Are you an educator or librarian looking to share Write for Rights with your students? Find everything you need to get started below — case sheets, human rights education curriculum, posters, letter writing guides, and a lot more all in one place!
Amnesty’s Write for Rights Education Activities can help educators and students deepen their understanding of human rights and prepare them for taking action.
These activities are all based on participatory learning methods. Learners can explore, discuss, analyze and question issues relating to the stories in each activity.
Letters to a Prisoner (Owlkids, 2017) is a wordless children’s book inspired by the Write for Rights campaign – created by Montreal author Jacques Goldstyn. The book illustrates the power of hope and the written word. The Youth and Activism Team has been actively collaborating with Owlkids Books to make this book freely available to educators and teachers in the Amnesty International community.
Letters to a Prisoner provides a fun and engaging way for young people (ages six and up) to participate in and promote human rights and the Write for Rights campaign.
Amnesty Canada has created Letters to a Prisoner: A Social Justice Toolkit for Communities & Schools to accompany the book’s content. This educational toolkit includes discussion questions and group activities for 30 minutes to 1 hour. It also includes resources framed around a case featured in the Write for Rights campaign.
"Together, we can challenge systemic injustices, amplify marginalized voices, and create a world where everyone's human rights are protected and respected."
In some cases, it may not be safe for the person to receive mail, or the postal service in their country may be unreliable. Also, some prison authorities limit the amount of mail inmates can receive. In every case, we work with the individual to determine the safest and most effective way to share messages with them. If we suggest a method that you are unable to use – such as social media – please send a message to another individual in the campaign.
It is for the safety of the recipient. In some cases, association with a particular faith or Amnesty’s human rights work could put them at greater risk.
Cards illustrated with things like snowy scenes, fir trees and robins, or a postcard of your local area. The message ‘Season’s Greetings’ is not religious.
Yes, as long as their work cannot be considered political and the card follows the general guidance on the case.
The 10 cases are carefully picked to have maximum impact: they have been developed after a long process that involved obtaining the informed consent of each individual featured, planning each action, developing a strategy and assessing the risks. On all the cases, we map out what action activists can take to achieve the changes we want to see.
Please send a letter instead. The fax and email may have been switched off because the addressee has been overwhelmed by appeals or the inbox is full.
Please send a copy to the Write for Rights team at writeathon@amnesty.ca, as it will help us assess the impact of the campaign.
Finding out how many people took part in the campaign, and on which cases, shows us whether our tactics are working or need to be adapted. It also enables us to provide updates about an individual’s changing circumstances. Please report your letters and actions using the link above or by sending an email to writeathon@amnesty.ca.
Yes, in most cases. If you would like to work on a case long term, please let us know so that we can make sure you have the most up to date information: writeathon@amnesty.ca. Or you can join our Urgent Action Network to write letters on behalf of other people at risk of human rights abuses.
You can join our Urgent Action Network, which protects people from torture, helps free people who are wrongly detained and secures access to medical treatment or legal counsel for prisoners. As a member of the network, you will be sent requests – how many is up to you – to take action urgently on behalf of individuals at risk. Find out more at: https://amnesty.ca/what-you-can-do/urgent-action-network/
Yes, solidarity is effective. Thousands of letters arriving at a prison tells the prison authorities that the world is watching. And people who have received solidarity messages have told us how it boosts their spirits and strength.
Yes, if it is cheaper and easier to send them in one envelope, please do so.
We have no record of this happening. Thousands of Amnesty supporters sign their letters without experiencing any problems. However, if you have business or other close links with a country or have concerns, you may wish to choose another case or to not give your full name or address (for example, sign a letter ‘from Jane, Toronto’).
If you don’t feel comfortable hosting an event, join an event near you. Hundreds of events take place in community centres, libraries, schools and cafes across the country each year. Or you can host a small private event at your home with your closest family and friends. If you’d rather start smaller, try writing letters on your own.
