Mia Farrow will begin a hunger strike on Monday, April 27th. Many others will fast alongside of her. “We fast in solidarity with the people of Darfur because they do not have a choice. We fast as a personal expression of outrage at a world that has allowed the suffering of millions of innocent people.”
WE ARE THE POLITICAL WILL
We must keep consistent pressure on our leaders in the coming days and weeks for Darfur. Please continue to contact your local, state and national leaders to let them know that Darfur is important to all of us, and that they must take action.
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Updates
Heard from UNHCR friend Carlos, in Chad: that Rahma passed all his classes and is doing well. Happy for Rahma; I miss our friends out there 1 day ago
Thanks everyone for following and for acting. The big thanks come from the people in the camps-they send their love, prayers for all of you. 4 days ago
Back in CA. We talked a lot about decompression out in the field- how to keep going. The stories, the faces, the total impact stays wit you 4 days ago
At Paris airport--waiting to board for LA. Always strange to be back in land of too much. 5 days ago
Many people still ask, Who or What is Darfur? I know that each and every one of us has at least 10 friends who, if we broached the subject, would ask just that. Here is your chance to invite them to learn about Darfur in 5 minutes.
Email this short description (or write your own) to 10 friends with a link to today’s video: Darfur 101. Not sure what Darfur is? Check out Darfur 101, it will only take 5 minutes. If you have time, read a little on the site too. Knowledge is power; power to make a difference.
The i-ACT team heads to Camp Kounoungo today for the first time in over a year. Stay tuned for a few more days of i-ACT from the Chad-Darfur border: same-day videos, photos, journals and reunions with old friends as far back as i-ACT1!
This week the Obama Administration has brought together key signatories and over 30 countries in Washington to discuss the fate of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in Sudan. John Norris, Executive Director of ENOUGH Project, noted recently, “One of the key problems with the CPA to date has been the fact that the parties to the CPA, particularly President Bashir’s National Congress Party, have not faced any cost from the international community for a failure to implement key provisions of the agreement. Unless that changes, conflict in Sudan will only intensify.”
We cannot allow this to happen. The US must be a leader in the international community. After meeting the beautiful people of Darfur, we are responsible to act. While these important leaders are in Washington, take action:
1. Call you member of Congress through the Capitol switchboard at 202.225.3121.Urge them to hold hearings on Sudan and continue to make this issue a high priority for Congress.
2. Sign the open letter to President Obama encouraging his administration to address the immediate humanitarian crisis in Darfur and to achieve long term peace through a political solution for all of Sudan.
Let us be heard by our leader, President Barack Obama. Everyone we meet has faith that he will do the right thing. We even met one man who named is newborn son, Obama because President Obama believes in peace, justice and democracy. Unfortunately, President Obama is like most other politicians in that his actions are motivated by re-election. He needs to hear from you.
This week, between 9am-5pm EST, call the White House 202-456-1111 and tell President Obama to bring justice and peace to Darfur.
If you get a busy signal. Please don’t give up. Call back, usually it takes a few quick dials within a few minutes to reach one of the White House Operators.
Today is Father’s Day. Around the world families will come together to celebrate the men who have given so much to their children. Looking out across yesterday’s World Refugee Day celebration, I didn’t see many men, it was mostly the colorful scarves of women and children. The men who did survive the violent attacks on the villages and made it here, tell us stories of not only the horrors of violence, but of the emotional struggle to continue to survive away from their own homes every day. Their eyes say alot.
This Father’s Day we are asking you to write an open Father’s Day letter to the editor to your LOCAL PAPER. Tell them of the stories you have learned and of the Darfuri fathers you have personally connected with. Ask President Obama, a father himself and the father of our country, to work to bring justice and peace to our beautiful friends.
Today is World Refugee Day. i-ACT is providing live video feed from refugee camps in Chad and there are events all around the world to honor the lives and the daily struggles of refugees. Each moment you spend getting to know a Darfuri brings you closer to the reality of today’s theme: Real People, Real Needs.
Today we invite you to go deeper by joining Darfur Fast for Life. For at least one day, 24 hours, fast on water-only or refugee rations in solidarity with the people of Darfur. Today, even as we honor them, they have few choices compared to ours.
To learn more about refugee rations and to join Darfur Fast for Life visit the website.
I have had many discussions in the past few years about why people choose to look the other way about Darfur. Or about most part a majority of the human rights violations and mass atrocities around the world. I think many times it’s because if we know, we bear the moral responsibility to act. But it is not just that. Once we know what is going on, we look at our own lives differently, we change, we grow, we hurt more, and we love more.
Tomorrow is World Refugee Day 2009: Real People, Real Needs.
Tune in to the live feed from Camp Djabal. It’s over several hours so please make time to join us. There will be an interactive, live chat and twitter feed through the website. Invite your friends with this flyer or leave them at a neighborhood coffee house.
Today, Thursday June 18, 2009, Secretary of State Clinton will be attending a special event for World Refugee Day in Washington D.C. with Angelina Jolie, Anderson Cooper, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Anontio Guterres. i-ACT will be bringing our friend Rahma from Chad, through video, to meet Secretary of State Clinton. You too can be part of i-ACT by TEXTing Cinton at 90822. Send her this message:
Today you met refugees from Camp Djabal. What are you doing to help them return home to Darfur?
