Janjaweed

As I said earlier this week, I wanted to post more on the Janjaweed militias, the rebel group responsible for the majority of violence in Darfur. Instead of regurgitating information, I thought I would post this link that is entitled “Who Are the Janjaweed?”

The article discusses the origins of the word, the type of ‘bandits’ they are and what they're doing. I found it to be very informative.

Valentine's Day

Valentine's day is one of my favorite holidays, even if it isn't really a holiday! Anyway, this year I don't have a Valentine : (. What does this have to do with Darfur?

Well instead of spending all day on Feb. 14 thinking about how I don't have a Valentine, I decided to do my own little fundraiser. I have been having friends and family collect their spare change for the past few weeks. Throughout the day on Valentine's, I'm going to collect everyone's change and cash it in to send to the Save Darfur fund. In return, everyone who donates will get Valentine's cookies that I make! This way I'll keep busy and it'll be for a good cause! I am going to do a few posts on the people that helped donate and why they did it in the next few weeks, also with an update of how much money I got.

The picture in this post is the change bowl that me and my three other roommates have been contributing to!

Brian Steidle

Today I tried looking for more ideas/ information to give a good expansion to this blog. I came across an account by a man named Brian Steidle. He is a former US Marine and has written this account and taken photos that I think captures the scene very well, though it is horrifyingly disturbing.

I was sitting here earlier contemplating how much my Monday's suck and how I was putting off adding another blog post, we are required to do four to five a week. When I read this account and looked at these pictures I couldn't help but think what a girl my age in Darfur would give to be in my shoes on this so wretched a Monday.

Anyway, the story is definitely worth looking at. I also would like to point out the photo aspect of Brian's job. We have been discussing in class how hard it is, ethically, to take photos in times of such despair. I think Brian gives a good example of this when he is taking pictures of the dying girl.

The account, though from 2005, gives some good historical background too. I am going to try and get more information on the Arab militia Janjaweed groups (rebel groups causing atrocities) and have that posted later in the week.

I want to warn that if you do decide to visit the link (Brian Steidle) and read the account, the atrocities Brian describes are heartbreaking, so be prepared.

State of the Union Address (follow up)

I had posted last week about the concern the Save Darfur group had for the president's involvement in the situation for Darfur. I have quoted here what the group wrote and what President Bush said in his speech last week.

"In his speech, President Bush said, 'We will continue to speak out for the cause of freedom in places like Cuba, Belarus, and Burma -- and continue to awaken the conscience of the world to save the people of Darfur.'

The President's remarks on Darfur are a disappointment to the millions of Americans who have been acting to 'awaken the conscience of the world' and demand greater protection for the people of Darfur."

I agree with the group’s reaction to Bush’s comments, or rather, lack there of, and feel a huge sense of disappointment.

I have also added the Save Darfur's website to my list of links. Check it out!

new link

I have added a link to Wikipedia.org. I think that it gives a brief, understandable, unbiased history on the conflict in Darfur. I found it very informative. Check it out!

Metro Article

(Metro cover and Andrew Bast article)

Yesterdays Metro (I know not the most reliable news source) had an article by Andrew Bast, editor in chief of the New York Inquirer, which discussed Darfur. Entitled "Diplomatic dancing in Darfur," Bast talks about the 60-day cease fire that is supposedly taken place in Darfur and his view on it.

"The genocide in Darfur looks as dire as ever. Four hundred thousand have been killed and violence has driven more than 2.5 million from their homes."

I feel that these numbers are important to keep referring to. What I liked about the article was that Bast made a clear cut point that more needs to be done from all parties, the US, the UN, etc.

Also, I have learned since reading more on Darfur and this specific article, that the rebel groups are often involved with the government and in some cases the violence is a direct cause from the government.

The other day, my friend Sam and I were discussing an incident that happened at her house over Christmas. To start, I have to give a little background about her family. Her parents were in the Peace Corps and raised Sam in Sudan for the first few years of her life. Apparently one of their neighbors was wearing a t-shirt that said save Darfur on it and had a map of Africa with a star on it. While this appears to be a good thing, the star, which was supposed to mark where Darfur is, was in a completely different spot, which is not Darfur. I think this just goes to further demonstrate the ignorance of the situation. So I decided to add this map here that shows exactly where Darfur is!

State of the Union Address

As most people know, president Bush is giving his State of the Union Address on Tuesday. In the address he will discuss his goals for the year. Now while much of the speech will be devoted to Iraq and the situation he has gotten himself into with that, it would also be great if he could discuss the atrocities in Darfur and what he plans to do with that. Their is a website devoted to bringing people's attention to the issues in Darfur and letting people know of ways they can help. If you go to www.savedarfur.org, you can fill out your name and via the web send president Bush a message about the necessity for the United States attention in Darfur.

Boston Globe Article

The Boston Globe article that my professor posted I found to be very depressing. The actual number of displaced from Darfur and the fact that aid workers were being attacked as well were the most disturbing facts.

"Specialists estimate some 200,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million driven from their homes to makeshift camps during the rape, pillage, and murder in Darfur, which Washington calls genocide."

The article in the globe was written by Opheera McDoom, Reuters.

How can there be a place of so many angry violent people that are just merciless to anything involving peace? And how can we know so little about it?

Where I stand...

Many people are not aware of what is actually going on in Darfur. I am not fully informed either. As a journalism student I am very interested in what's going on in the world, but I find what I often want to be most educated about is not obtainable through the major news fronts. As a human being, I am very interested in helping people and I want to do so, at least, in educating a few more people.

I want to use this blog as a learning opportunity for myself as well as others like me that are interested. The atrocities that are occurring in Darfur that I have heard of are very disturbing and include genocide, ethnic cleansing, and, most disturbingly, rape of women and girls. Who's fighting? Specifically, again, I do not know. I know it is a group from the regional area that are attacking mercilessly on the innocent in the region. Some of the pictures I have seen of the displaced are hard to register. I cannot imagine what it would be like, for example, to wake up one day and have my whole village burned to the ground, many I know brutally murdered, and forced away without any shelter or personal belongings.