Hunger Is Not a Game

This Friday, The Hunger Games will hit theatres nationwide and, I'm sure, even internationally. The world will be watching as teenagers flock to movie theatres to witness the brutality of the Capitol and its barbaric "Hunger Games," pitting children from each of Panem's twelve Districts in a Battle Royal-style fight to the death. Participation in "The Reaping," the lottery process by which two unlucky children from each district are chosen, is mandatory, but impoverished and hungry citizens can put their names in the lottery extra times in exchange for a little extra food. Meanwhile, the citizens of the Capitol live in absurd luxury, entertained annually by the twisted Hunger Games.

While the details may differ, The Hunger Games tells the story of the harsh inequality, artificial scarcity, and brutal violence inherent in our own systems. People are starving. People lack access to clean water. These aren't issue limited to far-off, "third world" countries either. Hunger happens even in the richest countries in the world. Hunger happens in my own backyard, and I assure you it happens in yours, too.

And this is NOT an impossible problem to solve.

The Harry Potter Alliance's Imagine Better Project has partnered with Oxfam America and Hunger Games fans across the nation and globe to draw attention to these issues and the solutions. This weekend, fans will collect donations of food for their local food banks and pledges of support for Oxfam's GROW campaign as the first step toward addressing the systematic problems which cause worldwide hunger.

So take the pledge (and if you do, leave a comment here letting me know why you signed!), tell your friends, Tweet hashtag #notagame this weekend, and find a food drive in your area or star your own! You'll be sending a silver parachute to someone in need when you do.

We stand with the Imagine Better Project
Hunger is Not a Game