For seven years we have advocated on every level for new policies, new pressure points, for carrots and sticks that may shift or create change on the ground in Darfur. Yet the situation has only gotten worse, not better. As US Special Envoy to Sudan, General J Scott Gration bears the responsibility to personally hold accountable those who are abusing their power in Khartoum and slowly exterminating a valuable culture.
Call General Gration 202-647-4531 and tell him of the conditions in the camps and of the refugees lives. Describe what you have learned through the videos and journals. Make Darfur personal, it is not just a region, it is an entire culture.
To learn more about specific policy asks, please visit the ENOUGH Project.
During the Holocaust, there was a couple living in Germay who learned to the truth of what the Nazi regime was doing. For as long as they could, they left flyers in public places telling this truth. They didn’t know if it made a difference, but it was all they felt they could do. They risked their lives to stand up against the Nazis. They were courageous. Their flyers made history because they did reach people. Take a risk, step outside your own comfort zone.
Print 10 of these flyers, cut them in quarters, and leave them in your community. It might be a risk, but it is something we can all do. You never know who will pick one up.
Every i-ACT, the team asks ourselves how we can create a personal connection between Darfur and the individuals of Darfur and you. How do we deepen your relationship? How do we give you the tools and resources to create the a personal relationship between your community and the survivors of Darfur?
For the next 10 day’s i-ACT Actions will focus on bringing you creative and innovative actions, tools, and resources that bring you closer to the individuals of Darfur but also allow you to build a bridge between your community and Darfur. Please, if you have comments, questions, see an opportunity or want to share an idea that is new or one that has worked for your community, please make comments! We are listening and open.
Today’s Actions:
1. Personally tell five friends about Darfur and invite them to follow i-ACT. Email them, call them, direct twitter them, or send a facebook message. Make it personal. Your relationship with them will be the motivating factor.
2. Join one of our social networks and set your status or send a message about i-ACT8.
World Refugee Day (WRD) is a time of celebration. To honor the survivors who were forced fled their homes and sought refuge and safety from violence. To recognize them as part of us. WRD is also a time to reflect on the root causes of mass atrocities and solutions to bring those who were forced to run back home. It should be a day of action, as action is the very best way to honor and celebrate the sorrows and triumphs of humanity by connecting with humanity in the toughest of times.
On Saturday June 20, 2009, World Refugee Day will be celebrated around the world in internally displaced person’s camps and refugee camps throughout the world. This year’s theme is Real People, Real Needs. We ask you can be part of this day and to bring celebration and action into you life.
ACTIONS:
1. Participate in a live web streaming from Chad refugee camps. Follow our team as they capture the daily life and special WRD events. Ask questions via the live chat, and spread the word via your online social networks.
2. In solidarity with and in honor of the theme, Real People, Real Needs, fast from midnight to midnight for WRD - join here.
3. During the World Refugee Day web streaming, invite a few friends and family to your home to share in the experience. The live streaming and chat offer the opportunity for you to actively deepen the relationship between your community and refugees. Making our very large world personal is part of the long term solution that can create peace, justice and equality.
Mother’s Day is a day we honor the mother’s, especially our own mothers, for their love and devotion to their children, and in many cases to the community around them. For the past six years the mothers of Darfur have struggled to remain strong in the face of violence, towards them and their families. Many have survived and many others have died. Many have lost children, and many carried children on their backs across the desert with little to no food or water. Today, as the situation worsens, they face death by starvation and disease.
This Mother’s Day, take action to honor the mothers of Darfur, and keep consistent and public pressure on the administration:
1. Families: write an open Mother’s Day Card to Michelle Obama. When describing herself, she says, first and foremost, she is Malia and Sasha’s mom. The mothers of Darfur need our support, and Mother’s Day is the perfect day to honor their strength and advocate for their freedom to live their lives in peace.
Send a copy to the editor of your local paper and ask them to publish it, and one to the First Lady. If you want the card to go to a mother of Darfur, send the original to Stop Genocide Now. Here are a few examples for cards and open letters.
Addresses: First Lady Michelle Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington DC 20500
Stop Genocide Now - The Mothers of Darfur
1732 Aviation Blvd #138
Redondo Beach, CA 90277
2. Mothers, sisters, daughters: In solidarity with Darfur survivors, read one or more entries from the collection One Voice: Testimonies of Darfurian Mothersat your place of worship or Mother’s Day celebration, with your family, or perform it on a street corner.
3. Everyone: On Mother’s Day participate in a global day of Fasting - water only or refugee rations.
Mia sent a note to friends and fellow Darfur activists, “I am ready to go on a hunger strike.” Mia has visited the Darfur region eleven times, spending countless hours hearing the horrific stories of survivors. She also spent hours creating community with the proud and courageous men, women and children. They did not know about her celebrity back home. They saw someone standing with them at the most difficult and dangerous times.
When Mia told of her fast, this group of friends decided to support and join her and thus, Darfur Fast for Life. The fast begins April 7th and continues indefinitely. The situation on the ground—more than a million people in imminent danger of dehydration, disease, and starvation—and the long, slow destruction of a society and culture moved Mia to this action. A positive vision of a world in which the human rights of ALL humans is respected is what motivates this group to stand today and tomorrow with the people of Darfur.
