NHS Service Project
Darfur Week Raises
Awareness,
Encourages Activisim
By Margaret Lipman (May 7, 2007)
For
its annual service project, the National Honor Society sponsored
a series of events as part of the weeklong “Darfur Week.” The
NHS and sponsor Maria Chico hoped to raise awareness of the continuing
genocide in the Sudan and encourage students to take action.
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On Monday, Masonites were
invited to the library to watch the poignant documentary “Darfur Diaries” during
lunch. Diana Duarte, a
staff member at Africa Action (a D.C.-based organization dedicated
to shaping U.S. foreign policy to encourage African peace and
justice), spoke to a large group of students and faculty on Wednesday
about the complicated situation. Duarte, sister of NHS Secretary Catherine Duarte,
explained how the Sudanese government has blocked efforts to
send in a United Nations peacekeeping mission, thus permitting
the genocide to continue. She emphasized the possibility for
change this month, when the U.S. will temporarily hold the presidency
of the UN Security Council. “The U.S. is the only country to
call this genocide and in doing so has taken on a certain responsibility,” Duarte
said. After her talk, Masonites were
encouraged to sign letters to the U.S. Ambassador to the United
Nations Zalmay Khalilzad to keep Darfur on
this month’s Security Council agenda. Several Masonites also
signed up to participate in “Sprint for Darfur,” a
fundraising event that will be held on May 20 at Calvin Coolidge
High School.
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Juniors Amelia Nystrom,
Laura Allen, and Corina Spanu paint
their hands red to help cover the wall across from the junior
courtyard in handprints, a lasting message symbolizing the
urgent need to stop the genocide in the Darfur region
of Sudan. Decorating the wall (and a banner that will
be used in a national rally) was the culminating event of “Darfur Week,” the
National Honor Society’s service project. Earlier in the week, interested students were
invited to watch the documentary “Darfur Diaries” and
listen to Diana Duarte, a representative from Africa Action,
discuss the situation and what students can do to help. (Photo
by Margaret Lipman)
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To end the week, Mason students were asked to place a red handprint on
a banner that will be used this summer in a rally to pressure the international
community to stop the genocide. Also
on Friday afternoon, many students helped cover the wall across from
the junior courtyard with handprints, a permanent reminder of the desperate
situation and the limited action that has been formally taken to put
a stop to it.
Tell us
what you think.
E-mail lassogmhs@hotmail.com
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