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“The Hunger Games fans join Oxfam America, Harry Potter Alliance to say: “Hunger is Not a Game”

Posted Tuesday, March 20th, 2012 - Comments Off on “The Hunger Games fans join Oxfam America, Harry Potter Alliance to say: “Hunger is Not a Game”
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Groups mark movie opening with campaign to fight hunger

March 20, 2012 — This week, hundreds of young volunteers will set up shop at movie theatres across America to bring fans of the highly anticipated film The Hunger Games on-board a new campaign to fight hunger. The “Hunger is Not a Game” campaign is sponsored by the Harry Potter Alliance, an organization that uses the power of story to inspire fans to work for social change. The campaign will gather support for international relief and development organization Oxfam’s GROW campaign to ensure everyone has enough to eat now and in the future.

“We are honored to have the support of the Harry Potter Alliance and excited to reach a new audience of young people who are energetic and engaged in the fight against hunger and injustice,” said Vicky Rateau, Campaign Manager for Oxfam’s GROW Campaign. “If we can channel even a fraction of the excitement and enthusiasm about the launch of The Hunger Games towards support for practical and concrete steps to tackle hunger, great things are possible.”

“Working with Oxfam is a fantastic opportunity to reach an even wider audience and partner with an organization that truly understands the challenges surrounding hunger across the globe,” said Andrew Slack, Executive Director of the Harry Potter Alliance. “The GROW campaign gives our members a chance to really make a difference in their communities by putting emphasis on an issue that can effect anyone from their neighbor down the street to a child tens of thousands of miles away.”

Supporters of the Harry Potter Alliance will kick-off the partnership by gathering signatures for the GROW campaign’s petition to reform food aid in the US Farm Bill. Volunteers will attend hundreds of screenings of The Hunger Games across the country. Using the hashtag #notagame, the groups will engage supporters online with a broad social media campaign to raise awareness and gather pledges of support for the GROW campaign’s agenda. At the movie releases HPA members will build support for the GROW campaign and collect food for food banks in their local communities.

”Our members know that change isn’t easy and it requires helping others to understand what’s at the root of the problem. The GROW petition does just that,” said Slack. “Together they are taking action by not only gathering food for those in their neighborhoods, but educating their communities on hunger around the world.”

“This isn’t your grandmother’s hunger campaign, we won’t be asking for your money,” said Rateau. “Every action we mobilize both on and offline will help us convince our leaders that reforming food aid is important to people across this country. If we are going to meet the challenge of feeding 9 billion people by 2050 without breaking the planet, we’ll need a movement of engaged activists.”

The Hunger Games opens in theaters across the country on March 23rd.

Oxfam America is an international relief and development organization that creates lasting solutions to poverty, hunger, and injustice. Together with individuals and local groups in more than 90 countries, Oxfam saves lives, helps people overcome poverty, and fights for social justice. Oxfam America is an affiliate of Oxfam. To join our efforts or learn more, go to www.oxfamamerica.org/grow

The HP Alliance (www.thehpalliance.org) is a 501c3 nonprofit that engages Harry Potter fans in social activism. With over 70 active chapters and 40 volunteer staff, the HPA has donated five cargo planes of supplies to Haiti, 55,000 books, protection for thousands in Darfur, and made huge strides in anti-genocide, LGBT, and media reform advocacy, and more. Covered in hundreds of major publications and praised by JK Rowling, Harry Potter celebrities, Paul Farmer, and a slew of NGO’s, the HPA recently came in first place in the Chase Bank Community Giving Contest on Facebook winning $250,000.
For more information about the “Hunger is Not a Game” campaign visit:
http://thehpalliance.org/imagine-better/hunger-is-not-a-game/

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It shows how out of it I was in trying to be in it, acknowledging that I was out of it to myself, and then thinking, “Okay, how do I stop being out of it? Well, I get some legitimate illogical narrative ideas” — some novel, you know?

So I decided on three writers that I might be able to option their material and get some producer, or myself as producer, and then get some writer to do a screenplay on it, and maybe make a movie.

And so the three projects were “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” “Naked Lunch” and a collection of Bukowski. Which, in 1975, forget it — I mean, that was nuts. Hollywood would not touch any of that, but I was looking for something commercial, and I thought that all of these things were coming.

There would be no Blade Runner if there was no Ray Bradbury. I couldn’t find Philip K. Dick. His agent didn’t even know where he was. And so I gave up.

I was walking down the street and I ran into Bradbury — he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” — and I’d forgot who he was.

So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging — I was with her at that moment — she said, “Talk to him! That guy really wants to talk to you,” and I said “No, fuck him,” and keep walking.

But then I did, and then I realized who it was, and I thought, “Wait, he’s in that realm, maybe he knows Philip K. Dick.” I said, “You know a guy named—” “Yeah, sure — you want his phone number?”

My friend paid my rent for a year while I wrote, because it turned out we couldn’t get a writer. My friends kept on me about, well, if you can’t get a writer, then you write.”
~ Hampton Fancher

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~ David Simon