We, the people, are the political will that will motivate our leaders to take action. President Obama has appointed a special envoy, J Scott Gration, but we need more immediate action that will change the situation in the ground. As noted recently in an op-ed by Enough Project’s John Prendergast and Jim Wallis, Obama Can Make a Difference in Darfur.
He has top advisors and in contact with our movement’s leaders. What we need to do is continue putting high and consistent pressure on our leaders - locally, at the State level, and directly on the Obama Administration.
Things you can do:
1. At least once a day please call President Obama at 202.456.1111 (9am-5pm EST Monday-Friday), State Department at 202.647.6575 (call anytime to leave a message), or text Secretary Clinton at 90822 and tell them:
“I am from _____ and I want the Obama Administration to uphold his promises of action for Darfur with ‘unstinting resolve.’ Work to get aid back into Darfur. Create a multilateral peace plans for all of Sudan. Work to isolate al-Bashir from his allies and support the ICC. ”
2. Call 1-800-GENOCIDE (1-800-436-6243) to contact your Senators and Congressional leaders. Many around the country are meeting them to be stronger advocates for Darfur as food, water, and medicine runs dry.
3. Stay up-to-date about what is going on inside of Darfur at While We Wait and Damanga
4. April 29th will mark the 100th day of office for Obama, and yet another 100 days of inaction for Darfur. From now until April 29th, we need to be loud and consistent in our words. On April 27th, Mia Farrow, supported by a group of our movement’s leaders and by people like you, will start a hunger strike. Stay tuned for more details on Darfur Fast for Life.
There is so much we can be doing for Darfur, especially right now. Today’s action offers to vey different opportunities, both, I hope, will make a difference for people on the ground.
Action 1: Support UNAMID Peacekeeping Force by emailing key United Nations Ambassadors. Recent attacks on UNAMID have left the only line of protection for Darfur defenseless. Key nations are failing to offer financial, material, and/or human help during this incredibly vulnerable time. Tell China, Egypt, South Africa, US, and UK leaders to make Darfur a priority.
Action 2: Armenia, Holocaust, Cambodia, Bosnia, Rwanda - this April these genocides will be commemorated and we will remember all the times we broke our promise of Never Again. April is Genocide Prevention Month. There are events all over the world commemorating past genocides and taking action NOW for Darfur. Find an event, or check out their list of 30 Things You Can Do. Save Darfur also has resources for the events! History tells a story of bloody April after bloody April, continue to take action for Darfur so that history will say April 2009 was the month that genocide ended in Darfur.
Los Angeles Action: Please join us on Sunday, April 5th 1:00 pm for an Interfaith Sedar @ the LA Federal Building on Wishire Blvd! Download the updated flyer.
Urgent Action 1: The New York Times reported today that “Arab Leaders Unite Behind Bashir”, claiming that the ICC indictment against him is a violation of Sudan’s sovereignty. After spending the last 4 days talking to people who have suffered for 5 years or more as a direct result of this man’s government, news like this is very hard to read. Regardless of the type of government a country has, the opinion of its citizenry has an impact, especially when that opinion is shared by many. If you have friends, relatives or colleagues with links to countries represented in the Arab League, talk to them about Darfur. Point them to the i-ACT website. Share with them the voices of the refugees. Truth will prevail.
Action 2:Calling and writing our leaders is important, and provides consistency in our message that we will not accept genocide in Darfur any longer. But we also need to shift our actions to match the urgency necessary to stop the dying in Darfur. We need you and your community to bring Darfur to your Senate office. This would be an opportunity to thank them if they have acted for Darfur and share stories, photos or videos of Darfuris and ask them to be a Darfur advocate. Start to organize a sit-in at your Senators office by taking these easy steps::
1. Look up your Senators, and their offices. Are they on any special committees like Human Rights or Foreign Policy? Get to know their Darfur Score.
2. Discuss the opportunity with your friends, family and community. Gather a list of those who may potentially participate.
3. If you are interested in doing this action, send an email to i-actinfo[at]stopgenocidenow.org.
Los Angeles Action: Please join us on Sunday, April 5th 1:00 pm for an Interfaith Sedar @ the LA Federal Building on Wishire Blvd! Download the updated flyer.
We must demand that our leaders pay more attention to Darfur. We need our message to be loud and consistent. Today we are asking you to spend a little more time on your daily action. Write a letter to your leader outlining what needs to happen before we will be quiet and step down from our urgent campaigns. It’s simple - the Enough Project has outlined thepolicy asks. Download this sample by Sandra Hammal from earlier this month. Make it personal, print off a picture of a Darfuri or add information about the camps from our recent journals. Stamp it and send. You can also paste it into this web form for President Obama. It’s easy.
For today—Sunday’s—action, we are reverting to what feels symbolic and trivial, compared to what is happening to the people of Darfur. The team here will be fasting, in solidarity with the children in this camp and the more than one million people that will go without food soon inside of Darfur. We will also make a small donation ($25 each) towards nutrition, through USA for UNHCR.
We are requesting that you join us in the fast (from sunup to sundown, or with any type of fast that works for you) and also send in the donation towards nutrition. Besides this, in order to work on the political will that is missing, we would like you to call your Senators’ office and tell them about your fast, and that you expect them to be your loud voice in Washington. Action is needed now. Click here to find the phone number for the Senator of your state.
