We have less than four hours to win this round of America’s Giving Challenge. It is still possible for us to win if you make a small donation right here.

So far, with 46 donors (and over $1500 raised) it is has been amazing - however,
we are still in eleventh place. We have until 3 pm EST today to change that. Let me emphasize a few things:

1- Every donation counts. Winning this contest is not about the amount that we raise, but the amount of people that donate. So a ten dollar donation goes a long way.

2- Though the group that’s in first place has 423 donors, this message is being sent to thousands of you. With your help we could still win. The donation has to be made through this Facebook cause and you have the option to tell 150 Facebook friends about it!

3- Send an email to your friends and family (even people who haven’t read Harry Potter) with this letter that you can edit to describe what the HPA means to you!

Winning may seem like a long shot, but we are based off of a book series whose heroes have pulled off far greater long shots than that.

Please donate right now and help support one of the most innovative causes in the world, the Harry Potter Alliance continue to do the amazing work that we are all a part of.

Andrew Slack

Karen wrote a template for you to send out to ask friends and family to support the HPA in America’s Giving Challenge. Feel free to edit it and send it out to everyone you know!

The things that are bolded are the things that you should change before you send it out.

Dear ___________,

I am emailing to ask for your support of an organization I work with called The Harry Potter Alliance. They are in a competition called America’s Giving Challenge to win 1,000 dollars, and all they need is as many people as possible to make $10 donations before tomorrow (Thursday) at 3pm EST.

The HPA is an organization that works for social change by comparing the Harry Potter series to the real world. In the past, they’ve worked on issues like Darfur, Media Reform, Improving Literacy, and Gay Rights. I’ve been a part of the Harry Potter Alliance for ___(how long), and I love how they are able to use Harry Potter (which you know I love!) and link it to so many important issues. The best part is that through my participation, I’ve been able to help them on campaigns where they have raised over 14,000 dollars that has protected thousands of civilians in Darfur and Burma, collected over 14,000 for Rwandan orphans and local communities worldwide, and tons of other projects. (Add more about what you’ve done specifically here!)

The competition is only one day, and so it’s really important that we can all help by donating ten dollars. It would mean so much to me if you could take part in helping the Harry Potter Alliance continue to do such amazing work! You can donate through their Facebook Cause right here: http://apps.facebook.com/causes/273865

Thanks so much, and please let me know if you have any questions about the HPA or my involvement with them!

Sincerely/Love/See you Soon/(appropriate closing),

Your Name

The HPA has entered a contest that lasts 24 hours. Can you help us win?

America’s Giving Challenge gives $1000 to the organization that can get the most amount of people to give in a single day. The minimum donation is 10 dollars and it has to be given through this Facebook cause: http://apps.facebook.com/causes/273865.

Plus, if you donate today Oct 28 or Oct 29 before 3 pm EST, by helping this Dumbledore’s Army for the real world, we’ll send you a certificate designed by Frak of Pottercast putting you in the HPA’s Order of Merlin, First Class!

We have 24 hours (3pm EST Wed to 3pm EST Thursday) to get approximately 400 people to give ten dollars (or more) through this Facebook Cause! Imagine if you helped us do it. Can you?

There are thousands of us who believe in the HPA’s work for marriage equality, Magical Acts of Kindness, working for human rights, raising over 14,000 books, and more! Become one of the 400 we need in one day!

If you believe in what we are doing, and believe that blending the arts, literature, pop culture, and social change is something this world needs, while making the magic of Harry Potter real for so many of us - then please join us in this special 24 hours through making a ten dollar donation to show your love and support of the HPA.

Thank you so much and we hope you can join us on livestream.com/pottercast at 8:30 pm EST tonight as well!

The Weapon We Have Is Love!,

Andrew Slack

Wrock 4 Equality has so far achieved the extraordinary and we will continue until election day this coming Tuesday November 3, 2009! But let’s take a look at what we achieved so far.

Each person involved did the extraordinary and the effects of that were felt all over the world.

It has inspired people across the entire globe. People in Maine were blown away. Our collective work as a community could be the thing that makes all of the difference in this election. I still feel on such a high - just on such a high and so in awe of all that this community has done.

So let me break it down for you, with my favorite thing being the last one:

• The evening show included featured speaker, state Representative Andy O’Brien co-author of the Marriage Equality Bill

• While Mass Equality has been averaging 2000 calls to Maine each week (far exceeding their goal of 1500
calls a month), the HPA increased their daily average by over 1200% by making 3597 phone calls in
one day with more callers than they have ever had before!

