Here is how you can help saving the Delta Queen – immediately and without much effort! The crew of the Delta Queen has put together a dramatic Youtube video clip asking for help saving their jobs as well as a national historic treasure, the Delta Queen.

Please, go to Youtube, watch the video there and then vote for it and leave a comment(just “Save the Delta Queen!” is okay; we need a high count of comments!) and forward it to everyone you know asking them to do the same. Please, do it NOW; we need as much impact as possible within the first 24-48 hours of this video being online to be effective!
(if you’re not a member of Youtube, please don’t hesitate to register in order to make comments and vote for the video. The Youtube membership is free and without any obligations. Please, do this for the Delta Queen! ).

Here is the link to the video at Youtube:

This is what the DQ’s crew has to say:

Please help us, the crew of the Delta Queen, save both our jobs and a national treasure!

The Delta Queen is the last traditional steamboat carrying overnight passengers on our inland waterways, an example of a time when the rivers were our highways. The steamboat is one of the most significant inventions in the history of the world, and it is an American invention. Before the power of steam was harnessed to transportation, the fastest that people could travel was the speed of a galloping horse. The arrival of the steamboat meant that not only could people and goods travel faster, so could knowledge and information. That transforms society!

The people who work on this boat are some of the finest people you could possibly meet. Many of them lost everything they had in Hurricane Katrina; the stories passengers tell of those tragic days when many staff had no idea where their family members were, yet continued to provide exemplary service, are heart-rending.  We are family on the boat—black, white, Hispanic, Asian, gay, straight—we look out for each other, and cannot bear the idea that after 81 years of service, our boat will end because of political greed!

Senator George Voinovich of Ohio has introduced a "Save the Delta Queen" bill in the U.S. Senate (bill no. S. 3498) to exempt her from the 1966 Safety at Sea Law. Support comes from at least eight other Senators, both Republicans and Democrats, and there are more to join in soon.

While this bill alone will not save the Delta Queen directly, it raises enormous attention and is an important step. Newspapers, TV and radio stations and blogs are reporting about the Save the Delta Queen efforts frequently and the number of media coverage increases every day now. What a momentum!

Please, ask your Senator for support!
Get on the phone, go to your Senator’s local offices, fire up your fax machines and urge your Senators to support and co-sponsor this important bill (S. 3498) to give the Delta Queen a chance to survive. Contact your local newspapers and TV stations to report about what it means to you and your community if the Delta Queen disappears forever. Even if you did contact your Senator before, give them an update and let them know about the bill no. S 3498.
You’ll find the contact information for your Senator at: www.senate.gov (in the upper right corner, just choose your state; phone numbers and addresses of your Senators will be listed).

The Delta Queen is safe!
Don’t forget to point out that all this is not about safety, because the Delta Queen in fact is a very safe boat. Detailed information about the Delta Queen’s safety can be found at deltaqueen.wordpress.com/deltaqueensafety/.

Already on the list of co-sponsors of bill S. 3498 are Senators …

• Lamar Alexander (R-Tennessee)
• Evan Bayh (D-Indiana)
• Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio)
• Thad Cochran (R-Mississippi)
• Tom Harkin (D-Iowa)
• Richard Lugar (R-Indiana)
• Barack Obama (D-Illinois)
• David Vitter (R-Louisiana)
  

Update Sept. 20:

• Thad Cochran (R-MS)
• Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
• Blanche Lincoln (D-AR)
• Roger Wicker (R-MS)

Update Sept. 22:

• Mitch McConnell (R-KY)

In four states both Senators have joined in now:

• Ohio
• Iowa
• Indiana
• Mississippi

(We’ll be updating this list when new co-sponsors are signing up.)

You might also want to call these Senator’s offices to let them know how much you appreciate their support. They need to hear from all of us that they’re doing the right thing.

After a long period of struggles and doubts, I eventually do have the strong feeling that we can win this battle! The Delta Queen will be saved if we all work together. Please, contact your Senator right now. We don’t have much time to loose.

Thank you, Senator George Voinovich, for rolling up your sleeves and tackling this issue in the Senate!

We’re proud to present a wonderful new radio documentary about the Delta Queen. Cincinnati-based radio producer Mike Martini (WMKV-FM/Maple Knoll Communities, Inc.) made this comprehensive documentary about the Delta Queen to be run in September 2008 and gave the permission to air it here on save-the-delta-queen.org.

“Against the Current: The Plight of Paddlewheeler Delta Queen” is about the Delta Queen and the “Save the Queen” campaign and I can’t imagine a reason you don’t want to hear it – it’s just wonderful!

Mike Martini has also extendes permission to anyone who would like to air it on any radio station as long as it remains intact and unedited.  If a United States’ radio station would like a CD copy, let us know and we’ll forward your request to Mike; he’ll try and send one through the mail.

In case the above player doesn’t work on your computer, here are links to the pure MP3 files: part 1 – part 2.