1. Genocide: Crisis in
Darfur
Together we stand. Divided
we fall.
“Our lives begin to end the day we
become silent about things that
matter.”
-Martin Luther King Jr.
3. On December 9th, 1948, at the National Genocide
Convention, The United Nations promised “never
again” about the horrors of Genocide.
Yet every month over 15,000
people are killed in Darfur,
Sudan
What happened to that
promise?
4. What is Genocide?
The term “genocide” was derived from the
Greek word for race or tribe, “geno,” and the
Latin term for killing, “cide,” literally meaning
the killing of a specific people. The murder of
an entire ethnic group.
One of the most well-known
genocides was the Holocaust.
Over 6 million Jews were
slaughtered, as well as Poles,
Homosexuals, Afro-Europeans,
Gypsies, the Disabled. However,
atrocities like the Holocaust still
5. Genocides and Mass
Murders
in the 20th Century
Congo Free State- (Estimated 3- 30 million)
Armenian- (1.5-2 million)
Bosnia- (200,000+)
Cambodia- (1.7- 3 million)
Darfur- (ongoing)
East Timor- (300,000)
Guatemala
India
The Holocaust- (6 million)
Namibia
Rwanda- (500,000- 3 million)
The Serbian genocide
The Ukraine
6. WHERE IS
DARFUR? on
•Darfur is located in Sudan, a
large country, south of Egypt,
the eastern side of Africa.
•Darfur is a region on the west
side of Sudan, on the border
Chad.
•Population of Sudan: 38 million
•Population of Darfur: 6 million
•Life Expectancy: 58 years
•Nearly 400,000 people have died, about 7% of the population
• That’s equal to 60% percent of the population of North Dakota, 75%
of the population of Wyoming
•2.7 million people are internally displaced, Half of them children
• About 120,000 refugees have crossed the border into Chad, a
neighboring country
7. This is not a matter of
African starving because of
climate or poor crops
This is genocide because a
government is literally
attacking a group of people
with the intent of wiping
them out.
And, they were poor and
8. Since 2003, in order to consolidate its power, the
Sudanese government has been fighting various
rebel groups based in Darfur, especially the
Sudan Liberation Army (SLA). The government
responded by hiring groups of Arab bandits and
training them. They were called the “Janjaweed”
which means “Devil on
horseback.” The
government gave them free
reign to get rid of the SLA
by any means necessary.
9. The means included:
•Rape (Gang and Public)
Violent Beatings
Murder
Abduction
Stealing cattle, personal
possesions, food, clothing
Destroying homes and towns
Burning homes and towns
Destroying water sources
Separating families, shooting
children, Close-range
executions…any means necessary
10. Another tactic commonly used by the Janjaweed
was trickery. They would call out to people
claiming that they would do them no harm.
“We were afraid and wanted to run
away,” he said, “but they said:
„No, no. We don‟t want to hurt you.
We are the government. Don‟t be
afraid. We are coming to save you.‟”
12. Celebrities, and Their steps to
help Darfur
George Clooney and father Nick Clooney- UN Peace Envoy,
and Activist journalist
Mia Farrow- Activist, Unicef ambassador, currently on a 21-
day hunger strike to bring attention to Darfur
Elie Wiesel- Speaker on Genocide and advocate for Darfur
Don Cheadle- Co-Author of the book Not on Our Watch
Steven Spielburg- Resigned as artistic adviser in 2008
Olympics in Response to China’s failure in helping Darfur
Angelina Jolie- Ambassador for the UN refugee agency
Matt Damon- Main supporter for “Day for Darfur”
Brad Pitt- Ambassador for the UN refugee agency
13. However, Things may be turning
around. Just recently the ICC
(International Criminal Court),
brought forth charges on the
president of Sudan, Omar al-Bashir
for crimes against Humanity.
If this man is persecuted, the lives of
millions will change and this conflict
could end.
14. Although the conflict would end, 2.7
million people will still have relocated,
away from their homes, their families,
their friends, and neighbors. They will still
have been forced to start new lives, with
little more than the clothes on their
backs…
400,000
People would still
have died