Darfur Background

Kensington, MD, June 17 — One thousand Americans have pledged to contact President Bush every day until 44,000 peacekeepers have been deployed to stop the genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan, Africa. The “Darfur Pledge Campaign” was inspired by General Romeo Dallaire, whose return to Rwanda on the tenth anniversary of the genocide he futilely sought to prevent is depicted in the film “Shake Hands with the Devil.”

The Essence of True Humanity Is Compassion (The ETHIC), an all-volunteer nonprofit organization, launched the Darfur Pledge Campaign after hearing General Dallaire speak at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in February. In his speech, General Dallaire estimated that 44,000 peacekeepers -with a mandate to protect innocent civilians- could stop the cycle of violence in Darfur. Currently, there are fewer than 3000 African Union monitors without peacekeeping authority in the region, which is the size of Texas. Dallaire encouraged American citizens to call for more leadership and involvement from the U.S. to stop the killing.

“With the memory of Rwanda weighing heavily on our conscience, we simply cannot be silent while another genocide goes unchallenged,” said The ETHIC’s Founder John Morlino. “General Dallaire reminds us that as citizens of the US, we have the collective capacity to compel our government leaders to act. We just need to use that power.”

Over the past two years, 400,000 Sudanese have been systematically slaughtered by government-sponsored militias in the Darfur region. Two million more have been displaced and face the prospect of death from disease or starvation. There has been a shameful lack of action by the US and the international community to stop the genocide and protect the people of Darfur.

As John Morlino states, “"I have become increasingly frustrated and despondent over the lack of will to send an adequate number of peacekeepers to stop the genocide in Darfur. I simply had to do something. This campaign represents a simple act that everyday people can do to make a difference and hopefully save lives."

In its entirety, the Darfur Pledge consists of the following:

Until 44,000 peacekeepers have been deployed in Darfur to stop the killing, I pledge to take the following actions:

1) EVERY DAY*, I will call the White House switchboard (202-456-1414) and leave the following message for President Bush: "This is [name] from [state]. Forty-four thousand peacekeeping troops could stop the genocide in Darfur. Please act immediately. Thank you." If calling long distance is a financial hardship or if I can't leave a message due to the volume of calls, I will send an email to President@WhiteHouse.gov every day with the same message. (* You can leave a voice message at the White House Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. eastern time.)

2) I will recruit at least ONE other person to take this pledge.

3) To ensure that my actions are counted, I will register my pledge with The ETHIC by emailing my name and address to DarfurPledge@peacemail.com or by signing the online pledge petition at http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/391810134.

As of June 17, one thousand people from across the United States have taken the Darfur Pledge, either by signing the online petition or by emailing their pledge to The ETHIC.

The ETHIC is an all-volunteer non-profit founded in 2002 to promote peace, nonviolence and compassion toward all beings. More information about this campaign is available on our website at http://www.the-ethic.org.

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