Petitions

A petition drive is a simple yet effective way to show the film industry the power of thousands of choices against on-screen smoking and tobacco imagery in movies. By sending the MPAA the message that people aren't satisfied with the current rating system, the petition drive gives the power back to the public to change Hollywood. Take these five steps to carry out a successful petition drive:

Step 1: Educate yourself, your Alliance and the community organizations you belong to on Screen Out!

By educating yourself, you will become a resource on the issue of on-screen smoking and tobacco imagery, not only for your community, but for local media as well. Visit the "Toolkit" section in the Get Involved area to find plenty of resources to educate yourself on the Screen Out! principles.

Step 2: Develop a petition drive action plan that works best in your community.

Meet with your Alliance or community organization to brainstorm activities that will work where you live. Use the following petition form to use at you petition drive. You can also sign our online petition!

Here are some ideas to get you started:

• Create a petition event in your community.
• Gather signatures at a movie theatre, video rental store (Blockbuster, Hollywood Video), or retailer (Best Buy, Circuit City). Also use events such as Fall Festivals, children's sporting events and PTA meetings.

Step 3: Follow your petition drive action plan.

When executing your petition drive here are some things you will want to remember:

• Bring a camera or a video recorder to document your activities.
• Hand out promotional items or flyers that you read about under Step 1
• Be prepared to field questions from both the public and the media. Be sure to line up local alliance members and partnering organizations that are comfortable talking about the campaign.

Step 4: Publicize the petition drive to your community.

Be sure to publicize your event to your local media at least two weeks before the event date. Go to Media Outreach to download press releases, letters to the editor and other resources to reach out to the press.

Step 5: Let Hollywood know how you feel.

Upon the completion of your event, make 1 copy of your petition forms. Send the original petitions to:

Motion Pictures Association of America
Attn: Dan Glickman President
1600 Eye Street, NW
Washington, DC 20006

Secondly, send the copies of your petitions to the AMA Alliance office so your efforts can be tracked in the database.