Please donate to improve nutrition in the camps:
Make checks out to: USA for UNHCR
On memo line, write: SGN - Fast for Darfur
Send to:
Stop Genocide Now
1732 Aviation Blvd. #138
Redondo Beach, CA 90278
100% of tax-deductible donation will go to UNHCR’s work to improve nutrition at Darfuri refugee camps.
John Norris from ENOUGH has brought to our attention in a recent post, Bad Moon Rising, that the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is thinking about meeting with Sudan’s indicted war criminal, President Bashir. We need to act fast to make sure that this does not happen at the Arab League Meeting in Doha. Inevitably, as Norris notes, pictures will be leaked and a media blitz from Bashir and his colleagues will follow. Contact Secretary General Ban ki-Moon and send him the message: Don’t meet with Bashir, an indicted war criminal, you will be legitimizing his regime and their actions.
Contact him the following ways:
Leave a message on the United Nations general comment line: 212-963-4475 and Press * to leave a message.
Contact Ban ki-Moon’s Special Assistant on the Prevention of Genocide, Francis Deng, and urge him to pressure the Secretary General not to meet with Bashir. Phone: 917-367-2078; Email: DengF@un.org.
No more activism-as-usual. We have tried that for the past six years. Get creative for Darfur! i-ACT has collected hours of video , thousands of photos, dozens of drawings and testimonies from Darfur refugee camps. For today’s action we are challenging you to step outside the status quo Darfur action box. Using these resources what are creative ways that you can use these resources to reach your community? All of our content is under Creative Commons License - please feel free to use it and let people know where you got it! Here are some ideas to get your energy moving:
Create a t-shirt design and enter it in a contest: Design by Humans or Threadless
Write a song or rap (or cover a song) and play it with a slideshow of Darfur children: An Example by Greg Lawson or from a Darfuri
Create a poster, collage, sticker, image…to hang in your community, in streets, in bathroom stalls, on cars (magnets!), everywhere! Post it on the web FREE and share it!
Replace the front page of your local paper with the REAL NEWS: Check out the LA Times cover page!
We need new ideas. We cannot accept the status quo from the Government of Sudan, and we cannot accept the status quo of activism - we need new angles, new actions, things that will push our movement forward. We need to step things up. We can’t expect our government to take a stand if we are sitting at home. Yes, Wake Up, Brush Your Teeth, Call Your Leaders, but also step out of your box and come up with a new idea. Post it here - however different or out there it might be!
Today we offer you two actions. The first, many of you can complete by following a link and signing a petition. The second is a personal commitment that we are asking you to take with us. Both require you to really look at yourself and the context in which you live amongst humanity.
1. Did you know that the savings of millions of Americans is invested in companies that help to fund the genocide in Darfur? That’s because American mutual fund companies like Fidelity, American Funds, Franklin Templeton and many more continue to invest our savings in foreign oil companies that support the deadly operations of the Government of Sudan.
With the help of supporters like you, Investors Against Genocide is making progress in changing the policies of mutual fund companies. EVERYONE can help by taking this e-action to tell mutual fund companies to stop investing in companies that fund genocide. Many people will even have the chance to vote against investing in genocide at upcoming shareholder meetings at Vanguard, TIAA-CREF and American Funds. Learn how to submit a shareholder proposal for genocide-free investing!
2) On Sunday, March 29 - Day 7 of i-ACT - the field team will fast from sun up to sun down. It is the end of the month and many refugees will have run out of food. As we walk and speak with them in the camps, we will stand beside them in solidarity as well. Please think about making this commitment with us and for the people we have failed and those we can still help.
**Quick note on Day 2 Action Blogging to the State Department. They must have taken down the blog sometime as we flew over the US, through Europe and into Chad! I apologize! If you want to send them a twitter message do so at @dipnote or call them: Wake Up, Brush Your Teeth, Call Your Leaders
We need to be loud and consistent with our voices for Darfur. Wake Up, Brush Your Teeth, Call Your Leaders provides consistency if we all pledge to contact our leaders at least once a day. Today, take your consistency a step beyond. The ENOUGH Project has put forth the policies the Obama Administration should take for Darfur. Of five immediate recommendations, they have only appointed a Special Envoy, J. Scott Gration. The State Department has opened a public blog and asked us, the people, what we should happen in Darfur. Please post a personal message along with Enough Projects recommendations:
President Obama, The crisis in Darfur is dire. We need you to take swift action. Please discuss the following with Special Envoy Gration:
1. Support the ICC and the indictment of al-Bashir
2. Ensure the protection of the innocent civilians of Darfur and provide adequate support to the UNAMID Peacekeeping mission.
3. Work with other nations to create a road map for peace in Darfur and Sudan with multilateral pressure points and incentives.
4. Prepare a credible range of options for the use of military force to protect civilians and ensure the unobstructed delivery of humanitarian assistance.
Now more than ever we need the voices and stories of Darfuris to reach beyond our homes and into our neighbors and leaders lives. They need us to be their voices. On this first day of i-ACT we are asking you share it with others:
1. Tell Five Friends about Darfur.
Send them our website by using this simple paragraph (towards the bottom & adapt it for you!), join one of our social networks , or download a full page or quarter page flyer to hand out!
