Reading the headlines and watching the news about Sudan can certainly be discouraging. The litany of gloom and doom is well documented. The U.N.-authorized protection force for Darfur is being held up. Peace talks for that region are having difficulty getting off the ground. The peace deal in Southern Sudan is in trouble. And President Bashir presides gleefully over all this bad news, defying the international community and carrying out policies that—if unchecked—will lead to further war throughout the country.
What the media doesn’t tell you is that significant progress has been made in finally getting the policies right toward Sudan, mostly because of pressure from activists and the U.S. Congress. And if these policies are pursued with additional vigor, we have a real chance at ending the continuing cycles of violence in Sudan. This is the time to step up efforts to end the genocide in Darfur and consolidate the peace in Southern Sudan. We need to turn up the heat, demand real action from our policymakers, and forge links between those active on Darfur and those who worked for peace in Southern Sudan before that war ended in 2005.
Let’s remember that for social and political movements throughout history—be it the civil rights movement in the United States, the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, or worldwide efforts to end colonialism and slavery in Africa and elsewhere—gains were rarely instantaneous or immediately tangible. But with time and momentum, they achieved what most people during those eras believed to be unachievable.
Over the last four years, what started as a few students, a few religious leaders, and a few members of Congress has grown into a broad-based nation-wide campaign on Darfur. People from across political, religious, cultural and ethnic divides have joined forces in an effort to end the crises in Sudan, and to prevent future crises in the region from unfolding. With every passing day, this campaign has grown larger, stronger and smarter.
This represents the first popular movement against a real-time genocide since the term “genocide” was coined over half a century ago. This is an extraordinary accomplishment in and of itself. Most participants in this movement have never been to Darfur. Most have never met a person from Darfur. And yet they write letters, come to demonstrations, and become what Pulitzer Prize-winning author Samantha Power calls “upstanders” in the face of the most horrific crimes against humanity.
The point is simple and clear: Activism matters. This movement has become a formidable force for change, and its accomplishments so far include helping to press for serious peace negotiations, protection for innocent civilians, and accountability for those most responsible for crimes against humanity. To put the daunting news out of Darfur in context, we thought it would be helpful to take stock of all this burgeoning movement has accomplished so far.
Wars and genocide do not end overnight. In most cases, an end requires that the key international actors start working together and get the policies right. After four and a half years of death and destruction in Darfur, for a variety of reasons and motives, the international community has finally begun cooperating and moving in the right direction.
The evidence is everywhere, but you don’t read it in the headlines or see it on the nightly news. But if you look closer, you can see that the international picture is shifting considerably regarding Sudan, and it is because of activist pressure.
