Using the power of social networking to change laws!

Good Day Readers:

We received the following update unsolicited from the movement to create "Caylee's Law. It reiterates the power of social newtorking.

Sincerely,
Clare L. Pieuk
__________________________________________________

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 7, 2011

Contacts

Michelle Crowder, “Caylee’s Law” petition-starter, 918-289-8479 (CDT)

Brian Purchia, Director of Communications, brian@change.org, 202-253-4330 (PDT)

Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza, Campaign Director, rpbp@change.org, 919-423-4783 (EDT)

PRESS RELEASE

MORE THAN 250,000 AMERICANS JOIN VIRAL “CAYLEE’S LAW” CAMPAIGN

An Oklahoma woman’s campaign urging lawmakers to create “Caylee’s Law” attracts more than 250,000 supporters in less than 36 hours, making it Change.org’s most popular campaign of all time.

WASHINGTON, DC – In less than 36 hours, more than 250,000 people in all 50 states have joined an Oklahoma woman’s Change.org campaign calling for the creation of “Caylee’s Law,” which would make it a felony for a parent to fail to report a missing child to law enforcement.

Launched by Michelle Crowder of Durant, Oklahoma, the campaign calling for “Caylee’s Law” is already the most popular petition of all time on Change.org, the world’s fastest-growing platform for social change. The campaign’s viral momentum continues to grow, with an average of two new signatures every second, 121 every minute, and 7,292 every hour. The campaign is growing 108 times faster than what was previously Change.org’s most popular petition ever.

Crowder started the Change.org petition on Tuesday evening after Casey Anthony was found “not guilty” of first-degree murder or manslaughter in the case of her two-year-old daughter Caylee’s death, but guilty of providing false information to police. Anthony will be sentenced at 9 am today.

The Change.org campaign focuses on one of the central controversies of the case: the fact that Anthony never notified law enforcement that her daughter was missing.

When Crowder, a mother of two, was asked by CNN why she launched the Change.org petition, she told the news network, “I do not know any lawmakers or government officials; I just felt something had to be done."

State legislators in Florida, Oklahoma, and New York have pledged to introduce bills to create Caylee’s Law in their states. Three Florida state lawmakers have already drafted versions of Caylee’s Law. Other states are expected to follow suit soon. The Massachusetts State Police spokesperson expressed support for Caylee’s Law yesterday, saying the law makes sense because “with each passing hour the chances of finding a missing child decline sharply."

“I’m just completely and totally amazed. I didn’t expect my Change.org petition calling for Caylee’s Law to take off like this,” said Crowder. “Legislators in Florida and Oklahoma have already pledged to introduce Caylee’s Law. I hope that other states, and Congress, will also take up Caylee’s Law. We can’t afford to have another case like Caylee Anthony’s in the courts.”

The “Caylee’s Law” petition has been covered by the Associated Press, CNN, TIME, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, and Patch.com/AOL as well as by local stations in many states, including Florida (also here), Massachusetts, Michigan (also here), Oklahoma (also here, here, and here) and Utah as well as Washington, D.C.

The record-breaking petition is the latest sign of the increasing impact of campaigns on Change.org, which was profiled this past week in the New York Times, Sacramento Bee, and Washington Times.

“There is extensive debate about this issue, and this campaign has been remarkable,” said Change.org founder Ben Rattray. “In less than 36 hours, a woman in Oklahoma has recruited hundreds of thousands of supporters for her cause. Change.org is about empowering anyone, anywhere, to take action on the issues that are important to them, which makes it the perfect platform for this record-breaking campaign.”

The previous record for Change.org’s most popular petition of all time was held by a campaign led by women from the townships of South Africa calling for legislative action on ‘corrective rape’, an increasingly common hate crime in which men rape lesbian women to 'turn' them straight. More than 170,000 people in 163 countries signed that petition. Other top Change.org campaigns have included a campaign calling for McDonald’s employees to be held responsible for the beating of a trans woman (153,000 supporters) and a campaign calling for the release of internationally acclaimed Chinese artist Ai Weiwei (143,000 supporters), which led to a cyber attack on Change.org emanating from China.

Live signature totals from the “Caylee’s Law” petition on Change.org:

http://www.change.org/petitions/create-caylees-law

Change.org is the world’s fastest-growing platform for social change — growing by more than 300,000 new members a month, and empowering millions of people to start, join, and win campaigns for social change in their community, city and country.

We send announcements about innovative, compelling or successful social change campaigns we think may be of interest to the media no more than twice a week. We try our best to inform you about campaigns that fit your beat and/or geographic region. If we got it wrong, please click reply to let us know and we'll set you up to receive announcements that match your beat. If you simply wish to unsubscribe, please email uscriminaljustice+unsubscribe@change.org.