3. Check out the Darfur Dream Team Sister Schools Program! i-ACT is an official partner and will be working with US-based schools and students and schools in Darfur refugee camps to develop a deeper relationship. Get your local school involved in the program!
Each day we will have a new action item for you to participate in during i-ACT. However, we are also offering a single action, for each of the 10 days, that you can take. As part of an Urgent Call-in Campaign to pressure the Obama Administration we want to keep the phone lines busy. At least once a day please call President Obama at 202.456.1111 (9am-5pm EST Monday-Friday), State Department at 202.647.6575 (call anytime to leave a message), or text Secretary Clinton at 90822 and tell them:
“I am from _____ and I want the Obama Administration to uphold his promises of action for Darfur with ‘unstinting resolve.’ Work to get aid back into Darfur. Support an effective Peacekeeping Force. Support the ICC. ”
Make the pledge by commenting below. Tell us how many times you will call and with whom during i-ACT. If you are a teacher call with your students. If you are a student, maybe use the loud speaker at school. Get creative in your pledges and actions. We need more people to call. Each and every one of us counts, and the people of Darfur are counting on us.
If you are from another country and have a phone number for our leader, please share it here and we will post it on the full action item!
Less than three weeks ago, the International Criminal Court indicted Sudan’s President Omar Hassan al-Bahsir on War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity. Upon hearing this, al-Bashir took the actions he claimed he would in the months leading up to the arrest warrant: 13 aid organizations expelled leaving 4.7 million refugees without aid and janjaweed and Sudanese soldiers armed and prepared to act on any orders from Khartoum. Once again the innocent civilians will suffer the most. While global attention focuses on these two important developments, it is the time for i-ACTivists, around the world, to take collective action for each individual suffering on the ground.
Join us by participating in the i-ACTivist Challenge. In the daily action of each i-ACT day one word will be CAPITALIZED & BOLD. That word will only remain bold on that day. Write it down somewhere safe, and send your list of 10 words and the ACTION that you took that day at the end of the trip to challenge@stopgenocidenow.org — if you get them all correct, we will send you an profile of a Darfur Refugee and a Humanity before Politics t-shirt!
Tonight we expressed OUTRAGE @ LA Federal Building. People from all over California and Darfuris living in Arizona gathered - shouted - died in during red lights - and made noise for Darfur. During the event we got word that President Obama has taken the first step for Darfur by appointing a Special Envoy for Sudan, J. Scott Gration. Tonight, all of us made a new commitment to Darfur: to not let down or step down until peace reached Darfur. We will not be satisfied by announcements and statements, we want action for Darfur.
OUTRAGE continues as Obama makes appearances Orange County and LA in the next two days:
March 18th: Meet at 3pm Town Hall: Orange County Fairgrounds Building 12
88 Fair Drive,
Costa Mesa, CA
March 19th: Meet at 3pm Filming of the Jay Leno Show
NBC is located at: 3000 W. Alameda Avenue Burbank, CA 91523
Meet at Johnny Carson Park - Corner of S Bob Hope Dr and W Parkside Ave
As I write this note, children are still without aid: no medicine, scarce water, and very little, if any food. Obama needs to know that we will hold him accountable for Darfur. Please join us! We have some signs that we will bring from the LA Federal Building, but we encourage you to bring your own.
On Wednesday, March 4, 2009, the International Criminal Court in The Hague issued a landmark arrest warrant for President Omar al Bashir of Sudan. Just hours later, President Bashir expelled 16 humanitarian organizations from Sudan, placing millions of Darfuri civilians at immediate risk. Bashir is holding innocent lives hostage in order to retain his own grip on power.
4.7 million innocent people are currently affected by the conflict – more than the populations of the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco put together. Without the assistance provided by the humanitarian organizations expelled, well over a million internally displaced Darfuris are at immediate risk. With the rainy season quickly approaching, organizations are expecting widespread death from disease and starvation as millions lose access to food, water, medicine and adequate shelter.
TAKE ACTION NOW!
Join Jewish World Watch, Stop Genocide Now, HOPE, and other activist and citizens throughout Southern California as they make a permanent presence in front of the Federal Building to demand immediate and decisive action by the US, the UN and the EU! Activists will be present throughout each day and night, but we will be concentrating our efforts during the time periods listed below. Please make a particular effort to join us Tuesday, March 17 for a big push!
Where:
Federal Building
11000 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA
When: All Day and Night and these times for higher concentration:
Thursday, March 12: 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Friday, March 13: 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Saturday, March 14: 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Sunday, March 15: 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Monday, March 16: 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM Tuesday, March 17: 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM
* Click here to see who is signed up. Click here to sign up, or just scroll down to see the form.
** If you stay for more than 3 hours you will get a Humanity before Politics T-shirt!
*** Let us know if you are interested in staying overnight: email i-actinfo@stopgenocidenow.org. We have tents!
What to Bring: Signs! Possible slogans include:
DARFUR - MILLIONS AT RISK!
DARFUR - MILLIONS COULD DIE - WE CAN STOP IT!
DARFUR - ACT NOW!
SAVE DARFUR!
