Helping Darfur

Everyday, an estimated 500 people lose their lives in Darfur, due to

violence, disease and hunger.1 One of the largest humanitarian disasters in

the world is the situation in Darfur,2 but the sad part, is that there are many

people who don’t know what is happening in this war torn country. In my

opinion, the first step to helping Darfur is to raise awareness. Nobody can

help when they unaware of a problem. There are many people who believe

that genocide is a thing of the past but in reality, it is happening right now.

300 000 are already dead in Darfur.3 There are things in our everyday lives

that are linked to Darfur that we would never think about. For example,

some companies, such as, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton, JP Morgan and

Vanguard, that contribute to the war in Darfur.4 Most of the companies

mentioned are stocks (2 of which are Canadian) that some banks, put our

money into. By being a member, you are indirectly funding genocide and by

perhaps changing to a different bank you are taking a stand against it. On

the other hand, there are companies that contribute money to help Darfur.

First of all, in order to get people to help stop the genocide in Darfur

they need to know about it! Since 2003, the Sudanese military and the

Janjaweed began and continue to systematically kill non-combatant civilians.

1 http://www.edah.org/darfur.cfm

2 http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=21365&Cr=sudan&Cr1

3 http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2008/04/22/darfur-un.html

4 http://www.savedarfur.org/newsroom/clips/is_your_mutual_fund/
300 000 are already dead and 2.7 million people are displaced from their

home. There is a constant threat of rape, torture and murder living in

Darfur.5 Information like this is what shocks people, and makes want to do

whatever they can. A way to get some information out is to hold events

dedicated to Darfur. For example, you could hold a variety show with all

proceeds going to savedarfur.org and throughout the show you could have

small sections reserved to inform the audience of the their current situation.

Another way to help Darfur in your everyday life is to have post cards, letters

or petitions at a table at school for students to sign. These letters could be

sent to government letting them know that people want to end genocide.

Secondly, by supporting companies that help Darfur you are also help

Darfur. This goes the other way too, by supporting companies that make

money off the war in Darfur is a way of making it worse. The Coca-Cola

company has contributed a lot of money towards helping out this war torn

country. They have committed at least $5 million dollars, and this money

goes towards providing new clean water sources throughout Darfur and

especially in areas where a lot of the displaced families have gone. The

Chairman of The Coca Cola company said this “To help in Darfur, we are

focusing our resources where we believe they can make the greatest

difference in saving lives and reducing suffering.”6

5 http://www.genocideintervention.net/educate/darfur

6 http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/presscenter/viewpoints_isdell_darfur.html
 Lastly, another way to help stop the genocide in Darfur and help out

the innocent people that were put in this situation is to go to government

rallies, and events set up to raise awareness about Darfur. Large NGO’s like

savedarfur.org set up the events and if you go on their website it will tell you

one of the events going on near you. 7

All in all,

7 http://www.savedarfur.org/page/event/search_simple