When was the last time you wrote a letter?

First-year student Anneka Spice is hoping many of her peers, members of the TRU community and people across Kamloops will do just that, in a collective effort to speak out against human rights violations.

Look for the bright yellow balloons, stickers and decorations on the second floor of Arts and Education on Monday, Dec. 10, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. That’s when Spice is hosting the Write for Rights event on behalf of Amnesty International.

Amnesty International publishes 10 cases of human rights violations each year as part of the Write for Rights initiative. Anyone can write and send letters of support to various government officials on behalf of people around the world who are imprisoned or face other legal hardships related to human rights violations.

This year, all of the cases Amnesty is featuring focus on women at the forefront. They include women imprisoned for speaking out against the death penalty, attacked for supporting LGBT rights, advocating for people with disabilities and other issues.

All materials are provided for anyone who drops in to write a letter.

While all the cases are all important to Spice, one in particular caught her attention: the Sengwer Indigenous people in Kenya fighting for ancestral land rights. She intends to write a letter in support for each of this year’s 10 cases.

It’s clear that Spice has humanitarianism on her mind. She knows many of her peers are also thinking beyond the confines of their hometown and hopes to engage them in human rights activism.

“It’s important for us to find our place in the global community and to find out what we believe in at a young age. Letter writing is great because you don’t need money, you just need some time. That makes it perfect for university students who don’t have extra cash,” she added with a laugh.

Visit Write for Rights online to view this year’s cases.