Dutch and Belgian HPA

[dutchandbelgianhpa]

We all agree that 2016 is in serious need of some happiness, that’s why the HPA is organising the first ever GREAT CHAPTERS BAKE OFF! We’re not really baking, but we are raising funds… with a SONG! Our very own Chapter Organiser, Margot, has written an awesome song about Hermione, which will definitely make you smile. “If Hermione Can Do It (So Can I)” has been released on YouTube and Bandcamp (http://bit.ly/2gvy8QT) where you can choose to donate a little something. If you can’t give money, please help by spreading the word!

All funds are going to the HPA Chapters program, supporting chapters (like ours) around the world! The money will help provide chapter resources like leadership training, social justice education, campaign toolkits and the Granger Leadership Academy.

[dutchandbelgianhpa]

Wer sind wir? - Wastewarts. Eine Gruppe von Müll sammelnden Harry Potter Fans (Waste+Hogwarts =Wastewarts) Kurioseste Müllstücke, die wir gefunden...

Hi friends!

Our awesome buddies from the HPA chapter in Hamburg, Germany, need your help! The chapter, which is called "Wastewarts" is all about making waste disappear in their community by cleaning the streets of Hamburg!

Now they are currently in a competition to win money which they want to use to upgrade their cleaning appliances! In order to win, they have to get as many likes as possible on this picture: https://www.facebook.com/wastewarts/photos/o.217776724938813/261095300897500/?type=3&theater

It would help our German friends tremendously if you could go to that link and hit like, or share it with more people! This runs until April 20th. On behalf of Wastewarts, thank you so much!

[dutchandbelgianhpa]

Happy Valentine’s/Galentine’s Day from the Dutch and Belgian HPA!

[linesinthesand]

Here is my Project For Awesome video for the HPA! Go vote for it and all of the other Harry Potter Alliance videos here and here.

[fandomforward]

Be sure to vote for this video from one of our Spanish translator volunteers!

[dutchandbelgianhpa]

The Harry Potter Alliance: Turning Fans into Heroes // Project for Awesome

Hi there, wizard activist! These portkeys will take you to all the most important places: Vote here: http://projectforawesome.com/?charity=b6l3CbhO Refugee T...

Let Buffy, Hermione and Katniss tell you about the Harry Potter Alliance!

And don’t forget to vote for the HPA! You can vote as many times as there are videos: http://www.projectforawesome.com/?charity=b6l3CbhO

[fandomforward]

Our official Project for Awesome video is live! We used the power of the Floo Network to bring staff and volunteers from all over the world into our video. Be sure to watch, vote for it, and spread the word! Every vote makes a huge difference.

[myhungergamesstories]

#MyHungerGames is about sharing personal stories - but no one can tell their story without feeling safe.  Today, millions of Syrians are looking for a safe place to call home as their country struggles with extreme drought, violence and oppression.  In America and Europe, there are many government leaders who are trying to close their doors - find out what others are doing to keep the door open.

In the US:

Lincoln, NE - Supporters of Syrian Refugees To Gather In Lincoln http://www.klkntv.com/story/30584954/supporters-of-syrian-refugees-to-gather-in-lincoln

Tuesday

Charleston West Virginia - Rally In Charleston Tuesday To Show Support For Refugees In WV

http://www.wchstv.com/news/features/eyewitness-news/stories/Rally-In-Charleston-Tuesday-To-Show-Support-For-Refugees-In-WV-235399.shtml

Louisville, KY - Mayor, officials to host community rally denouncing terrorist attacks

http://www.wtvq.com/2015/11/23/mayor-asking-residents-to-join-rally-welcoming-refugees/

Denver, CO: Refugee Debate Grows: DeGette Holds Rally

https://www.cpr.org/news/story/refugee-debate-grows-degette-holds-rally-tipton-scolds-bennet-hickenlooper#sthash.eC9obS4E.dpuf

Washington, DC - Photos: Rally outside White House supports Syrian refugees

http://wtop.com/local/2015/11/photos-rally-outside-white-house-supports-syrian-refugees/slide/1/

Stone Mountain, GA - Refugees attend annual Thanksgiving dinner

http://www.wtvm.com/story/30578566/refugees-attend-annual-thanksgiving-dinner

Boise, ID - Capitol rally draws both sides of emotional refugee issue

http://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/community/boise/article45783135.html

Evanston, IL - Syrian Refugees Welcomed to Dinner in Evanston

http://abc7chicago.com/society/syrian-refugees-welcomed-to-dinner-in-evanston/1093837/

Boston MA - Hundreds rally against Baker’s stand on Syrian refugees

https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/11/20/hundreds-rally-against-baker-stand-syrian-refugees/0Dldr1gZAFzNiyA4rhVGYK/story.html

Annapolis, MD - Protesters urge governor to welcome Syrian refugees  http://www.stardem.com/ap/state/article_c5a238c4-1f90-5632-adfa-e94625f80ced.html and also see http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/bs-md-syrian-refugees-20151120-story.html

St Louis, MO - Supporters of bringing Syrian refugees here rally in the Loop

http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/supporters-of-bringing-syrian-refugees-here-rally-in-the-loop/article_877a2ec2-4c70-5c49-9d54-6e3918260351.html

Buffalo NY - Buffalo rally to support refugees

http://wivb.com/2015/11/19/buffalo-rally-to-support-refugees/

Toledo, OH - Rally rebukes Kasich over refugees

https://www.toledoblade.com/local/2015/11/23/Rally-rebukes-Kasich-over-refugees.html

