CURE Activism: Unlock The Prison Of Paralysis

[antiquity]

CURE Activism: Unlock The Prison Of Paralysis

Why Cure Advocacy?

Without activism:

1. The United States would still be under British rule;

2. African Americans would still live in slavery&rsquos chains.

3. Women would not have the right to vote. (Women's Sufferage Movement)

4. People with Disabilities would still be institutionalized. (ADAPT)

Rights and Freedoms are won through activism.

The time is NOW to fight for:

The SCI Bill of Rights

We hold these truths to be self-evident:

1. All humans are created equal and are entitled to certain unalienable Rights, including Life, Liberty, Independence and the pursuit of Happiness;

2. Governments are instituted among humankind to secure these rights, and if they fail, it is the Right of the people to alter or abolish such Governments in order to effect Safety and Happiness;

3. Spinal Cord Injury robs its victims of Liberty and Independence; the Search for a Cure is their Pursuit of Happiness.

CareCure Members - Let Your Voice Be Heard

WE MUST:

1. Deliver the message that SCI can happen to you or a loved one in a heartbeat;

2. Educate the public and our legislators about the desperate need for a cure;

3. Spread the news about the many promising cure therapies that need funding;

4. Work with other organizations to separate fact from fiction in the debate over stem cell therapies

Advocacy efforts that need our support:

Christopher Reeve Paralysis Act Bill
Rally For The Cure
Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research
Become a Stem Cell Research Advocate
Stem Cell Action Network
Student Society for Stem Cell Research
Cures For California
Suppport Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT)
Will Ambler Project
OEG Petition Website
Purchase Cure T-Shirts

Other Foundations & Organizations

Raise funds and awareness for research related to spinal cord injury and other neurological disorders such as those listed below. Links are provided here.

* International Campaign for Cures for SCI Paralysis
Member Organizations
* Australian Spinal Research Trust
* Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation
* French Institute for Spinal Cord Research
(Institute Pour la Recherche sur la Moelle Epinièrè)
* International Spinal Research Trust
* The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis
* Paralyzed Veterans of America
* Rick Hansen Institute
* The Spinal Research Fund of Australia
* Alan T Brown Foundation to Cure Paralysis
* Daniel Heumann Fund for Spinal Cord Research
* The Kevin Kitchnefsky Foundation for Spinal Cord Research
* Mike Utley Foundation
* Paralysis Project of America
* Spinal Cord Society
* The Myelin Project
* Quest for CURE

Advocacy methods that work - ways that we can make a difference:

1. Send faxes, e-mails or make phone calls to your state or federal representatives; ask them to support pending legislation or initiatives that support the cure.

2. Meet directly with legislators to persuade them to sponsor and/or pass bills.

3. Get involved in or initiate your own petition/signature drive; these require the collection of a specific number of signatures to get a bill on a ballot.

4. Public awareness campaigns; get involved in walkathons, hand out flyers, purchase clothing, bumper stickers, business cards, create websites, etc., whatever it takes to get the message out there and/or get media attention.

5. Submit opinion editorials to your local newspaper to express your views regarding policy decisions that affect SCI research.

6. Make a tax deductable donation or start a community fundraiser to support a SCI research oriented organization or foundation.

Contact Your Representatives

Thanks to Jim, Faye, Suzanne, Masmith, Debbie7, Tom Pierce, MK99 and others for bringing this topic together.

[This message was edited by seneca on 05-04-04 at 11:00 AM.]

[Christopher Paddon]

"1. The United States would still be under British rule"

I don't understand why this is such a big deal - you'd have Tony Blair telling you what to do instead of George Bush - 6 of one, half a dozen of the other LOL

[Faye]

First International Stem Cell Action Conference, June 5-6, Berkeley, CA:
CC MEMBERS are INVITED

Be part of an event to "SHOW OUR NUMBERS"!!!! Please try to attend the Stem Cell Action Conference being held in Berkley CA., June 5-6.


The Stem Cell Action conference is NOT a fundraiser but a Powerful Advocacy conference with the goal of promoting therapeutic cloning and ensuring the UN does not ban this promising field of regenerative medicine.

www.stemcellaction.org

"Together we stand, divided we fall..."

[Curt Leatherbee]

Great post Seneca. We not only have to do this for ourselves, but for the future generations that will be SCI.

