Amnesty International USA

(Passed by a vote of 119 in favor and 26 opposed.)

[A] WHEREAS the devastation which followed the United States landfall of Hurricane Katrina was accompanied by widespread human rights violations affecting hundreds of thousands of people;

[B] WHEREAS much of the human suffering which followed hurricane Katrina was caused by the neglect of basic human rights in the United States prior to August 2005;

[C] WHEREAS AIUSA has a specific commitment to expand educational and advocacy work in the area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights;

[D] WHEREAS the absence of widespread AIUSA input on a human rights crisis in this section weakens our growth and effectiveness, especially on Economic Social and Cultural Rights work;

[E] WHEREAS the ongoing challenge of working to eliminate countless human rights violations necessitates specific prioritizing decisions at specific times;

[F] WHEREAS AIUSA has obtained a $200,000 grant for a two-year project, which will cover salary for a full-time organizer and campaigning costs;

[G] THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that AIUSA support the implementation of a three-year educational and advocacy campaign from 2007-2010, the third year conditional on continued funding, on economic, social, and cultural rights, and other human rights issues related to the post-Katrina crisis in Louisiana, Mississippi, and the Gulf South.

[H] BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this work be carried out in the context of the Dignity Campaign;

[I] BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that at the conclusion of this campaign in 2010, a decision be made as to the extension of the campaign depending on the situation in the Gulf Region at that time