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Darfur Fast 2006

On October 5, 2006, about 400 UNC students participated in the annual nationwide Darfur Fast and it was an incredible success. About 100 students attended the candlelight vigil at the Bell Tower which created a powerful image for passersby. At the “Feast to Break the Fast,” SUDAN raised almost $2000 that was sent to Darfur to be used to protect refugee women who leave the camps to collect firewood and are very often raped. Thanks to all who fasted and donated to the feast!

Mock Refugee Camp

During National Week of Action for Darfur, SUDAN students constructed and lived in a mock refugee camp for 2 days to commemorate the 2.5 million refugees in Darfur living in camps. SUDAN raised money to contribute to the Power to Protect campaign by selling t-shirts and wristbands as well as taking donations. The camp provided a stunning visual to symbolize the conditions of those in Darfur.

Spotline: Sudan

“Spotlight: Sudan,” a benefit performance to raise awareness about the genocide in Darfur, Sudan, was a huge success! We raised nearly $3,000 that went directly to Dimes for Darfur, an initiative of Hillel International which seeks to raise $150,000 nationally in memory of the 1.5 million children murdered during the holocaust. "Spotlight: Sudan" was sponsored by S.U.D.A.N., Hillel, ASA, Ram's Head, The Rathskeller and Whole Foods.

Die In:

January 26, 2006 marked the kick off of the STAND "Power to Protect" campaign. It was highlighted by a national die-in where students around the country "died" at 1:10 local time to paint a macabre image that alluded to the situation in Sudan. Seeing friends sprawled in Polk Place for long periods of time without moving seemed to jar the thoughts of many students and piqued their curiosity.

Speaker: Carl Wilkens

"Much of what the world remembers about the Rwandan genocide are grim tales of betrayal, of neighbors killing neighbors and the slaughter of innocents. But there are other stories of people who resisted the urge to kill and who risked their lives to save the lives of others.” - The Few Who Stayed: Defying Genocide, National Public Radio

“The man who didn’t abandon Rwanda” - The New York Times

On Wednesday January 18th, Carl Wilkens spoke here at UNC and it was incredible. He was the only American that remained in Rwanda during the genocide and was responsible for rescuing hundreds of orphan children. But as Carl Wilkens said, the numbers mean nothing, it’s the lives he touched, the individuals, that really matter. The room in Gardener was overflowing, many people stood for hours while others listened from the floor. Mr. Wilkens gave a rousing, emphatic, hope-driven monologue. Through stories about the time he spent in Rwanda he painted a captivating picture of the horrible events that transpired in what, to many, is a whole other world.

Full NPR Radio Program, The Few Who Stayed: Defying Genocide:
http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/rwanda/segc1.html

PBS Interview with Carl Wilkins:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/ghosts/interviews/wilkens.html

Darfur Fast 2005

On Thursday October 6, The Students United for Darfur Awareness Now had their annual Darfur Fast. Included in the day's events were there Stand for Sudan, Performances in the Pit, and the Dinner for Darfur culminating the day with fast breaking and a speaker from Sudan. Attracting coverage from numerous local news sources and hundreds of students and community members around campus, we completed over 300 petitions to media sources, 300 phone calls to the State Department, had 800 students fasting, and thousands of interested individuals informed. Great job!

Stand for Sudan
250 Participants
900 Letters written
124 Phone calls to Senators
$150 Raised
Article in the Daily Tar Heel

After crowding the sidewalks of Polk Place for nearly 2 hours, students marched through the pit and placed images of refugees and life in Darfur on a commemorative banner, then listened to Dr. Abdalla Adam from Darfur Peace and Development speak about the importance of Carolina's efforts to the children who will attend school in refugee camps thanks to our efforts. Look for the banner on display soon. Thanks to Matt Craig for organizing North Carolina's largest demonstration for Darfur.

Nicholas Kristof: A Report from the Killing Fields of Darfur
Around 500 people came to Carrol Hall to hear Pulitzer Prize winning NY Times Op-Ed columnist Nicholas Kristof speak about the situation in Darfur from personal experiences. Mr. Kristof has been one of the most vocal public figures condemning the atrocities in Darfur and calling for strong international action. Read some of his articles on Darfur here.

Tables outside of the lecture helped generate 100s of letters to mail to representatives and 100s of dollars for SUDAN's fundraisers. Special thanks to NC Hillel for including Mr. Kristof as keynote speaker of Holocaust Remembrance Week and Carolina Union Activities Board.

Article in the Daily Tar Heel.

Act for Awareness: Bring Darfur to Chapel Hill
With the help of Campus Y's Advocate for Human Rights (AHR), SUDAN members constructed a mock refugee camp on Polk Place. Students stayed for 36 hours in makeshift tents to show what "home" is to the more than 2.5 million people displaced due to to genocide in Darfur.

The camp was built on April 6, to mark the anniversary of the beginning of the Rwandan genocide. Thanks to Tiffany McDole for her leadership in producing such a powerful message. Several related articles here.