Support the Movie/ O'Connor challenge to US/ A good book

jmurtari@AKidsRight.org

Good People & People of Faith:

This message has info on:

1. Mother's Day - any plans?
2. Support the Movie - "SUPPORT?"
3. Losing contact with your child (The BOOK) - from an NYC Hero!
4. Matt O'Connor, F4J - "Wake Up" message makes sense?

1. Mother's Day - any plans?
----------------------------
Right now we don't have any events planned for Mother's day (May 11th)
or Father's day (June 15th).  It would be great to get a collection of
Moms & Dads outside the local offices of Senator Clinton anywhere in
New York State -- some media attention could be very helpful to our
cause.  If anyone is interested in coordinating events for both days
and hopefully getting the same participants -- please let me know
(jmurtari@AKidsRight.Org).

If your group is planning an event we'd be happy to announce it, just
complete an event submission form at
http://www.AKidsRight.Org/events.htm -- that will ensure we have the
correct info.

Also, in the past folks from many "Father's" groups have told me they
welcome mothers as members and support equal rights for both as
parents -- it would be great to see a group like that have an event
for Mother's Day....

2. Support the Movie - "SUPPORT?"
-------------------------------
[ The FIRST documentary about the system and how it fails to provide
support for families and children -- tearing them apart instead of
keeping them together. I've gotten to know the producer Mr. Lobo very
well and many of you have met him at events.  He cares about our
cause....

The film is now ready and your help is welcome in getting local
showings, especially in the smaller theaters many of our communities
have.  Like many of you, I've never tried to 'promote' a movie before
but it's simple.  Just approach the local theater manager and tell
them about the film, it has a 68 minute running length and is in DVD
format.  If they sound interested have them check out the web site,
for trailers and call the production company, contact info below. It's
also possible for a group to rent a theater and show the movie as a
fund raiser.  Read his message which follows for details and contact
them with any questions. - John ]

---  Submitted by: Angelo Lobo <info@supportthemovie.com>
     Producer of the movie "SUPPORT?"

I hope this email finds you well.  It has been sometime since any
updates or news.  We have been hard at work making the final changes
to the full feature doc film SUPPORT?.

And I know what your saying.... What is taking so long? Why isn't it
out yet? Well the truth is we ran out of funding about 6 months ago
and we have worked on and off since then slowly and surely. The entire
crew from editor to assistants have put in their time and hearts in
this for free to make it happen and all of them have proudly said "its
time,its finally ready".

After seeing the final pass. My heart tugged at me so many times and
even I feel its time to let go. Time to let go of a project that has
been dear to me for the last 3 years. I hope that when you and the
rest of the public see this film it does what it was meant to do:

HAVE YOU OR SOMEONE SITTING NEXT TO YOU............ TAKE ACTON!!

This system needs a change. They are breaking up families for money
and its just not right!

If you don't know what the heck I'm talking about ;-) ---click here to
see the trailers: http://www.supportthemovie.com/trailers : Thank You!

In the film there are some solutions,however, the only way it will get
done is together . We are planning our first Premier Screening in
California end of APRIL and all of MAY in different cities. The dates
and locations will be posted on our website sometime next week.

Then we are going state to state so If you would like to HELP us bring
it to an Independent theater in your city or state please email us
here: info@supportthemovie.com

If you haven't done so already. Please Please "BUY A T-SHIRT" Click
Here : http://www.supportthemovie.com/ choose your size and wear it
proudly because any little bit helps us at this point with updates and
marketing.

I personally want to thank everyone that came forward to help us make
this movie. You know who you are! I will never forget the wonderful
emails and good wishes along the way.  I hope and pray we make a
difference and at the same time "enjoy the show".

Gods Speed.

