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Activists hope to shed light on Darfur plight
The awareness-raising tour stops in Eugene this Saturday as it tries to politically pressure China
by Desiree Aflleje |
On a wet October evening, a massage therapist, a retired Springfield teacher, a former Lane Community College faculty member, an Umpqua Bank employee and a retired nurse met in the living room of two University faculty members.
Two years ago, most of them were strangers, but the Lane County Darfur Coalition has now become a cohesive unit. The group formed in 2005 to add to what it hoped would be swift international effort to end the genocide in Darfur, Sudan. But as the crisis drags on, the coalition continues to gather to do whatever it can to end the violence.
On Saturday, a torch will travel to Eugene to shine light onto the ties between China and Khartoum, Sudan's government. The coalition will host "Olympic Dream for Darfur" at the Wayne Morse Free Speech Plaza in an effort to bring the 2008 Beijing Olympic slogan, "One World, One Dream," to the people of Darfur.
Saturday's events are a part of national and international torch relays aimed to push China to use its economic and political leverage to pressure the Sudanese government to stop the violence in Darfur.
"All of this is to create attention, to create awareness and in an attempt to say to China, 'you're behind all of what's going on in Darfur,'" said Roz Slovic, coalition member and University senior research assistant.
At Saturday's event, Mohamed Yahya, a Darfurian refugee, will share his experiences. Katie-Jay Scott of Stop Genocide Now will discuss relay efforts in Portland, and Gabriel Stauring of Stop Genocide Now will speak about his three trips to refugee camps near the Chad/Sudan border.
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On Saturday, a torch will travel to Eugene to shine light onto the ties between China and Khartoum, Sudan's government. The coalition will host "Olympic Dream for Darfur" at the Wayne Morse Free Speech Plaza in an effort to bring the 2008 Beijing Olympic slogan, "One World, One Dream," to the people of Darfur.
Saturday's events are a part of national and international torch relays aimed to push China to use its economic and political leverage to pressure the Sudanese government to stop the violence in Darfur.
"All of this is to create attention, to create awareness and in an attempt to say to China, 'you're behind all of what's going on in Darfur,'" said Roz Slovic, coalition member and University senior research assistant.
At Saturday's event, Mohamed Yahya, a Darfurian refugee, will share his experiences. Katie-Jay Scott of Stop Genocide Now will discuss relay efforts in Portland, and Gabriel Stauring of Stop Genocide Now will speak about his three trips to refugee camps near the Chad/Sudan border.
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