ACTION ALERT: About the R-word

[Guest guest]

You may have seen yesterday that in an interview, pop artist Lady Gaga used the R-word. When asked whether she plagiarized her song “Born this Way” from Madonna’s “Express Yourself,” Miss Gaga answered, “Why would I try to put out a song and think I'm getting one over on everybody? That's retarded.” (more details about this is below)

PLEASE TAKE 2 QUICK ACTIONS!

ACTION 1: Lady Gaga’s Facebook page is located here: www.facebook.com/ladygaga

To post on her wall you have to “Like” her page (you can un-like it later if you want) but we encourage you to post on her wall a simple message that says,

“Dear Lady Gaga, Thank you for apologizing for using the R-word.Please join us in advocating the inclusion, acceptance and respect of ALL people, including those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, by officially making your pledge not to use the R-word at www.r-word.org and asking your fans to do the same. Thank you.”

ACTION 2: You can call or email Lady Gaga’s publicist, Dennis , Head of Marketing at Universal Music/Interscope with this message D.dennehy@...:

Dear Mr. :

As an [advocate for/family member of/person with] people with intellectual and developmental disabilities I am requesting that you please forward this message to Lady Gaga:

Dear Lady Gaga, Thank you for apologizing for using the R-word. Please join us in advocating the inclusion, acceptance and respect of ALL people, including those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, by making your official pledge not to use the R-word at www.r-word.org and asking your fans to do the same. Thank you.

Respectfully, [NAME]

Email: D.dennehy@...

Spread the Word e-Newsletter

Dear friends of Spread the Word to End the Word:

You may have seen yesterday that in an interview with DME, pop artist Lady Gaga used the R-word. When asked whether she plagiarized her song “Born this Way” from Madonna’s “Express Yourself,” Miss Gaga answered, “Why would I try to put out a song and think I'm getting one over on everybody? That's retarded.” Read the full story.

After a large outcry from the Spread the Word to End the Word community, your voices were heard and Lady Gaga issued an apology in a statement she provided to Hilton.com! Congratulations! In part, her statement read, “My apologies for not speaking thoughtfully. To anyone that was hurt, please know that it was furiously unintentional.” Read the full statement.

Our campaign is about inclusion, acceptance, education and respect. In that spirit, we’d like to take this opportunity to thank Lady Gaga for her apology. We also invite her, along with her millions of fans, to join our movement. To do this, we need your help. Below are three ways you can help right now.

FacebookLady Gaga’s Facebook page is located here: www.facebook.com/ladygaga

To post on her wall you have to “Like” her page (you can un-like it later if you want) but we encourage you to post on her wall a simple message that says,

“Dear Lady Gaga, Thank you for apologizing for using the R-word.Please join us in advocating the inclusion, acceptance and respect of ALL people, including those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, by officially making your pledge not to use the R-word at www.r-word.org and asking your fans to do the same. Thank you.”

TwitterPlease tweet this message: @LadyGaga Please join us @EndtheWord and take the #Rword pledge to promote respect and inclusion for all people. http://r-word.org

Email and Phone You can call or email Lady Gaga’s publicist, Dennis , Head of Marketing at Universal Music/Interscope with this message:

Dear Mr. :

As an [advocate for/family member of/person with] people with intellectual and developmental disabilities I am requesting that you please forward this message to Lady Gaga:

Dear Lady Gaga, Thank you for apologizing for using the R-word. Please join us in advocating the inclusion, acceptance and respect of ALL people, including those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, by making your official pledge not to use the R-word at www.r-word.org and asking your fans to do the same. Thank you.

Respectfully, [NAME]

Email: D.dennehy@...

Please forward this to your friends!

Thank you for your continuing support to help Spread the Word to End the R-word!

Follow Spread the Word to End the Word on:

Special Olympics: Home Page | Ways to Give | Get Involved | Who We Are | What We Do | Fan CommunityBest Buddies: Home Page | Find a Program | Special Events | Get Involved | About Best Buddies | Make a Donation

This communication is sponsored by Special Olympics, Inc.and Best Buddies Intl. Click here to avoid receiving future e-mails from us.Remove yourself from this mailing.Remove yourself from all mailings from Special Olympics.