Write to Ambassador Rice

Write a letter from your activist group to Ambassador Susan Rice at the United Nations. Join activist groups from around the country in sending letters; activist leaders in New York City will hand deliver the letters as part of their weekly vigil at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. Email us your letter at sarah@savedarfur.org for it to be delivered in person on April 7. Please see below a suggested format and policy bullets.

H.E. Susan E. Rice, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Permanent U.S. Representative to the United Nations
Press and Public Diplomacy Section
United States Mission to the United Nations
140 East 45th Street
New York, N.Y. 10017

[Date]

Dear Excellency:

Introductory Paragraph: Why are you writing? Why do you care about Darfur? Why are you a voice for Darfur?

Thank You Paragraph: Ambassador Rice has been a strong and important supporter for an end to the Darfur conflict. Please thank her for her support and, specifically, for pushing the UN Security Council to issue a presidential statement calling on the humanitarian aid organizations to be re-admitted into Darfur

Ask Her To Do Everything She Can Paragraph: After thanking her for her steadfast support for ending the conflict in Darfur, please ask her to:

• Lead multilateral efforts to reopen humanitarian access in Darfur and urge the Security Council to prepare stronger options should President Bashir not relent.
• Use American leadership to secure an expansion of the embargo on arms sales to Darfur to cover all sales to the Government of Sudan, thereby eliminating an often-exploited loophole.
• Push the Security Council to impose new, more robust sanctions on members of the Sudanese government and their economic interests if the situation on the ground continues to deteriorate.
• Convey a sense of urgency to Security Council members that anything less than a full Security Council effort which prioritizes the lives of Darfuri civilians above political expediency will severely reduce the credibility of the Council in the eyes of many Americans who would otherwise be inclined to support the Council as a legitimate and necessary forum for multilateral problem solving.

Wrap Up Paragraph: Summarize the different parts of your letter and end with why you are inspired to Act Now for Darfur.

Sincerely,

Signature
Your Name
The Title of Your Organization [For Example, Massachusetts Coalition to Save Darfur]