DARFUR EMERGENCY!
DARFUR - MILLIONS IMMEDIATELY FACE
NO FOOD
NO WATER
DISEASE
STARVATION
DEATH
DARFUR - MILLIONS COULD DIE - WE CAN STOP IT!
DARFUR - ACT NOW!
SAVE DARFUR!
Millions of lives hang in the balance - please send this link out widely, to everyone you know! Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, emails, phone calls. Urgent action is needed now. Our leaders must see that we care.
Hours after the ICC announced an arrest warrant for Sudan’s President al-Bashir, he and his administration distributed their own blows to the country. Ultimately, unless the International community acts, we are allowing Sudan to continue genocide of it’s non-arab population. Without aid workers, they don’t need the Janjaweed militia men riding in and raping, burning and killing, Darfuris will waste away in displacement camps - genocide by starvation and disease. Sudan has expelled 13 aid agencies thus far, leaving 4.7 million without aid, including:
CARE International OXFAM - GB
MSF-Holland (Doctors without Borders)
MSF-France Mercy Corps
Save the Children Fund - UK
Save the Children Fund - US Norwegian Refugee Council
International Rescue Committee
Solidarites CHF International
Action Contre La Faim-France
PADCO-US
Do you remember Ahmat, who met so many years ago in 2005? He may be in one of the many camps. He left Eastern Chad in search of an education because there was no secondary schools in the refugee camps. We haven’t heard from him since. He may be one of the millions that die without aid.
ACTIONS:
1. Please call the White House today (202 456 1111) or State Department (202 647 6575) and say “I want President Obama and his administration to ensure humanitarian aid is not cut off for Darfur and to appoint a high-level official with the necessary stature, authority and mandate to bring peace to Sudan and its people”
2. Sign IRC’s petition to UN Secretary General Ban ki-Moon about aid agencies being kicked out.
3. Use your facebook profile, twitter account, myspace page or other social network to post info about Sudan. Swift action must be taken, millions of lives are at stake.
Over the last several weeks we have asked you to make phone call after phone call, to fax, to email, and to stand by the people of Darfur by changing your facebook, myspace, or twitter profile picture. Many of you have reached busy signals, answering machines, and your faxes have failed. This only means that more and more people are standing as you are, next to our friends during a time of increased violence. Now there is word of an ICC decision, although not yet confirmed, and al-Bashir could further unleash terror on the innocent civilians, humanitarian workers, and Peacekeepers.
The Obama Administration must be prepared to take swift action, beginning now by appointing a special envoy to Sudan with powerful skills and an international reputation that demands respect. He has surrounded himself with advocates who have spoken out on Darfur: Samantha Powers, Susan Rice, Hillary Clinton, John Prendergast, and more. Now he must act.
TAKE ACTION: EVEN IF YOU HAVE CALLED, PLEASE CALL AGAIN! You are part of an urgent call-in campaign whose goal it is to keep phone lines busy for Darfur.
THE NUMBERS:
White House: 202.456.1111 (Open 9am - 5pm EST Mon-Fri)
State Department Message Line: 202.647.6575 (Open 24 hours a day/7 days a week)
Secretary of State Clinton Targeted Message: 1 800 GENOCIDE (1 800 436 6243)
THE MESSAGE:
“I’m calling to ask President Obama, Ambassador Rice, and Secretary of State Clinton to protect innocent civilians in Darfur during this volatile period approaching an ICC arrest warrant for Bashir. Please issue immediate warnings to the government of Sudan specifying consequence of attacks on civilians, appoints a full-time senior level envoy, and stand firm in support of the ICC indictment of Bashir.
Thank you for taking action. If you get a busy signal, please do not give up. Everyone of our voices is meaningful, and together we can keep their attention on Darfur.
Disturbing news is coming out of Darfur. Attacks on innocent civilians have increased, and threats of more violence are coming from the Government of Sudan.
President Obama and his new administration must act decisively and immediately to save innocent civilians from violence and displacement. Although many members of the new administration have spoken strongly on Darfur, we cannot take anything for granted. Our leaders must be pressured–and given the backing–to take strong action that goes beyond words. As President Obama has made it clear over and over again, it is us, regular people, that must take an active role in demanding change.
This week, Call the White House, between 9 AM and 5 PM EST, at either 202-456-1111 or 1-800-GENOCIDE, and/or the Department of State comment line at 202-647-6575 with this message (or with your own words):
“I’m calling to ask President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton to quickly and decisively address the escalating violence in Darfur. Omar al-Bashir has threatened and is now escalating attacks against civilians. The potential for massive loss of life is enormous. President Obama, please issue immediate warnings to Bashir and the government of Sudan specifying consequences of more attacks. Please also prepare an emergency response plan to address further violence.”
Call every day, and ask many friends and family to do the same. Those innocent civilians that are dying are no different than your friends and family. They deserve and have the right to a peaceful and dignified life.
Peace,
Gabriel and the SGN Team
ps. We at SGN strongly believe that individuals, groups, and organizations must step up activism and go beyond traditional advocacy actions. Phone calls and letters are still needed, but we must do more and demand more from our leaders. We will continue to explore ways to push harder and would greatly appreciate your input in to how we can do this together. Let us know at iact-info@stopgenocidenow.org.
