This is one of several posts that I made private between May 31rst 2008 and July 22, 2008. (This represents the time period between my resigning from working on the Adoptee Rights Demonstration / Day for Adoptee Rights, (ARD / DAR) and it actually taking place in New Orleans.)

The piece below was originally posted May 27th, 2008.

I changed its status to public view with this disclaimer added July 22nd. Now that the event has passed I am restoring my earlier writings towards the purposes of restoring the historical record.

They were taken down as they reflected my original support for and work towards ARD/DAR prior to my resignation. In late May, I resigned, and I did not wish these pieces to be mistaken for active recruitment to the event in the period between late May and the event in July.

Part of my reasoning was due to a technical quirk of blogging itself; each post stands alone, decontextualized from the larger narrative. As these older pieces could be viewed via web searches etc. as distinct and apart from the context that I had since resigned, I made them private until after the event had passed.

My single post history of ARD/DAR and the events leading up to it can be found here. The post below should be viewed in the context of the events explained in it. Additional posts concerning ARD/DAR particularly from July 22nd forward can be found by utilizing the Adoptee Rights Demonstration tag (results will appear in reverse chronological order, from newest to oldest.) They too, should be understood within that larger context.

Original text of the post, as it appeared prior to being made private appears in full below.

I hope to work up some more materials in relation to the upcoming events in New Orleans, but for the moment, I wanted to once again draw readers’ attention to the Adoptee Rights Demonstration/Day for Adoptee Rights.

Dates-

As of today, we’re one month, 26 days away from the main event, the March and educational picket! It’s time to get your plans together!

While a final schedule is still being hammered out, I’m personally advising people to focus on aiming to be in New Orleans somewhere between Friday, July 18th (2008) and Friday the 25th, with a heavy emphasis on the 18th through the 23rd, unless you’ll be working in the booth at the convention itself. Bastards will certainly be in town, doing ARD/DAR related work the entire week, though.

Of those the most critical days will be:

Sunday the 20th for the Teach-in, a really important day to be there for!

Monday the 21rst, for volunteer trainings and the sign making get together,

and the most important day of all, Tuesday the 22nd, for the rally and March from Lafayette Park to the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center where the National Conference of State Legislatures (the legislators who make the laws determining whether we gain access to our records- or not) annual meeting will be taking place. The March will then culminate in an educational picket outside the convention center.

Official ARD/DAR websites-

The official ARD/DAR protest website homepage

Bastard Nation’s NATIONAL DAY OF ADOPTEE RIGHTS PROTEST webpage

Bastard Nation’s Day for Adoptee Rights blog (with their most up to date news)

Hotels-

There are two primary hotels with blocks specifically set aside for ARD/DAR participants:

Best Western St. Christopher is the hotel many participants will be staying at. See the official Adoptee Rights Demonstration hotel page for details on reserving a space there.

Additionally, Bastard Nation has a block of rooms set aside (initially) for BN members in the Country Inn & Suites by Carlson, New Orleans, French Quarter. (This will be where the Sunday teach-in will be held.)

Within roughly a week or so BN will be opening up anything left in their block of rooms to other non-member protesters, so if you’re a BN member and you want to be in the BN block get your room NOW! Go see the Bastard Nation NOLA page for details on reserving a room at the Country Inn and Suites.

Volunteering-

The Demonstration and events surrounding it will only happen if we all work to make it happen. While that means attending, it also means that it will be an event running on the efforts of volunteers. Volunteers helping with all kinds of tasks both large and small, everything from rides for Bastards to and from the airport, to helping keep the park clean, etc.

I will be working with a team of volunteers, the Protest Monitors, to help ensure the march and picket go smoothly.

There are all kinds of opportunities from media relations to graphics.

Even if you’re unable to attend the event in NOLA there are ways you can help make the Adoptee Rights Demonstration a success.

And folks, if you’re coming to NOLA please seriously consider volunteering to help make these events really come together. A small investment of time on your part can add up to make a tremendous difference for everyone.

Email Ron with ARD at bb_church@adopteerights.net (link disabled 7/22/08)

or Bastard Nation at bn@bastards.org(link disabled 7/22/08)

Donations-

Of course, one of the most important things you can do whether you’ll be joining us in NOLA or not will be to continue to financially support the ARD/DAR.

For a donation of $10 you can be included in the New Orleans Times-Picayune ad that will run during the Legislator’s conference. The ad will feature the names of adoptees, their friends and family who support Open records. Be part of history for just ten bucks.

Whether for the Newspaper ad or not make a donation to the ARD/DAR.

You can donate online directly to the Adoptee Rights Demonstration through the webpage. (link disabled 7/22/08)

Or through Bastard Nation’s Who’s Next Fund. (link disabled 7/22/08)

While you’re supporting the Adoptee Rights Demonstration, get some fine Bastard gear to sport on the streets:

All proceeds for sales from the Bastard Boutique (link disabled 7/22/08) up to July 31, 2008 will go directly to cover the cost of A DAY FOR ADOPTEE RIGHTS Contact Mccmtmd@aol.com for availability and shipping costs

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July 22nd is an important date in the history of the work toward the restoration of the right to unconditional access to our records.

The events surrounding it, particularly the teach-in present important opportunities for you to gain skills to take home to work for open records in your region. I hope I’ll be seeing you in the trainings and in the streets in New Orleans!