Manchester NO2ID Minutes, 13th February 2008

Recent Events
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Thanks to Louise and Kevin for volunteering to run the February stall. It was a fairly quiet one, but productive, and maintained our continuity nicely.

Kevin and Rachael ran a stall at the Kula Shaker gig in Warrington. The band are promoting NO2ID on tour, along with other civil liberties concerns. Local NO2ID groups managed to provide a stall for every gig on the tour, which is brilliant. Kevin and Rachael had a great time, saw the band for free, and helped spread the NO2ID message.

Our press release on the NHS Spine [1] attracted attention from the MEN [2] and local radio stations Imagine FM and Tower FM [3].

Dave has finally obtained footage of his two minutes on Channel M, and will look into putting this online.

[1]  http://manchester.no2id.net/node/31
[2]  http://manchester.no2id.net/node/35
[3]  http://manchester.no2id.net/node/39

Recent Non-Events
-----------------

Some of the things from last month's minutes that have not been done due to a lack of volunteer-time include:

* Contacting Greater Manchester political parties ahead of local elections
* Contacting schools' PSHE co-ordinators to organise "Taking Liberties" screenings
* Organising sale-or-return of "Taking Liberties" merchandise
* Arranging an emergency motion at the NUS national conference
* Setting up a Manchester NO2ID bank account and buying a stamp
* Inviting Greater Manchester MPs to take the NO2ID Pledge
* Obtaining the artwork for the Defy-ID CCTV CD

Dave has been working on improving the Manchester NO2ID website to make it easier for people to help out. Details will go to the Manchester NO2ID mailing list when this is ready.

Ongoing Activities
------------------

Kevin is looking into organising a Manchester NO2ID benefit / awareness-raising gig in Manchester. Tom has volunteered to help out with this.

Upcoming Events
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Monthly Street Stall, St. Ann's Square, 8th Mar, 2pm-4pm:

We'll be running a Saturday afternoon stall in St. Ann's Square to
raise awareness among the public and engage people in discussion about
the National Identity Register. We'll be encouraging people to take
the NO2ID Pledge, and collecting signatures for the NO2ID petition to
keep people in touch with the campaign.

We need a volunteer to bring our stall and leaflets to the square and
take it away afterwards, please contact  manchester@no2id.net if you
are able to do this.

We'll meet in the square itself at 2pm to set up shop; feel free to
join us to lend a hand or just chat. You don't need any experience or
equipment, just a bit of time to spare and a friendly smile!

Please note the new times for this event - we're starting and
finishing an hour later than previously!

-  http://manchester.no2id.net/node/37

Monthly Meeting, Town Hall Tavern, 12th Mar, 7pm-9pm:

Manchester NO2ID will be holding our monthly meeting in the upstairs
function room of the Town Hall Tavern, Tib Lane, Manchester. Sadly,
this venue is not wheelchair-accessible; please contact us on
 manchester@no2id.net if you have accessibility needs.

At our monthly meetings we discuss the state of the NO2ID campaign,
what we've been up to recently and where we're going in future.
Everyone is welcome, newcomer or not, curious or committed.

The Town Hall Tavern serves reasonably-priced, good quality food until
9pm so you don't need to pop home for tea - you can even order your
meal brought up to the function room.

-  http://manchester.no2id.net/node/38