Better Safer World

BETTER SAFER WORLD is a campaign that aims to change the way Americans respond to global poverty and instability. Moreover, it is also seeking to increase the humanitarian assistance for projects seeking long-term changes in the social and economic systems that allow, foster, or profit from poverty. The Better Safer World campaign is sponsored by nine international humanitarian organizations. These organizations are CARE, Childreach, International Medical Corps, International Rescue Committee, Mercy Corps, OXFAM, Save the Children, World Concern, and World Vision.

The nine sponsoring agencies for the Better Safer World campaign met together after the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C., on September 11, 2001. The organizations involved concluded that it was absolutely necessary that the needs of over one billion people in the world who live in desperate [Page 78]poverty be met. The Better Safer World campaign was launched in order to force the American people, especially the American electorate, and the government of the United States to address poverty and instability.

It was officially launched on November 6, 2003, in Des Moines, Iowa. The reason that Des Moines was chosen was its agricultural role in the heartland of America. The farmers of Iowa and the surrounding states grow crops that feed much of the world. As food producers they have a more complete understanding of the issues of global hunger than most Americans. Moreover, Iowa is home to the Iowa caucuses where Iowa's educated and informed voters often set the issues to be discussed during American presidential races. The goal of the nine groups then was to affect the policy debates of the 2004 presidential election.

Further, Better Safer World was launched in order to recruit Americans to work to address poverty and global instability. The sponsors of the campaign have cited statistics that show that the United States is among the 21 wealthiest countries in the world. Yet it is 20th in the amount of foreign giving. Since the United States government contributes only one-tenth of 1 percent of its Gross National Product to foreign humanitarian assistance, it seems obvious to the sponsor of the campaign that the United States can and must do more.

Observing that the United States is the world's superpower with extensive resources, it should also have the most support for lending aid. The nine organizations supporting the Better Safer World campaign have thus called on the American people and the elected officials of the United States to increase their assistance to impoverished nations. The goal of the organizations sponsoring the Better Safer World campaign is not simply to increase relief to the suffering but also the ambitious elimination of poverty altogether. The appeal of the Better Safer World campaign is not simply to the United States government and its elected officials. The appeal is directed toward individual Americans as well. The Better Safer World campaign influenced the rhetoric used in the Republican Party platform in the 2004 election. The “One Campaign” is a follow-up campaign.