Carolinian

Issue date: 10/10/06 Section: Campus News

Media Credit: JERRY ARNOLD/THE CAROLINIAN A member of STAND provides information at one of their booths last Thursday on College Avenue. Displays included information on the Sudaneese conflict, gathered contact information from UNCG students interested in providing aid, and collected over $1000 in donations.

Media Credit: JERRY ARNOLD/THE CAROLINIAN Members of Students Taking Action Now: Darfur (STAND) hold a candlelight vigil in the Curry Auditorium to end Thursday's Darfur Fast. [Click to enlarge]

A few dozen people sat in the Curry Auditorium last Thursday patiently awaiting the last activity in a day-long push of philanthropy by STAND (Students Taking Action Now: Darfur).

The western region of Sudan, Darfur, has been the site of mass genocide and ethnic conflict since February 2003. According to STAND the conflict originated with the government sponsorship of Arab militant groups, which have resulted in over 500,000 dead and more than two million displaced.

Co-Founder Katie Martategui framed the issue candidly when addressing the small group Thursday night: "You are part of a movement outraged by their suffering." This basic sentiment was resonated with a series of speakers who spoke on various aspect of the conflict in Darfur.

Omer Omer, who fled from the region, highlighted personal accounts of the crisis, but emphasized a proactive "what can we do" approach to creating a resolution. The humanity of the situation was articulated by Abraham Aarok, who immigrated to the United States, and found out later the majority of his family, including his parents, were killed in the fighting.

"We try to promote awareness, especially because there hasn't been a lot of media coverage," says Anna Mullis, another co-founder of STAND.

Activities like "Darfur Fast" represent a number of strategies that are designed to simply make students aware that the problem exists. But there are also many tangible objectives of student activism groups such as STAND.

One of the interesting strategies employed by the group is to urge to UNC Greensboro to not invest in any international company that does business with the country of Sudan. University Divestment, as it is called, is designed to indirectly send a "message" to the Sudanese government that their actions will not be tolerated. The group also uses traditional methods of fundraising to help support the civilian population in Darfur, and raised over $1,500 from the one day "Darfur Fast."

Student activist groups like STAND represent a common presence at colleges and universities across the United States. They engage students and communities about a variety of issues and concerns, and generally interact through a variety of activities designed to change views on a particular issue. This is commonly referred to as "consciousness-raising."

Dr. Gregory McAvoy, a political science professor who teaches on the subject, says that political activist groups are generally seeking "to change institutions and also change people's perceptions about an issue."

If these organizations are able to exert real influence over an issue and make a change is the critical question. Certainly a number of different examples exist of student activism groups playing at least in part a historically significant role in bringing about change. McAvoy cites the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s, the Vietnam War in the 1970s, and even concerns over Nike and the use of sweatshop labor as examples of movements that student activist groups played a role in.

For more information about STAND and the Conflict in Darfur visit www.savedarfur.org.


Next week we'll take a look at the effectiveness of these organizations, determining whether they are making an impact in the political landscape. Do students have the power to bring about change to scenarios like Darfur?

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