Change.org is holding it’s 2nd round of voting for the “Top 10 Ideas for Change in America.” Go to CHANGE.org to vote today!
Jerry Fowler, President of the Save Darfur Coalition, is asking the Obama Administration to adopt a Peace Surge for Darfur. In doing so, Save Darfur is participating in a contest run by Change.org and MySpace that is called “Ideas for Change in America.” The top 10 ideas will be presented to the Obama administration on Inauguration Day. Then, Change.org, MySpace, and their partners will build a national campaign to advance those ideas in Congress. Help make Darfur a Day 1 Priority. If we allow genocide to continue in Darfur for another day, week, or year we are not just failing the innocent civilians of Darfur, but we are disrespecting the memory of the millions who have died in genocides in our history. Stand up for Darfur, uphold the memory of all those who have died because of who they are.
Voting requires registration, but it’s simple.
You can make this Peace Surge for Darfur happen. Go to CHANGE.org and vote in support of peace, protection, and accountability in Darfur.
The Obama administration has taken unprecedented action by creating a space for community members throughout the United States to voice their ideas and participate in discussions about what matters to us. For the first time a President-elect is asking you what matters. Tell him that ending the genocide in Darfur is important and must be a top priority in the first 100 days of his administration.
1. Provide your information.
2. Check off the “Foreign Policy” box.
3. Copy and paste the following text into the “Your Ideas” space: “An immediate challenge to the United States is how to lead the international community in bringing peace and protection to the people of Darfur. I urge President-Elect Obama to:
1) Create a peace surge for Sudan, focused on ending the crisis in Darfur rather than managing it.
2) Prepare a comprehensive emergency response plan to prevent Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir from carrying out his threats to accelerate attacks on Darfur and the millions residing in refugee camps and to block the humanitarian aid on which they rely for survival. 3) Identify genocide prevention as a policy priority and implement the recommendations of the Genocide Prevention Task Force.
Elements of the peace surge include fully implementing and supporting the U.N.-authorized peacekeeping force that actively protects civilians, holding the perpetrators of the genocide accountable, ensuring the success of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement signed by the governments of Sudan and South Sudan, and making Darfur a priority from Day One.The emergency response plan is particularly important given the recent threats by the Government of Sudan to attack Darfuris and humanitarians if the ICC issues the arrest warrant for al-Bashir as expected in early 2009. The non-partisan, blue ribbon Genocide Prevention Task Force published a blueprint for U.S. policymakers to integrate the prevention of genocide and mass atrocities into the broader structures of U.S. foreign policy, including the creation of an interagency Atrocities Prevention Committee (APC) to monitor areas of concern and develop and coordinate responses and interventions.
If you want to do more - Join the Discussion - on their website and be sure that the Obama administration has a plan and is ready to start it on Day 1.
Jerry Fowler, President of the Save Darfur Coalition, is asking the Obama Administration to adopt a Peace Surge for Darfur. In doing so, Save Darfur is participating in a contest run by Change.org and MySpace that is called “Ideas for Change in America.” The top 10 ideas will be presented to the Obama administration on Inauguration Day. Then, Change.org, MySpace, and their partners will build a national campaign to advance those ideas in Congress. The first round of voting ends on December 31. The top three ideas from each of the 30 categories will make it into the second round. Round two voting starts on January 5 and ends January 15. Voting requires registration, but it’s simple.
You can make this Peace Surge for Darfur happen. Go to CHANGE.organd vote in support of peace, protection, and accountability in Darfur.
December 10th, 2008 was the 60th anniversary for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This document, ratified by all United Nations member states, declares, “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.” Completely disregarding the Declaration, the Government of Sudan and the Janjaweed militia have systematically attacked the people of Darfur and deprived them of their basic human rights. Women and girls have suffered unimaginable horrors. Their homes have been destroyed and their husbands and family killed. Rape has been used systematically as a tool of genocide.In solidarity with the girls and women of Darfur, please ask President Elect Obama to make Darfur a Day 1 Priority:
1. Go to President Elect Obama’s Transition Team Website: Change.gov
2. Fill in the required fields.
3. Check off “Foreign Policy.”
4. Ask President Elect Obama to make Darfur a Day 1 Priority.
For most in the United States, November is a month to give thanks. On Thanksgiving Day, we gather at our homes and enjoy great food and the company of loved ones. Refugees in and from Darfur have been deprived of a home; many of their loved ones have been killed; and they lack enough of the basics, such as food and water. In solidarity with all of the displaced from Darfur, SGN teammate Jeremiah Forest will participate on a month-long fast, matching his diet to the ones of refugees we have recently visited in the desert. Miah will write daily journals and regularly upload pictures and video, sharing his experience.
Join him for a day or more of his fast. He’ll let you know what he’s eating, which will be the same thing during the entire month! Please donate to improve nutrition in the camps:
Make checks out to: USA for UNHCR
On memo line, write: SGN - Nov Fast
Send to:
Stop Genocide Now
1732 Aviation Blvd. #138
Redondo Beach, CA 90278
100% of tax-deductible donation will go to UNHCR’s work to improve nutrition at Darfuri refugee camps.
