Get Involved
"Speak out for those who cannot speak, for the rights of all the destitute. Speak out, judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and the needy."
(Proverbs 31:8-9) NRSV
What is advocacy?
Advocacy is to plead the cause of another together with them or on their behalf for justice — where important political and economic decisions are being made that affect the lives of those who are marginalized.
The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has two primary ways to stay abreast of the issues and provide ways to be involved: The Washington Office and the United Nations Office.
Find out how you can advocate.
10 reasons to oppose criminalization of HIV/AIDS exposure or transmission
Some groups in Africa have begun to advocate for criminalization as a response to women being infected with HIV/AIDS through sexual violence or by partners who do not reveal their HIV diagnoses to them; however, criminalization is unlikely to prevent new infections or reduce women's vulnerability to HIV/AIDS. In fact, it may harm women rather than assist them and have a negative impact on both public health and human rights. Read this article.
Presidential Initiative for the World’s Children launched
Global Action for Children has launched an initiative that calls on the President to name vulnerable children and orphans a top policy priority in 2009. The Presidential Initiative for the World’s Children (PIWC) will:
- Consolidate, coordinate, monitor and evaluate the primary U.S. programs benefitting the most vulnerable children globally under the authority of one high-level ambassador answerable directly to the Secretary of State.
- Maximize taxpayer dollars and the impact through increased coordination and monitoring of current and new foreign aid programs for children.
- Support children in need while strengthening the United States’ image abroad.
- Promote U.S. national security by supporting the world’s most vulnerable.
Learn more about PIWC.
Give to ECO E051674 AIDS Orphan and Vulnerable Children in Africa to assist with the work of PC(USA).
One Campaign (To End Poverty)
ONE Action seeks to raise public awareness about the issues of global poverty, hunger and disease and to ask our leaders to do more to fight these problems in developing countries. ONE Action — with the support of individuals and other advocacy organizations — will advocate for an increase in the United States' federal budget in overseas development assistance, including increased funding for the prevention and treatment of diseases in developing countries, implementation of debt relief for poor countries and promotion of more equitable international trade regimes.
ONE believes that allocating more of the U.S. budget toward providing basic needs like health, education, clean water and food would transform the futures and hopes of an entire generation in the world's poorest countries.
ONE Action will also seek to increase efforts to fight global AIDS and extreme poverty by advocating for legislation on debt cancellation, increasing effective international assistance, making trade fair and fighting corruption.
Jubilee USA Network (Debt Cancellation)
In the world's most impoverished nations, the majority of the populations do not have access to clean water, adequate housing or basic health care. These countries are paying debt service to wealthy nations and institutions at the expense of providing these basic services to their citizens. The United Nations Development Program estimated in 2003 that 30,000 children die each day due to preventable diseases. Debt service payments take resources that impoverished countries could use to cure preventable diseases. Debt cancellation frees up resources to reverse this devastating reality. Learn more.
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