Warmest Regards,
Angelo Lobo

Contact: 310-804-7883
email: Info@supportthemovie.com
website : http://www.supportthemovie.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/SupportTheMovie
http://www.myspace.com/supportthemovie

3. Losing contact with your child (The BOOK) - from an NYC Hero!
---------------------------------------------------------------
[ I got a couple of letters from Anthony during my recent jail
sentence.  He also sent me a copy of his book and as a courtesy
sent a copy to the Judge and US Attorney's office.  I've read a lot of
books and really liked this one for its brevity and first-person
perspective -- you can feel the pain and there is no happy ending....
I was also pleased that Anthony remarked that on reconsideration he
would have called the book, "A Parent's Right"... - John ]

http://www.amazon.com/Fathers-Right-Anthony-Gallo/dp/0595462847 

Submitted by: Mr. Anthony Gallo <fathersright@yahoo.com>

You may look me up here: http://anthonygallo.exploretalent.com/ to
learn more about my personality. What you will not read here or read
about in the newspapers is that for the last six years I have been
fighting to be part of my daughters life, through the family court
system. The discrimination, incompetence, and ignorance is just
unacceptable. I have fought with every aspect of the courts. Yet, at
the same time I did everything asked of me.

Children Services did six investigations, "all unfounded", yet my
daughter was still kept from me. I am on my sixth Judge. I have
attended Parenting Classes, Single Fathers Classes, Drug Tests,
Therapists, Forensic investigations, and so much more. I waited in a
room downtown Manhattan every week, for months, hoping to see my
daughter, and did not, even with a court order.

In the summer of 2003 I was riding the subway home from installing an
alarm system (I do this for a living in Manhattan) riding the Q train
at Atlantic Ave I witnessed a woman being slashed. This guy walked up
to this woman that was dressed as a nurse and just slashed her across
her face as she sat there, and ran off the train. I immediately
reacted just making it off the train myself before the doors closed. I
chased him and was able to restrained him, and held him until the
police arrived, getting cut on my wrist, he had a knife in each hand.

I was awarded by Police Commissioner Ray Kelly and was awarded the
N. Y. Post Liberty Medal for "Courage" 2003, was even a guest on the
John Walsh Show. But all this really meant nothing to me, it was my
daughter that I held most important.

I have tried to contact many people about my case and all its
faults. I like to call them "Red Flags" that make people aware of
abuse, against the system. The courts have been doing this for a long
time yet, they still cant get it right, because most of them are "Pay
Check Workers" and are not there for the "Best Interest Of The
Children". So with all this attention I received for my "Heroism" I
just thought someone would look into the false allegations that were
keeping my daughter and I apart. But no one seemed to care for me once
my story broke out. Not the Mayor, who once shook my hand and said
"Good Job Mr. Gallo", not even my own city councilman.

One morning I decided to return the awards, back to the city that I
love so much. I guess the discrimination was just to much for me to
look at the awards. "I do not need an award to know the kind of person
that I am". I went to One Police Plaza and told the officers in the
front that I found this bag filled with awards and medals on the
subway and thought I should bring them here. When the officers looked
into the bag they were shocked that someone could forget this.

They asked me for I. D. and of course I could not show them because
the awards had my name on them, I just did not want to explain to them
why I was returning my awards. I have not heard from anyone about this
action that I took. I see my daughter weekly now for one hour, if I am
lucky and must pay for this, or I cannot see her, along with child
support. I do not know where she lives or how she is doing in school.

We play monopoly in hopes to build a relationship again, but dealing
with "Pay Check Workers" can be very frustrating. I had asked to show
my daughter a tape of myself getting awarded on the John Walsh Show, I
even allowed them to view the tape before hand so they could see that
it would be rewarding for my daughter, people stood and cheered for me
(what a feeling). I thought it would build some trust, after not
seeing me for years, she was hesitant (my own child).