On September 10th the government of Sudan launched new attacks on ZamZam Camp for internally displaced persons. Many of those who were injured and killed were already forced to flee their homes one, two or three times. This attack comes a week after an attack on Kalma Camp by government troops. This violence is unacceptable. Our leadership has not done enough to end this violence. We need to build the political will to move our leaders to action.
When we speak to refugees in the camps, they tell us that peace will not come before justice.
The candidates have spoken out on Darfur, but they have yet to stand behind the ICC case against Sudan’s Presidnet al-Bashir. This case will begin the process of justice and reconciliation for Darfuris who have suffered, and continue to suffer every day. The Kalma Massacre, recent attcks on ZamZam Camp, and al-Bashir’s threats against humanitarian aid workers are war crimes. We cannot allow his threats and military action in Darfur to continue as we stand by. Violence has led to yet another NGO pull out leaving 1/2 million people without aid and another attack on World Food Program envoy may push them to also pull out, leaving millions without assistance. The next President must be prepared to uphold justice and bring peace to the region today not tomorrow. The first step is for both Obama and McCain to support the ICC case.
Send Presidential candidates McCain and Obama messages asking them to support ICC case by CLICKING HERE
Don’t allow the United Nations to interfere with justice in Darfur!
On July 14, the International Criminal Court (ICC) received a request from Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo to indict Sudanese President Omar Hassan al Bashir on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. Immediately, the Sudanese government began pressuring the UN Security Council to stop the prosecution of Bashir. The Sudanese government promises to bring peace to Darfur if the ICC case is suspended for a year. This is a lie. The United Nations has allowed Bashir to commit genocide in Darfur for five years while he pretended to support a peace process. Now, the Security Council is considering interfering with the ICC and betraying millions of Darfuris who have suffered and died under the Bashir regime. The UN should listen to the Darfuri people’s cry for peace with justice instead of Bashir’s demand for impunity for the crime of genocide.
Write a personal letter to President Bush or your local media outlet!
Personal letters are more likely to be paid attention to and read by our leaders. If you have the time, we encourage you to write a personal letter to President Bush. Also, media usually cover stories they know their audience wants to hear, so tell them and write a Letter to the Editor! Below are some points for you to use. You can also take the action immediately!
Mailing Address:
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
MAIN POINTS FOR LETTERS to Leaders or media outlets
The U.S. should veto a UN Security Council resolution to suspend the International Criminal Court (ICC) case on Darfur for one year. President Bush should make a public statement urging other UNSC members to veto such a resolution.
The UN Security Council referred the case on Darfur to the ICC in 2005, and it should allow the case to go forward independently. The ICC must remain free of political interference to maintain its judicial independence.
Justice is an essential requirement for an enduring peace in Darfur. Those who commit genocide cannot be trusted to create justice. The Darfuri people demand peace with justice.
Granting impunity to President Bashir and others in the Sudanese government that are responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in Darfur is a dangerous precedent that could encourage other governments to commit genocide in the future.
Pres. Bashir is intent on completing his genocidal policies in Darfur by attacking refugee camps such as Kalma in south Sudan. The UN must intervene immediately.
Pres. Bush should call on world leaders attending the opening of the UN General Assembly in September to fulfill their responsibility to protect civilians in Darfur. The UN should fully deploy and equip the UNAMID peacekeeping force of 26,000 personnel as mandated by UN resolution 1769.
“Why give al-Bashir 12 months, when for 5 years we have seen no peace?” the question posed by a young man in a Darfur refugee captures the theme heard over and over again in the camp during our late July visit. And the theme of international debate over what our next steps for Darfur should be.
For almost four months now representatives of the international community – countries, experts, judges - has been debating whether indicting Sudanese President al-Bashir would impede the peace process for Darfur. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has the opportunity to postpone the indictment for 12 months according to the Rome Statute Article 16 and plans on voting on this as soon as September. But it would be impossible for an arrest warrant for al-Bahsir to impede the peace process, because there is not peace in Darfur. Since Moreno-Ocampo statement on June 5th, peacekeepers have been attacked and murdered and bombs have fallen from Sudanese aircraft into IDP camps in Darfur.
We need to guarantee that President Bush and our UNSC representative support justice and peace in Darfur and show this by ensuring that the UNSC allows the ICC to continue with their efforts to charge al-Bashir with genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. Our leaders must veto attempts to block ICC progress by using Rome Statute Article 16.
As one woman described, “A delay will not be a chance for peace. It will be a chance for Bashir to kill more.”
The August 24th killings and burning of homes in Kalma Camp, Nyala, Darfur is the most recent example of this continued terror and attempted extermination of the people of Darfur. As the international community and experts take a vacation and debate themes of peace, Al-Bashir’s confidence in carrying out genocide grows and his latest attack, carried out not by Janjaweed but by Sudanese military, is only the most recent example of continued, not impeded, genocide.
For the protection of the people and for the peace process, we need to bring Justice to Darfur. From a refugee to the world, “Justice first, then peace will come.”
i-ACT podcast
Mia sent a note to friends and fellow Darfur activists, “I am ready to go on a hunger strike.” Mia has visited the Darfur region eleven times, spending countless hours hearing the horrific stories of survivors. She also spent hours creating community with the proud and courageous men, women and children. They did not know about her celebrity back home. They saw someone standing with them at the most difficult and dangerous times.
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