MEET SOME CAMPAIGNERS
Arms Campaign
Julie Green from Belfast
Shop Manager, Oxfam Castle Street Shop
Why did you decide to get involved with Oxfam Ireland?
There were many reasons. I wanted to have a part in
making a difference to peoples lives, I could not sit back
and read the newspaper articles anymore and know that I
was not doing anything to help.
What campaigns have you been involved in and why?
All the campaigns that Oxfam Ireland get involved in are
important, but one of the most popular was the Make
Poverty History campaign in 2005. It was one of the first
campaigns that I got involved in with Oxfam. On a shop
level we tried to raise our customers awareness of the
campaign. MPH was special to me because everyone has
the right to a life without poverty, an obscene number of
people die every year (50,000 die every day, the maths is
frightening), because they are trying to live on only $1 a
day, in our rich western world that is around the same
price as a bar of chocolate, imagine trying to feed your
family in those conditions.
What sort of things have you done campaigning wise
(in shop)?
For the duration of the annual Fairtrade fortnight we
have samples of a variety of Fairtrade goods on offer.
Although we are really busy, we try to keep customers up
to date with issues by means of our 'campaign wall', and
try to make an impact on passers-by, by using our
windows as a campaigning tool, on the three Make
Poverty History days the windows were covered in white
bands that incorporated text to highlight points of the
campaign.
Why do you think campaigning is important?
You may think that one person cannot make a difference,
but when we all get together we can practically move
mountains, we have the power to make politician listen
to us, get them to change trade laws and legislations.
Together we can get the coco grower in Tanzania a fair
price for his crops, enabling him to improve the lives of
his family and the other members in his village, we can
get the politicians to make it harder for guns to be sold
to countries in civil war and turmoil, thus helping saving
lives. Every single one of us makes a difference, all us
little people added up to 18 million people joining the
Big Noise petition (Make Trade Fair), together we all
really do make a big noise.
Orla Price
from County Dublin
Orla Price is only 15 years old but already has a thirst for campaigning. Orla first got in touch with us after picking up a Campaigner at her local Oxfam shop. She was inspired by some of the articles in the newsletter and asked us if she could do anything to help Oxfam's work. Since this first contact Orla has been busy getting her school involved in Oxfam campaigns. She has looked into turning the school tuck-shop fair-trade and recently sent in this photograph (left) showing some of her friends getting behind the Control Arms campaign. Well done Orla!
