Many designers selling their patterns on Ravelry have committed to donating some or all of their proceeds to relief organizations in Haiti.

A complete list of the patterns tagged 'Help for Haiti' can be found here. Using the 'Patterns' tab at this link, you can look up patterns that are in your queue or that you have favorited. This might be a good time to buy that pattern you've had your eye on for a while or something you know that you will be making some day.

At the advice of the yarn harlot, I'm putting up the knit signal for Haiti. The symbol is in recognition of the fact that knitters are a force to be reckoned with when we put our minds to something. Today, whether you are a knitter or not, do what you can for the people of Haiti.

You can donate to Doctors Without Borders here. Quoted from the Yarn Harlot's blog:

The MSF Hospital has sustained damage that means it isn't functioning as a hospital right now. Staff have moved to the courtyard
and set up tents and what materials they could retrieve from the
building and are doing their best to help people as they can. Doctors
who were providing maternity care are now running a trauma centre.

They, and their sister offices in other countries spent all night figuring out who could go and how to get them there, and staff is packing as we read this to get there as fast as they can. They'll be taking inflatable surgery suites with them so they can use that instead of their damaged buildings.

There are directed donation sites set up for Haiti on all of their websites, but I'd like to take a moment to ask you to please make your donation "undirected". Money given to a specific fund can only be used for that area and making sure your donation is undirected helps them a lot. It lets them keep serving other crises that continue to happen while the world watches Haiti, and more importantly, it allows them to be first responders.

On their websites (Canada here, USA here,here)
when you give there is a drop-down menu that you'll see called "I would
like my gift to be directed to..." and you'll see a lot of choices.
Please consider selecting "Greatest Needs" or "Emergency Relief" so
that they can have the flexibility that they need to do their best
work. Other countries can find their site

You can also donate to the Red Cross here.
The easiest way to donate is to text the word 'Haiti' to '90999' and
$10 will be billed on your next cell phone bill by the Red Cross.

The US State Department website links to this list of many different (valid) charities which are directing funds to Haiti.

On June 4th Planned Parenthood sent out a Mother's Day Fundraising letter written by Judy Blume:

If you are the daughter whose mom had the guts to give you the answers to questions you couldn't quite figure out how to ask...

If you are the son whose mother raised you to love and respect your sisters and wives and daughters...

If you know a mother who is struggling to raise strong, independent, and confident children in the face of unbelievable odds...

...Say thanks. Say thanks this Mother's Day with a gift that honors her courage by making a donation to Planned Parenthood in her name. I guarantee you that she'll be pleased. I know I would be.

I'm a mom, and I'm also a writer and an activist. Nothing has made me prouder than seeing my own children — and really, all young people — grow up to be healthy, educated, and in charge of their bodies and their lives. That's where Planned Parenthood comes in. There is no organization that I know of that supports motherhood and all that it means more than Planned Parenthood. That's why I'm honoring moms everywhere with my gift to Planned Parenthood today.

It's not easy to be a mother these days. And right now — with more and more women seeking care from Planned Parenthood health centers — we need to do all we can to support them. By honoring a mother in your life, you'll be making a gift to millions of mothers and families who seek care from Planned Parenthood. That's a gift any mother will appreciate.

Sincerely,

Judy Blume

Since then she has been innundated with hate mail, phone calls and even some death threats from anti-choice extremists. Click here to send a supportive note to Judy Blume. And then click here to support Planned Parenthood in honor of your mother. The best thing that could come out of this is if every outraged woman who adored Judy Blume's books as a teen donates and makes this campaign an overwhelming success.

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Publishers Weekly (who themselves laidoff their high-profile Managing Editor and a bunch of other top level editors a couple of weeks ago), published this article about the craft industry's success in this bad economy. The article talks about crafters using their skills to repurpose and remake things, the frugalness of crafters, the sense of community found on Etsy and other craft web sites, the number of young people involved in crafting as an alternative to the electronic world and the increasing use of green materials in craft. The fact that all of the quoted craft publishers are enthusiastic about the near future speaks multitudes in a month when the two oldest presses in the world (Oxford and Cambridge University Presses) have announced big layoffs.

Steven Colbert talked about radical knitting on Wednesday's show. The featured artitst does mostly crochet, but it's common for non fiber people to confuse the two. We still love you Steven. And we would welcome the liberal crocheters out there to our fold.

Take a break from the 24 hour news cycle and have a look at what our fellow liberal knitters are up to. A quick search on Ravelry for key words Obama, Hope and Change found lots and lots of original creations. Here are a few. (The links go to Ravelry - apologies to those of you who aren't members)

My Jewish Grandma is Voting for Obama by LisaAnne

Encouraging Hope Hats by tikkunknitter

Bark Obama Dog Sweater by Mysavannahcottage.etsy.com

Yes We Can! (No he McCaint) by LisaAnne

Yes We Can Coffee Cup Cozy by Galnoir

Yes We Can Socks (in progress) by Himalaya

 I'm so proud of my fellow knitters who have channeled their creativity (and maybe a bit of frustration too) into these amazing creations.

If Helen knits we need to recruit her right now.