Philadelphia, PA - Thanksgiving is special to refugee families

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20151122_Thanksgiving_is_special_to_refugee_families.html

Austin, TX - Hundreds Protest Call To Reject Syrian Refugees

http://www.texastribune.org/2015/11/22/hundreds-protest-call-reject-syrian-refugees/

Dallas, TX - Dozens Rally In Dallas To Support Syrian Refugees

http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2015/11/21/dozens-rally-in-dallas-to-support-syrian-refugees/

Montpelier, VT - People at Vermont rally clash on day two of demonstrations about refugees

http://www.wcvb.com/news/people-at-vermont-rally-clash-on-day-two-of-demonstrations-about-refugees/36599496

Olympia, WA - Anti- and pro-refugee demonstrators clash in Olympia

http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/anti-and-pro-refugee-demonstrators-clash-in-olympia/

In Europe: 

Check out the #AllDistrictsWelcome toolkit to see the many ways that you can make a difference to refugees in your country.

[iraffiruse]

[witharmswideopen95-deactivated2]

true ally

[dutchandbelgianhpa]

Mockingjay part 2 came out yesterday and as you already know, the hunger games are not just fiction. The HPA is working on economic inequality in general, but as a group of European Chapters we wanted to focus on a very specific and important problem in Europe, the refugee crisis.

Europe is not District 13, we are in fact very close to being the Capitol. But we can show the world that we do not want to be like that! We want to help the refugees. And in light of the recent terror attacks, it is even more important to stand together, not blame and definitely not reject the refugees. They need our help more than ever.

To do this, we have developed a refugee toolkit: http://bit.do/adwtoolkit. By using the toolkit, you can learn more about what exactly is happening, and how you can help by reading, discussing or taking action wherever you are in Europe. In addition, you can use our hashtag #AllDistrictsWelcome to spread your stories about the refugee crisis on all social media.

[dutchandbelgianhpa]

Mockingjay part 2 came out yesterday and as you already know, the hunger games are not just fiction. The HPA is working on economic inequality in general, but as a group of European Chapters we wanted to focus on a very specific and important problem in Europe, the refugee crisis.

Europe is not District 13, we are in fact very close to being the Capitol. But we can show the world that we do not want to be like that! We want to help the refugees. And in light of the recent terror attacks, it is even more important to stand together, not blame and definitely not reject the refugees. They need our help more than ever.

To do this, we have developed a refugee toolkit: http://bit.do/adwtoolkit. By using the toolkit, you can learn more about what exactly is happening, and how you can help by reading, discussing or taking action wherever you are in Europe. In addition, you can use our hashtag #AllDistrictsWelcome to spread your stories about the refugee crisis on all social media.

[dutchandbelgianhpa]

The attack in Paris yesterday it was horrible … This is not right in any religion. This is not humanity and especially the refugees in Calais are completely against that because we already had this bad experience in our home country, THAT’S WHY WE’RE HERE. We need peace and we really feel for the victims and we are with them.

An Afghan refugee in Calais / https://calaismigrantsolidarity.wordpress.com/2015/11/14/the-refugees-are-weeping-with-the-french-people/

[fandomforward]

We are with you: processing, grieving, baffled, shattered, grasping desperately for light.

Here is what we know: unspeakable harm was done to Paris tonight; unspeakable harm will be done to people of Muslim faith and people of color by people who take advantage of tragedy to act on their hatred; people across the world - ourselves among them - are shaken to their very core; this is not the first time; we cannot say it will be the last time.

And so much of this feels intensely personal.

It seems that the list of safe spaces torn apart by violence grows every year: schools, movie theaters, schools again, places of worship, places of community, venues for live music. We grow up hearing that stories are escapes only to find demons in our safest havens.

And so we cannot blame those whose lists of personal safe spaces narrow in parallel. Your feelings are valid, your reaction is valid, and we urge you to follow your gut, to seek what safety means for you.

But if you feel safest in the very places terrorists - in Paris, in Columbine, in Aurora, in Newton, in Charleston, and on and on and on - have devastated, know you have not lost them. If anger boils in your stomach, know nothing can come from meeting their hatred with your own. The most powerful thing we can do every time we move forward from unthinkable loss is to hold on to love and to hold on to what we love.

This is not easy. But it is so important.

The places we love - movie theaters at midnight, libraries where books changed our lives, venues where we sang late into the night - have given us not just entertainment, but spaces to make sense of the world, spaces to make sense of ourselves, crowds to be distinctly and lastingly unalone in, lifelong friendships, lifelong magic, homes to carry with us.

We cannot and will not let them take any of this from us.

Here is how we move forward: keep loving; keep fighting; celebrate story; laugh, dance, sing - with your friends, with strangers, with every single person who keeps showing up when the world tells them not to; resist hatred; resist cynicism; know none of this is foolish; know that it is necessary; protect and defend those who - not for the first time - will be victims of hatred falsely carried out in the name of justice; give love and light to those around you and those around the world; be excellent to each other; be good.

Always, always, always: the weapon we have is love.

[torije]

Girl on fire 🔥🔥🔥

[worldofsweetmadness]

Hunger Games by ~Daekazu (DA)

[gifthetv]

5 Things You Should Know About Racism | Decoded | MTV News

[scodelarioss]

  Terrible things are about to happen at Hogwarts. Harry Potter must not stay here… now that history is to repeat itself.      Repeat itself? You mean this has happened before?

[magicfolk]

Hermione “I’m done with you” Granger