You and I know that military hardware isn't the solution to Mexico's challenges--and it sure isn't the way to acknowledge the United States' "shared responsibility" for spiraling drug violence. We need to act today.

Did you know that Congress is currently poised to send anywhere from tens to hundreds of millions of additional dollars for helicopters, planes and other equipment to Mexico?

You and I know that military hardware isn't the solution to Mexico's challenges--and it sure isn't the way to acknowledge the United States' "shared responsibility" for spiraling drug violence. We need to act today.

You can help shape this new aid to Mexico--which is being considered as part of the 2009 Supplemental Appropriations Bill for Iraq and Afghanistan--by contacting your member of Congress this week, as members from the Senate and House Appropriations Committees come together to reconcile the differences between the Senate and House versions of the bill.  It is especially important for you to do so if any of your members are on the House or Senate Appropriations Committees.  Click here if you don't know who your member(s) of Congress are.  Click here for talking points and information on how to contact your member(s) of Congress.

Our partners in Mexico understand the need for a different approach that supports human rights and the rule of law.  In a recent statement sent to U.S. congressional leaders, over 70 Mexican human rights organizations voiced their opposition to U.S. assistance for the Mexican military urging the United States to instead support aid and policies that address the root causes of the violence and build long-lasting institutional change.

The United States must indeed join together with our neighbor Mexico as it grapples with the terrible drug and organized crime-related violence plaguing the country--but this problem will not be solved by sending military hardware and helicopters.

Please forward this message to five of your friends, family, and colleagues and help us build support for an effective approach to Mexico that truly recognizes our "shared responsibility" and is based on common sense, not sensational headlines.