can be made to our fiscal sponsor, Media Island International
(Counter Current in the memo) and mailed to 2422 13th Ave, Oakland, CA
94606.
Soon you will be able to donate through our website as well
www.c3relief.org.
You can also email relief at spaz.org, or call anytime, 510.343.4701.

Also check out the interview we did Thursday night (10/13/05) on Indymedia's
Enemy Combatant radio, http://www.enemycombatantradio.net/ It's listed as
Diamond Dave's Thirteenth Shows.

Thank you for hanging on through this long email! Feel free to email me as
well at meghan at c3relief.org. And there are more ways people can help
listed at the bottom of this email.

Please let us know how you can help.

In Solidarity,

Meghan McDonough
Counter Current Coalition
www.c3relief.org
510.343.4701