Final Blog Entry

-It is my belief that I am an ethical mind. This blog clearly shows this. My passion for social justice issues shows my care for other people around the world. My poll and entries illustrate this side of me very well.
-I also believe that exemplify curiosity, asking provocative questions, and reading works with awareness of self and others. My blog shows this well. I was originally curious; that was the point of this blog. I wanted to learn more about this topic regardless of the fact that I was completely ignorant of the issues surrounding it. I also found myself asking provocative questions. It often makes people uncomfortable when an issue such as genocide is brought into the light. Most people would rather pretend that it is not happening. I also found in my research that I am very aware of other people. My heart goes out to those in Darfur even though I have never met them.

The most surprising this I learned in the process of making this blog was the brutallity of genocide and the commonality of it. While its not ridiculously common, it is ridiculous that so many people are ignorant to it or misunderstand it.

Genocide

I was interested in the occurence of genocide in general so I decided to research how common this form of violence is. I was shocked by what I found.
I googled 'current genocides around the world'. Many of the first websites were actually about Darfur. However, the very first site was called Genocide Watch. It seemed promising so I clicked on the link to discover more. It had a list of current genocides or situations that looked like they could turn into genocide. The first case was Sudan, where Darfur is located. A couple down from that was Chad, a region bordering Darfur. I skimmed the rest of the list and was appalled to find that most of the other areas were also African regions. Some of these included Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, and Kenya. Many others were in the Middle East including both Afganistan and Iraq. I was very surprised to learn that so many cases of this violence or the potential for it are going unoticed by other areas. There were dozens of countries on the list. Why is this so common?

Hmmmm

My poll has only been up a few days but I am very interested in the response that it has had thus far. The majority of people appear to share my opinion that the U.S. should take an interest in its fellow man's troubles. However, there is a small number of those who disagree and believe that the U.S. should stay out of the issues. I am interested to see how other viewers respond.

Awareness

I'm learning a lot about the genocide in Darfur and so I became curious about other peoples' opinion on the issue. I didn't know much about it, but I understand now that it is a very important issue that we in America should discuss. We need to show global concern for issues such as these even if they do not directly affect us.
This is just my opinion however. So, I have created a poll because I want others' opinions as well. I want to know what the general view is on issues such as this and the U.S.'s involvement in them.

More Background

Now back to some more background. While peace negotiations were being made, a rebellion broke out. The two groups responsible, the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLA) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), attacked military institutions. They were fighting for an end to economic and political marginalization in Darfur. Government supported militias were created and they began to recruit Arabs from Darfur and Chad. These so called "Janjaweed" militias were allowed by the government to clear unloyal citizens. Janjaweed, along with the government, began to systematically kill civilians. When they invaded a village, they would usually kill the men and rape or sexually assualt the women. In 2004, the U.S. Congress declared that the situation in Darfur was truly a case of genocide.

Events

While researching, I was pleased to find a list of events all over the world to raise awareness of this issue. I've found a variety of events in Mexico, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Sudan itself, and a variety of other places. These events have ranged from concerts to protests and even dance showcases.
I have also found a few organizations that are trying to make a difference. Some of these are the Darfur Pledge and Save Darfur campaigns. These groups are widespread and have helped organize some of the events described above. Its comforting to know that someone is trying to make a difference.

Background

To understand this conflict it is important to look at the recent history of Darfur.

Darfur is a region of Sudan, the largest country in Africa. It is approximately the size of Texas.
Through the past twenty years or so a drought has caused the amount of water and farm land to decrease. This drought has led to conflicts between groups such as herders, who are primarily Arab Muslims, and farmers, who are primarily Black Muslims. Conflicts like these have been common since the 1950s when Sudan gained independence from the United Kingdom and Egypt. There have been many uprisings against the government. There was even a civil war which finally ended on January 9, 2005 with the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.
This quick information shows a trait of Darfur in recent years; violence. I have not come to the start of the current genocide, but now I understand a little more about Darfur's past.