Buddies Get Wrapping for International White Band Day

You can imagine the buddies' disappointment when they first caught a glimpse of NetAid's "Fight Poverty" wristbands. The white bands, which show unity in the fight against global poverty, were made to fit human wrists. You see, the buddies are little people, and the bands are more like elastic waistbands for them than bracelets. At the end of long days spent lobbying for universal education, more than a few of the buddies let off steam in the NetAid office by using the bands as hula hoops.

Then came July 1-the first International White Band Day. In a show of global unity, people around the world wrapped prominent landmarks in giant white bands. In Australia, the entire Sydney Harbor Bridge was enveloped by white fabric; so was London's St. Paul's Cathedral and the famous Trevi Fountain in Rome.

Always prepared, the buddies had a delegation at every event. No one's sure who was the first to do it, but it caught on instantly. One by one, the buddies began to wrap themselves in the white wristbands, taking their advocacy to the next level.

People around the world are following their lead. Everywhere you look you can see it catching on: white tunics are made out of old sheets; white bows hold together the braids of schoolgirls; white bandannas wrap around necks. In a show of solidarity with the world's poor, the buddies have pledged to wear the white bands throughout the week leading up to the G8 summit (they promise to wash them).

"If we keep this up," a buddy from South Africa said as he walked through a shantytown in Soweto draped in white, "our voices will be impossible to ignore."

Learn how you can wear the white band.

Read the first entry of the BuddyBlog, Buddies Arrive at Netaid, and see buddies from around the U.S. take over the NetAid office.