Those Who Were Burned Alive

One month ago, a tragic and preventable fire claimed the lives of 28 factory workers in Bangladesh while making clothes for luxury American brands. Gap, Calvin Klein & Tommy Hilfiger are a few companies that are taking the first steps toward providing just compensation for the families of those killed and instituting an urgent program of factory inspections. But Abercrombie & Fitch, Target, JC Penney, Jansport, North Face, OshKosh B’Gosh and the other clothing brands are still dragging their feet. 

We need to put pressure on these companies to begin an immediate inspection of their factories to prevent any more fatalities. The workers are generally young, poor and females. On December 14, more than two dozen of them were burned alive when an easily preventable fire broke out in the unsafe, multi-story sweatshop they were working in. The tragedy began when a fire broke out on the ninth and 10th floors of the multi-story "That's It Sportswear" clothing factory just north the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka. With a number of the exits blocked, 28 workers were killed: most burned to death, some trampled to death, some killed by suffocation and others jumped from the flames to their death. Several dozen more suffered severe burns.

Please take action and sign the following petition so that big companies make sure this does not happen again to many other hardworking people who merely go to their factories for their bread and butter.

Petition For Those Who Were Burned Alive

Source: Change.Org

Declare 'Corrective Rape' a Hate-Crime

"Corrective Rape" is a term used to describe when a male rapes a lesbian with the aim of 'turning' her heterosexual!

This heinous crime is prolific in South Africa, especially in the "townships".

The South African government and justice system are failing the victims of Corrective Rape by letting the perpetrators out on ridiculously low bail, and taking literally years to bring the court-cases to a conclusion. In the meantime the victims have to live with seeing and being taunted and threatened by their rapists every day, as do those who help the victims.

In the last 10 years:

*31 lesbian women have been murdered because of their sexuality

*More than 10 lesbians a week are raped or gang raped in Cape Town alone

*150 women are raped every day in South Africa

*For every 25 men accused of rape in South Africa, 24 walk free

Despite all this, hate crimes on the basis of sexual orientation are not recognised by South African law!

Therefore, please sign up to make sure you that you think corrective rape is also a heinous crime that needs to be dealt with seriously.

http://www.change.org/petitions/view/south_africa_declare_corrective_rape_a_hate-crime

Request Jamie Freeze to remove offensive dehumanizing headline in her story titled HE/SHE/IT

41% of all Transgender people attempt suicide at one time or another in their life. We need to try and help bring that number down. Life, in general, is very difficult for transgender humans. They have to face ridicule, discrimination, unemployment, homelessness and sometimes just having no hope whatsoever.

The last thing someone in such a vulnerable community needs to see is to be referred to as "It". This is by far the worst name you can call someone who is transgender. Everyone in the world knows this accept Jamie Freeze, who believe it or not, is a law student.

Please let Jamie Freeze and Renew America know what you think about this.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/request-jamie-freeze-to-remove-offensive-dehumanizing-headline-in-her-story-titled-hesheit/

Save the Yellowstone Bison!

America's last free-roaming wild bison are being slaughtered on a scale not seen since the 1800s. And hundreds more are slated to be killed.

1,600 bison were killed in the winter of 2007/2008 -- more than a quarter of the wild population. This is no way to manage one of the icons of the American West -- especially in a state that prides itself as a destination for wildlife-seeking tourists.

Take action now! Write to the Montana Promotion Division -- the state%u2019s tourism officials -- and speak out for sensible management of these American icons!

Please sign this petition…thank you!

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/2/save-the-yellowstone-bison/

Save The Wolves From Aerial Hunting

Right now, we need your help to end the brutal and unfounded aerial wolf killing programs that have already claimed the lives of more than 1,000 of these magnificent animals.

Take action now to help save these wolves -- sign our petition to urge the Obama administration to put an end to unscientific and brutal aerial wolf-killing in Alaska.

Easy targets against fallen snow, wolves are gunned down from airplanes or chased to exhaustion, then shot at point-blank range. State-licensed riflemen can target entire packs -- even pregnant wolves!

Defenders of Wildlife has long led the fight to rein in out-of-control aerial wolf killing and promote sound management of wolves in Alaska. We were able to stop this terrible practice twice, only to see it started up again after two years. But, with the anti-wolf Bush/Cheney administration now gone from the White House, we have renewed hope that we can end these awful programs once and for all.

It’s not wolf management. It’s a wolf massacre. Please take action now to save these wolves.

Ban Irish Fox Hunting

Target: The mission is to ban "the hunt" in Ireland and get it reinforced!

Web site: http://www.banbloodsports.com/foxhunting.htm

Fox hunting is cruel and there's no reason to do it, apart from the fact that they're vermin. This petition is to ban irish fox hunting until the deer culling season which is usually in November.

Numbers taken per year from an anto fox hunting site:
Foxes killed: 15000
Human killed in accidents: 3
Pups and hounds killed: 6000
Vet fees for horses: £15 million
Injuries to hounds: 1000
Injuries to those on foot: 500
Total blood spilt: 1 ton plus
Policing costs (paid by taxpayers): over £1 million

That's just the grounds, please sign this petition and ban the hounds tearing these animals apart!!

http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/ban-irish-fox-hunting.html

U.S.- Close the "Generic Tiger" Loophole

In the United States, thousands of tigers languishing in tiny, filthy cages and are dropping off the radar daily as there is no one monitoring what happens to them next.

"Generic tigers" that are inbred, crossbred or otherwise not considered purebred, are discarded into the pet trade, warehoused in tiny, barren cells or worse; ending up on dinner menus, skinned, stuffed or disappearing into the black market trade.

Back in the 1980s the US Fish & Wildlife Service decided it was too much bother to deal with every back yard breeder who wanted a permit to breed tigers, so they created a "generic tiger" loophole. It essentially states that if you are not a legitimate American Zoological Association accredited zoo, which must conform to permitting requirements to breed purebred tigers, then you can breed, exploit and discard tigers at will and with virtually no oversight.

Tiger breeding requires a costly permit that insures the lifetime care of a tiger. Please sign this petition. This is not the right way to treat any animal. We need 1000 signatures. Take out a minute & sign it…thank you!

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/us--close-the-generic-tiger-loophole/

Help Me Provide Meals For Abandoned Cats

Help provide meals for abandoned cats and together we can help make a difference. Every signature will bring a helpless cat that much closer to receiving a meal they may desperately need. Thank you!

Well we need 2000 signatures & only 251 people have signed. If you believe in this cause, then just take out a minute & sign this petition.

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/help-me-provide-meals-for-abandoned-cats/

Ban Gin Traps

GIN TRAPS– horrible, mechanical devices, designed to grasp an animal by the leg using spring-operated metal jaws. In their desperation to escape the pain and terror of being trapped, the captured animal will sometimes bite off the limb that has been caught. The use of gin traps has been illegal in the UK since 1958 and is banned in 90 other countries around the world.

The Government of South Africa is now proposing new legislation which appears to have re-named Gin Traps as ‘Soft Traps’ – a totally misleading name for such a nasty, cruel device. The legislation, if approved, will permit the continued use of these soft traps.

There is ample scientific evidence to show that even if an innocent animal survives the trapping, it often ends up with damaged tendons or ligaments in its efforts to escape. Trapped animals still suffer from torsion injuries, fractures, soft tissue damage and other limb injuries. Innocent animals caught by mistake often have to be euthanized as a result.

Please sign the petition…thank you!

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/ban-leg-hold-traps/