Fa-la-la with Fair Trade

by Zarah Patriana · 2008-12-12 14:17:00 UTC
Topics:

Tonight is my second annual holiday party. My roommate and I affectionately refer to it as Chrismukkah. It's a hybrid holiday for our little household of two holiday traditions. Last year we had candy canes, latkes, mistletoe and meshuganog. Another thing my friends and I enjoy doing is singing. Not that we're all great singers, but we just love singing at the top of our lungs in unison. No song goes unvisited, ahem, Toadies, 'Possum Kingdom', ahem.

So, tonight at the party, we are likely to bust out in some holiday tunes. Now,  this year I can add some Fair trade into the mix. There is a new campaign at Global Exchange called Fair Trade Holiday Caroling. It's just like the holiday caroling days of yore, but this time with songs about Fair Trade.

Join in on the holiday action by walking door to door or going out to any public place like in front of stores, subway stations, up and down the street -- wherever you feel like belting out some tunes. Just sing a few carols, tell people about Fair Trade and then ask them to make a resolution to buy Fair Trade this holiday season and into the new year.

Can't think up a holiday song with some Fair Trade lyrics? Well, you're in luck. This summer, Fair Traders from all over submitted their songs and they've been compiled into a nice song book, which you can find here along with all the tools you need to spread some holiday cheer.

Here's a taste of one of the songs you can sing. Submitted by Louise Nelson in Austin, Texas. It's call 'Fair Trade All The Way' to be sung to the tune of Jingle Bells.

Handmade crafts, hand-dyed scarves,
Made with loving care
By artisans who benefit
From prices that are fair.

Chocolate bars, coffee beans,
Fair trade all the way.
Oh what fun they are to give
And get on Christmas Day.

When you buy fair trade,
You're buying someone's time
Ensuring they receive
More than just a dime.
When you give fair trade,
You give more than a gift -
You're giving opportunities
To those who need a lift!

Oh, handmade crafts, hand-dyed scarves,
Made with loving care
By artisans who benefit
From prices that are fair.

Chocolate bars, coffee beans,
Fair trade all the way.
Oh what fun they are to give
And get on Christmas Day!

I'm warming up my vocal chords already. Fa-la-la with me fellow Fair Traders.

 And of course a shout out to all the participating organizations.

Zarah Patriana
PREVIOUS STORY:
Holiday Gifts for Peace in Darfur
NEXT STORY:
A letter from Bettina Siegel, "Pink Slime" petition creator

COMMENTS (0)

    Comment Policy

    · All fields are required to comment.

    [X]

    Comments on Change.org are meant for further exploration and evaluation of the campaign on Change.org. To that end, we welcome constructive comments. However, we reserve the right to delete comments which, as determined solely in our discretion: (1) are offensive, abusive, or off-topic; (2) include content solely intended to personally attack the campaign creator, (3) are designed to subvert or hijack comment threads rather than contribute to them; and/or (4) violate our terms of service and/or privacy policy. Repeat offenders may be permanently removed from the site at our discretion. Please also be advised that: (A) we do not actively curate and/or monitor in any manner whatsoever the comments made on the Change.org platform, and (B) the creator of each campaign on Change.org may remove any comment at her/his/its discretion.