By Isaac M. Morehouse

I don't like to solicit donations, but this one is as cheap as $1, and is something that touches the very foundaiton of our American freedoms and values.

The Institute for Justice (www.ij.org) has launched an incredibly bold drive to raise 10,000 separate donations on Monday to fight eminent domain (property rights) abuses. 10,000 also happens to be the number of times government used its eminent domain power to unjustly take property from its owners over a five-year period. Remember Suzette Kelo, whose little pink home was taken by the City of New London, Connecticut so they could hand the land over to some strip-mall developers? That's what IJ is fighting all over the nation.

I pledged a very small amount so I can be considered one of the 10,000. It's not about the amount, it's about getting a whopping 10,000 people to donate SOMETHING to the cause of protecting property rights. IJ has publicly proclaimed that they are seeking 10,000 contributions in one day - an incredible and record breaking number - if they do not reach their goal, it could appear that they do not have strong support from citizens in their mission to protect property rights.

IJ would rather have 100 contributions of $1 each than a few $100 contributions, so even a tiny gift helps them achieve their goal of 10,000 donations. I just went to their www.ij.org/keloday web page and all I had to enter was my first and last name, email address, and pledge amount. They'll email me a reminder to give on Monday.

PI readers should count it an honor to be counted as one of the 10,000 who want to end eminent domain abuse. More information below...

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Friends,

Two weeks ago, you received an e-mail from Susette Kelo inviting you to join the Susette Kelo Liberty Club. Three years ago this Monday, June 23, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that New London, Conn., could take Susette's little pink cottage in order to try to generate more tax revenue.

Now three years after the decision and $78 million in taxpayer dollars later, nothing has happened with the land. All that's left are brown, barren fields.

Yet the travesty here is not only that the lives of Susette and her neighbors were unnecessarily uprooted, but that this type of thing is happening all over the country.

Don't let the fights of these courageous individuals go in vain!

We need 10,000 people to go to www.ij.org/keloday and pledge to make a small donation - just $5 or $10 - to the Institute for Justice this coming Monday, June 23. This will send a message to policymakers and the media that our homes and businesses are not political capital that can be bandied about for personal and political gain.

We have never solicited our members for donations before, but this is a very special occasion and one that we hope you don't pass up being a part of. Your small contribution will help us continue the fight to end eminent domain abuse.

And if you're in the area of New London, Conn., please join us this coming Saturday from 1 to 3 pm when we'll reopen Susette's home at its new location in New London (36 Franklin Street).

Thank you so much, and please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions.

Best,

Christina Walsh
Castle Coalition Coordinator
Institute for Justice
www.ij.org
www.castlecoalition.org

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