darfur

some obscure region in sudan, so why on earth should we give a crap about what’s going on there? partly because we like to pretend to have learned from our mistakes (although we’re quickly disproving that theory), but largely because we like to tout ourselves as the defenders of freedom. the john wayne of the international community. i mean, that’s why we’re in iraq right now isn’t it?

in darfur right now, tens of thousands of people have been murder by the janjaweed. the government of sudan has been supporting them by both their lack of action to stop the janjaweed and also by, “hurling explosives as well as barrels of nails, car chassis and old appliances from planes to crush people and property.” over one million people have been forced to leave their homes and to take up residence in dingy, unsanitary refugee camps. in these camps, women and girls literally cannot go out of their huts after dark because they will almost certainly be raped.

stop and think for a second. how much do you know about this conflict? is it limited to the information i just gave you? now, how much do you hear/know about britney spears’ personal life? why does the media cover the most mundane details of celebrity life ad nauseaum but barely graze over the slaughter of thousands of innocent individuals? maybe that’s what we ask for.

there is no hope for hundreds of thousands of people unless the world community acts. the atrocities that are being committed are not part of a legitimate war; they are an act of genocide perpetrated by arab africans on black african tribes. it is our responsibility to pressure our lawmakers to act. We live in a democracy and if the people speak loudly enough, the leaders MUST listen.

please do something. if you are a person of faith, especially if you are a Christian, you have a spiritual obligation to do your part to help. if you're a decent human being, you have a moral obligation to do something. visit www.darfur.org and get involved. write a letter, make a donation, wear a wristband. we cannot afford to sit back and allow this to happen on our watch. i believe that we are too good for that.