Change the World

Hello everyone! My name is Jeanne Segil and I am a sophomore at Pomona College in Claremont, California. I am very excited to have this opportunity to share my thoughts about the current situation in Darfur and also the crisis in Uganda. As I am struggling to figure out how to begin my first blog entry, I will share a quote from the man who created the term genocide, Raphael Lemkin. As documented in Samantha Power’s book A Problem from Hell: America and the Age of Genocide, Raphael Lemkin dedicated his life to the creation of this term, to building his law in the hopes that the international community would unite to prevent future genocides. He sprinted after whomever he could find, and said, “‘you and I, we must change the world’” (Power, pg 51).

His legacy lives on today and if he were still alive, he would be sprinting after each one of us to engage us in his struggle to change the world. While indescribable atrocities are occurring around us daily and the world seems rife with destruction and despair, we must maintain hope. Although most of my blog entries will be documenting the horrors befalling innocent civilians in Darfur and Uganda, I will not lose hope that peace can be a reality. Change can be implemented and improvements can be made. The Save Darfur Coaliton report of a 60 day ceasefire in Darfur is a start, yet we must continue to pressure the United Nations and the Sudanese government to ensure that progress will occur. Hope stems from the dedicated efforts of citizens across the globe. As we begin this new year, we must address the worst crises in the world, yet we should address these struggles not with despair, but instead with hope that we have the power to unite and change the world.