[Faye]

Here is another one to be added to the list at some point, Seneca:

www.stemcellrsch.org, Student Society for Stem Cell Research

SSSCR is poised to become a major player consisting of students affecting stem cell research policy for several reasons:

1. We specifically address stem cell research with clarity of focus as our single issue.

2. SSSCR promotes and engages in advocacy and involvement with stakeholders. SPUSA on the other hand specifically does not promote advocacy but instead diversity of opinion through thought and discussion. Well talk is o.k. but not for SSSCR we believe in action and want to affect public policy with a specific position to promote.

3. The SSSCR spirit is dedicated to the patients we believe stem cell research will cure, thus we are proud to build ourselves around patient advocacy and patient unification, ie SCAN membership and local patient support group involvement.

4. SSSCR aims to be a major educational resource from policy to research in the field by postings of current news and leading scientific journal articles on its website.
With this said the SPUSA org is a good model to look at and to take notice of some solid features. They started at five universities. They are located in some fine institutions. They have strong leadership. They get Foundation support.

SSSCR is new and developing, but please visit our website http://www.stemcellrsch.org.

"Together we stand, divided we fall..."

[Faye]

Seneca, here is a third one to be added to our list:


Become a Stem Cell Advocate link from www.results-for-america.com

http://www.resultsforamerica.org/

Ensure the Government Supports Stem Cell Research!
When will we find cures to cancer, heart disease, and Alzheimer's?

Stem cell research holds enormous promise for curing disease, but our current federal policies are curtailing our ability to move forward with this research.

Stem cells, which have the capacity to reproduce themselves and to differentiate into different types of tissues, may be the "missing link" that helps us find cures to:

Cancer
Alzheimer's disease
AIDS
Diabetes

It's time to support more breakthrough medical research. You can make a difference...if your voice is heard. To ensure our government supports stem cell research, simply complete the form to your right.

"Together we stand, divided we fall..."

[This message was edited by Faye on 05-08-04 at 11:23 PM.]

[teesieme]

It is very late and am too tired to read details at this time, but one thing I have thought about lately in the realm of Cure Advocacy and Stem Cells is the fact that it seems there are so very many people who are not aware of the fact that there are many different kinds and areas stem cells are taken from, so many have been led or left to believe it is just involving an embryo~
I would advocate the differences of, with more detail, in this area.

[Faye]

Here is a statement from the Association of American Colleges:

Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (Therapeutic Cloning)

Cloning is the creation of multiple copies of a single molecule, cell, or virus. There are many different kinds of cloning, most of which are now commonplace in science. Cloning has allowed scientists to develop powerful new drugs and to produce insulin and useful bacteria in the lab. It also allows researchers to track the origins of biological weapons, catch criminals and free innocent people, and produce new plants and livestock to feed an undernourished world population.

Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT) or therapeutic cloning involves removing the nucleus of an unfertilized egg cell, replacing it with the material from the nucleus of a "somatic cell" (a skin, heart, or nerve cell, for example), and stimulating this cell to begin dividing. Once the cell begins dividing, stem cells can be extracted 5-6 days later and used for research. The AAMC supports on-going research into SCNT and has endorsed legislation that would allow such research to flourish.

Reproductive cloning, on the other hand, is intended to create human beings by cloning human embryos. The AAMC and the National Academy of Sciences recommends a legally enforceable ban on all forms of this type of cloning.

"Together we stand, divided we fall..."

[Faye]

Support grows with more information. Support for embryonic stem cell research increases 13 percentage points to 66 percent when people are
informed that couples are donating unwanted embryos that otherwise would be discarded. After hearing a more detailed description of embryonic stem cell research and the diseases it can help cure, support grows even more. Overall, three in four (76 percent) voters support stem cell research after hearing the following description: "Embryonic stem cells are special cells that can develop into every type of cell in the human body. The stem cells are extracted from frozen embryos in fertility clinics, donated by couples who no longer want or need the embryo. This process destroys the embryo. These stem cells can then reproduce on their own, creating what is called a 'line' of stem cells that many
researchers can work with. Scientists believe that there is a good chance that stem cells can be developed into cures or treatments for
diseases such as cancer, Parkinson's ,Alzheimer's, juvenile diabetes,
and spinal cord injuries."

Source

"Together we stand, divided we fall..."

[Faye]

Cure Advocacy supports promising therapies including:
- Therapeutic cloning
- Olfactory Ensheathing glia cells
- Umbilical cord blood
- Bone marrow

Source: Cure Advocacy brochure

"Together we stand, divided we fall..."