Shiftdough.org, a rag-tag collection of activists, hired us to attract media attention to its bold act of civil disobedience: dropping a banner from Iowa's State Capitol in Des Moines.

Our Job

Essentially, we joined Shiftdough.org. We assisted in every aspect of the event, creating the banner, finding climbers, briefing spokespeople, and pitching the event to the news media.

Results

The event was covered by all the major media in Iowa, including all local TV stations, the wire servies, state-wide radio stations, campus news outlets, and the largest daily newspapers.

Shiftdough.org

Contact: Michael Sprong 515-771-xxxx              For Immediate Release

Activists Climb Iowa State Capitol

Giant Banner Unveiled Below the Gold Dome:
"Build Schools, Not Bombs"

This morning, you can see more on Iowa's Capitol than the beautiful gold dome. In a spectacular sunrise demonstration, activists risked arrest-and their lives-by scaling Iowa's Capitol and dropping a giant "Build Schools, Not Bombs" banner from the scaffolding below the dome.

"Our country is wasting billions on fighter jets, while our schools are crumbling," said Michael Sprong, a spokesman for Shiftdough.org. "It is time to build more schools and fewer bombs."

In support of their build-schools-not-bombs slogan, activists cited the following facts:

- Eleven million of our kids--including 58,000 in Iowa--do not have health insurance. Yet, America spends $280 billion annually on the Pentagon and only $30 billion on children's health programs.

- Over 1,000 Iowa schools--and tens of thousands more across the country--need renovation or replacement. Yet, America spends $280 billion annually on the Pentagon and only $31 billion on education.

- Half of the money allocated by Congress each year goes to the Pentagon, leaving domestic programs--like agriculture, education, Head Start, and housing--underfunded. The Pentagon budget remains at 90% of Cold War peacetime averages.

- The U.S. Pentagon budget is twice as large as the combined defense budgets of China, Russia, and all potential adversaries.

"The Cold War has been over for a decade, and we've never seen the peace dividend," said Sprong. "By shifting dough out of the Pentagon, American could make dreams come true for farmers, kids, teachers, and future generations."

Shiftdough.org is a collection of activists who call for shifting dough out of the Pentagon budget and into human needs.

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