Its just dumb luck really.
A roll of the dice, a hand that I'm dealt, a flip of a coin.
Heads, I'm in my bed with overstuffed pillows, fancy linens and Tivo.
Tails and I'm in Darfur, with my own government dropping bombs on my village and killing my entire family.
Heads, I'm cruising around in a convertible, getting Starbucks in the morning and sushi at night.
Tails, and I am raped not once, not twice, but ten, fifteen times by the Janjaweed, an Arab militia.
Heads, I live in America.
Tails, I'm dying in Darfur.
But I'm fortunate. The coin has landed my way. I get to thrive here a with roof over my head, plastic in my wallet and text messages from friends. The mere fact that I was born here makes my life about a thousand times easier than the vast majority of people in the world.
While those who got tails? They are dying. Stuffed in refugee camps, all 2.5 million of them, some for almost three years. Most are lacking food, proper medicine and any sort of future.
It's just dumb luck. If you can even call it that. I just happened to be under this part of the sky, as the people of Darfur just happened to be under theirs. That's the only difference. Luck and location.
BUT WE CAN CHANGE THIS.
We can help their luck change. Sometimes, all it takes is one person taking that first step.
I read this from my email subscription to the Darfur Action Network. A year and 1/2 ago when I first heard about the atrocities in Darfur, very few people knew where Sudan even was. Luckily, its found its place on the map. Or, rather, we have. In Darfur, Sudan, genocide is occuring and it is time for the rest of the world to react. So who is going to take the first step? The US? The UN? The AU? Who will it be? Because someone certainly needs to get a move on. After the Holocaust, Yugoslavia, and Rwanda we said Never Again, but it's happening again and we're not doing enough! The conflict has been occuring for more than 2 years! After we said never again? Its time for us to live up to our promises and end the situation in Darfur before more than the 400,000 already dead meet their end to crimes against humanity.
What can you do? Check out these websites for more information. Through them, you can sign petitions, raise money, and contact representatives. If enough of us fill in our name and email address and click on the send button, theres no way our congressmen can turn a blind eye. Join the fight, its time to stop the unimaginable in Darfur.
www.SaveDarfur.Org
www.DarfurScores.Org
http://www.genocideintervention.net/index.php
Another good site for Darfur information and action is www.standnow.org. Stand is a student Anti-genocide coaltion which I have found very helpful. Check it out!
"Remember, no one can make you feel inferior without your consent"--Eleanor Roosevelt