Three Minds On Digital Marketing @ Organic

Burma has been on everyone's mind in the last few days as a result of the catastrophic cyclone that struck on Friday, killing as many as 10,000 people.  It's a tragic way to bring the appalling human rights situation in Burma back to the forefront of the collective consciousness after the monk-led anti-government protests of September 2007 failed to bring about any changes.

My mother is Burmese and I have plenty of family living in Rangoon/Yangon.  One of my cousins was arrested and beaten by the Burmese government for his association with opposition leader and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.  For me and for anyone concerned about the Burmese political situation, it's hard not to feel powerless in the face of an immovable military regime.

The U.S. Campaign for Burma is taking an interesting and provocative approach to making Burma relevant, refusing apathy and sending the message that collectively, we can do something about the situation.  In conjunction with the Human Rights Action Center and social shopping site Fanista, they have created a 30-day campaign that uses short celebrity videos to raise awareness of the plight of the worlds only imprisoned Nobel Peace Prize recipient and the atrocities occurring in Burma.  Some of the spots are serious (Julie Benz), many are humorous or irreverent (Will Ferrell, Jennifer Aniston).  Each is unique and worthy of pass-along.

The goal is gather a million signatures of support for Burma in 30 days.  Welcome to social action, new media style!  As Human Rights Action Center founder Jack Healey writes:

"I've thought long and hard about how to create a new paradigm, a new thrust, a new energy, a new force. I am bored by public service announcements and feel that they have lost their effectiveness. I set out to create a new genre...A big or small non-profit can now define themselves without raising tons of cash through direct mail, cutting down trees for the paper, and can go up online and get the world to respond in a new way."