I was told no! I feel the media is so quick to do that story on the
"Dead Beat Dad" or "Amber Alert" a dad just ran off with his
child...........but you never hear about the Father that has been
struggling just to see his child, paying with "Blood, Sweat and Tears"
just so that his daughter would know her father. I miss her so much
and I cry everyday. She will know that her Dad was a fighter, and I
hope that it will help her cope with life. I belong to many groups
"Fathers-4-Justice" look- up "New York Belongs To Me" on (youtube.com)
and you will see it is a World Wide problem that is hurting the
children. So if no one wants to give me a "Pat-On- The-Back" for
fighting a system that seems like it wants us fathers to fail, I will
do it myself. If no one wants me to see any "Light-At-The-End-Of-The-
Tunnel" "I will see the light". Lately I find myself writing a lot,
and each time there is a puddle of tears beneath me, and I must mop up
this puddle quickly before I slip, because I feel there is no one
around to help me back up. Anthony Gallo

4. Matt O'Connor - "Wake Up" message makes sense?
-------------------------------------------------
[ This message should make us all think of what actions we are willing
to take 'now' to make reform a reality?  What are we willing to
sacrifice for what we believe in? Dads and Moms.... ]

        "Wake Up American Dads"  by Matt O'Connor (founder F-4-J)

Dear all, 

It has been three years and thousands of pounds later since we first
tried to get a campaigning branch of F4J in the US off the ground by
doing high-profile protests.  

Last year it took two brave Brits, Jolly Stanesby and Mike Downes to
blaze the way at the Lincoln Memorial. People have been doing bike
rides etc and making brave sacrifices.

And who followed in F4J? Nobody.  Yesterday protesters took to the
Golden Gate Bridge in an action designed to highlight the plight of
the people of Tibet. This was something long discussed by me with the
apparatchiks in what quickly became the bastardized US version of
F4J. What did we do? Nothing.  

Where F4J in the UK, Canada and Holland were men and women of action,
in the US the mission was perverted to become some impotent,
sterilized charity vehicle. Only we didn't need charity.  

We needed action to raise awareness.  

Either through fear or cowardice, people took the idea of F4J, and
pirated and disfigured it because F4J is more than a name or badge, it
is an idea carried by the very people who created it, understand it
and believe in it.  

Taking a badge from a campaign Ferrari and sticking it on a charity
milk float ain't gonna make the milk float go any faster.  I'm not
going to apportion blame as it's now all on record, however even last
year the bitching and back biting from a tiny handful continued and
went on and on and on and on...  If I didn't know better, I'd have
thought that the FBI were trying to run us into the ground before we
had even taken off.  

Whoever is left running F4J in the US should resign immediately if not
through shame that they have failed to deliver in raising awareness in
this election year, but that they recognize they are not cut out for
the job. Where people looked to F4J for hope, they have delivered
hopelessness.  They should do so before they inflict any further
damage on the movement and deepen the stain left on the F4J name in
the US.  As for the future, we can and will prevail, but we need brave
men and women to step forward. 

There exists in the US a rich and talented intellectual base -- Dr
Stephen Baskerville, Dr Warren Farrell, Tom Golden, the inimitable
Glenn Sacks...hugely capable men I have learnt from and been humbled
by.  But we need a campaigning mirror to these pioneers. We can still
do this, we can still prevail but we need new, dynamic blood to enter
the body politic of the fathers movement in the US.  

And I am confident that we will do this because as one of those people
who did more to kill the F4J baby at birth in the US than anyone said,
`Matt & F4J could fall off a skyscraper and still land on their
feet'. I hope that despite these challenges, we can land on our feet
in 2008 for the sake of all families, fathers and their children.  If
you are interested in getting involved, please don't hesitate
contacting my campaign team through this email address:

office@fathers-4-justice.org 
Matt O'Connor Founder, Fathers 4 Justice
http://www.fathers-4-justice.org/

-- 
                                       John Murtari
____________________________________________________________________
Coordinator                            AKidsRight.Org
jmurtari@AKidsRight.Org                "A Kid's Right to BOTH parents"
Toll Free (877) 635-1968(x-211)        http://www.AKidsRight.Org/

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