• At the same time that calls were being made, HPA members throughout New England canvassed in the middle of the pouring rain, knocking on close to 700 doors, reminding people to vote No On Proposition One, and even collecting about 30 absentee ballots so that Maine residents would vote early against Prop One.

• Harry Potter film star Evanna Lynch stood amongst many leaders of the Harry Potter fan community including Harry and the Potters, Draco and the Malfoys, and the Moaning Myrtles for a livestream call about Proposition One with over 2500 people tuning in from all over the world

• Wrock 4 Equality has received great press from local papers in Maine, the Wall Street Journal’s blog, and both hipster and LGBT publications across the country.

• And now for my favorite one. An LGBT activist wrote us the following:

“I wanted to say thank you. I’m a Mainer, I’m gay, I want to get married in Maine and I want to start my family in Maine. So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you. I really appreciate all the work everyone in the HPA did to organize and make all of those calls. I was canvassing in Maine on Saturday and when I got back to the office and Andi told me how many calls you’d made it was like I’d had the best dinner of my life and someone surprised me with my favorite dessert. And, you all have definitely made a difference. Whether we win this election or the next one, you will have helped. Thanks again to everyone in the Harry Potter Alliance.”

It’s those kinds of things that are truly medicine for the heart and a reminder of what it is and who it is that we are fighting for. Thank you for fighting alongside this Dumbledore’s Army for the real world to make sure that our love is spread throughout this world and truly transforms and uplifts the human spirit.

I am so floored by what happened two days ago, on Saturday October 24 2009: Wrock 4 Equality. I will have more to say on this, and urge you to read Tita’s recent blog post

But for now, here are the final results of the House Cup (with more to say on this very soon!):

4- Slytherin: 3480 points
3- Hufflepuff: 7005
2- Ravenclaw: 7 520
1- Gryffindor: 10 350 points

Congratulations Gryffindor! And to all of the Houses for doing an AMAZING job! More soon! Especially that we’re not done yet with our campaign to call more voters in Maine!

For a few days, I have been playing with blog ideas in my head. I was asking myself how I could write about Same-Sex marriage, Prop 1 in Maine, Prop 8 in California, and the fact that even though I am married, I still feel like my union is not the same as other people’s.

And then yesterday happened; Wrock 4 Equality completely blew my mind. Every time I think the Harry Potter Alliance and the fandom can not get any more awesome, they surprise me with campaigns like this one. All the hard work everyone has put in until now means so much for me on such a personal level. Read the rest of this entry »

I was just in the middle of phone banking tonight through callforequality.org - just started, and I was nervous. At first I thought I didn’t know how to work the system - but Mass Equality’s Andi Wheeler guided me through it and it’s easy (tomorrow Andi can help guide you - as can our prefects, at any time Then I started making calls (something I hope everyone on here can do tomorrow as part of our Wrock 4 Equality! :-)). Let me talk about how this went for me - to remind you to go in there bold and not to get discouaraged!!!

FIRST FEW CALLS
Read the rest of this entry »

Check it out here! Please read it, retweet it, digg it, and email it all over the darn place!

Also, while we’re at it, check out the following:

Awesome News Story.

Dumbledore would be proud. And here, here, here, LGBT web site says: this is just too cool not to pass along”, here, people’s vlogs about Wrock 4 Equality!, here, imbd: cool!, here, uh…buried in a blog post about the Daily Show’s John Oliver :-), Magically Prolific concerning HATP in Hipster Please.

And of course, let’s not forget these!

Join us LIVE with Evanna Lynch (Luna Lovegood in the films), Paul DeGeorge (Harry and the Potters), Lauren Fairweather (the Moaning Myrtles), and Brian Ross (Draco and the Malfoys) for the HPA’s Wrock 4 Equality!

The LIVE call is today October 18, 2009 at 3 pm EST and you can listen in at livestream.com/pottercast - this is a new site for us that we are sharing with our friends at the Leaky Cauldron. Please create a free account at livestream.com so you can live chat during the call.

Wrock 4 Equality has already been covered by the Wall Street Journal and more, as the world watches us take on Maine’s Proposition One in the name of marriage equality!

While the actual worldwide event takes place on Saturday, October 24, today’s call will be fun, inspiring, and super-informative in helping you get prepared to call Maine voters and Wrock 4 Equality!

See you today right here at 3 pm EST!