AI USA thank you email

AI USA have sent an email to their subscribers which takes the form of a thankyou from the daughter of the founder of the Ethiopian Human Rights Council, who was detained and imprisoned in connection with public demonstrations protesting alleged election fraud.

It's a good approach because people like to be thanked and they also like to feel that their letters actually go where they're needed and have some effect. The subject line, "thanks for helping to free my father", is also a winner. Once people have the glow (this stuff works), they get asked to do something more. It's a good formula.

Here's the email:

Dear Sarah,

Thank you so much for working to create a better world with Amnesty International. Today, I want to share with you how your efforts are saving lives and inspiring change across the globe.

My father Mesfin Woldemariam, founder of the Ethiopian Human Rights Council, was detained and imprisoned in connection with public demonstrations protesting alleged election fraud. He and 37 other co-defendants were recently convicted and sentenced to life in prison, for doing nothing more than expressing their political beliefs. But dedicated activists like you helped press the Ethiopian authorities to free Mesfin and other prisoners of conscience, which the government did today in Addis Ababa!

My father and his co-defendants suffered in prison because of overcrowding, lack of access to health care, and overall poor conditions. Today, his health remains fragile, but his spirit is strong. Thanks in part to your help, he is now free!.

You can help even more by sending an email to your Representative to ask them to co-sponsor and pass the Ethiopia Democracy and Accountability Act (HR 2003).

Please accept my heartfelt thanks for your continued support of Amnesty International's important work to champion human rights in Ethiopia and around the world. You are needed now more than ever, and as you can see, your actions really do change lives.

Sincerely,