This Thursday, the members of the UN will be gathering in New York to discuss the Millennium Development Goals. The UN ambitiously hopes to end poverty by 2015. This week’s summit marks the halfway point and an opportunity to evaluate their progress.

In the last few years, celebrities have joined the campaign to raise awareness about poverty, attempting to convince us that global poverty can be eradicated by pressuring the G8. However, the celebrity campaign ironically represents the flawed approach of this approach. The poor of this world are the victims of an unfair distribution of wealth that is flaunted by obscenely overpaid celebrities like Bono, Bob Geldof, Tom Hanks, Sean “Diddy” Combs, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Cameron Diaz, 50 Cent, George Clooney, Madonna, etc.

The real problem with their campaign is the way it distracts people from real solutions and avoids the fact that we need to make fundamental changes to the distribution of wealth in order to make a lasting impact on poverty.

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On August 31st, Andrew Berends was arrested in Port Harcourt, Nigeria with his translator Samuel George, while shooting his documentary film Delta Boys. Later, the Nigerian police arrested Andrew’s friend, Joe Bussio, for no other reason than Joe had given Andrew a place to stay.

Andrew has since been sent back to the States by the Nigerian government, Joe has been cleared, but Samuel’s case is still pending, as the State Security Services continue to ask him to return to their offices sporadically.

Samuel and Joe have incurred $10,000 in legal fees in the course of this ordeal, and we are calling out for donations to help them pay these expenses.

It is important that translators and local journalists around the world know that they can do their jobs without fear for their lives, their families, or the expenses they will incur on our behalf.

To chip in, visit the Joe Bussio and Samuel George ChipIn page.