Remember

Today is Yom HaShoah - Holocaust Remembrance Day.

It is also the first day of the start of the week-long, Congressionally-declared Days of Remembrance (April 15-22). The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum offers resources for hosting your own remembrance ceremony, which includes information on the current genocide in Darfur. For those in the DC area there will also be a Days of Remembrance Names Reading Ceremony on Wednesday, April 19th.

Remembrance and future action must be inextricably linked. Advocates for Darfur of all backgrounds must take a moment this week to remember the victims of the most lethal and systematic of genocides, the Holocaust. And as we remember the Martyrs and Heroes of the Holocaust we must be sure that no remembrance is complete when we allow genocide to continue without protest.

Why "genocide" is like peanut butter

Suffice it to say, I'm a little brain-dead this week. What with rehearsal 4 hours a night almost every night and homework and exams fast approaching I'm definitely feeling the end-of-semester-crunch. Given that and since there's not much news coming out of Burundi I was at a little bit of a loss as to what to write about this week.

Of course, like every college student I have survival food in my room for those late night, oh-my-God-will-I-ever-finish-this-paper kind of moments; and the cornerstone to college survival (besides Ramen noodles): PEANUT BUTTER, a jar of which is right beside my laptop so it's extra-handy.

So, I thought, "Huh, peanut butter is kind of like 'genocide'(the word, not the act)." Genocide is a word you hear from activists a lot to describe the situation in Darfur but something you rarely hear from politicians and supranational actors. Why is this? The answer: fear, or, more politely, apprehension. You see, "genocide" is a very politicized word, much like many other things this day and age. For "genocide" carries with it certain responsibilities, like the responsibility to act to prevent genocide. Luckily, the conflict in Darfur has been labelled a genocide by certain institutions including the International Association of Genocide Scholars, the Committee on Conscience of the USHMM, and the US Congress. However, the UN has resisted calling it genocide and so has the AU.

As I mentioned a few posts back I don't care what you call the situation in Darfur so long as you agree that what is going on there is going from bad to worse and that the international community has the obligation to do something about it.

So, why is "genocide" like peanut butter? Because it's a word that sometimes gets stuck in your mouth. For student activists likes us "genocide" is like peanut butter in that in that it's often in our mouths at least once a week. For politicians, on the other hand, "genocide" is like peanut butter in that, for them, it gets stuck to the roof of their mouths and just stays there.

Google Earth + USHMM =

Crisis in Darfur, a new and innovative project launched yesterday. It's really worth exploring for yourself and kind of hard to explain with words, but the launch has gained a lot of attention, both in the blog-o-sphere and conventional media.

As Jerry at VOGP said, "Check it out."

Is it Genocide or Isn't it? Let's Just Call the Whole Thing Off

First off, I apologize for not having blogged last week. Things were rather busy for me, especially once Thursday came around. This past weekend the Board participated in the Genocide Prevention Advanced Leadership Summit at the USHMM and I can tell you that after getting to know those on the Board and working with them I count myself extremely fortunate to be amongst their ranks. The work we are all a part of (not just the Board) is so important and spending time with the Summit participants I think reminded us all of that.

While at the conference one subject that kept resurfacing was what counts as genocide and whether or not the current crisis in Darfur should be considered a genocide. For my part I'm convinced on the issue per my interpretation of the Convention. In fact, I could care less what you call the current crisis in Darfur, so long as you agree that the situation is dire and something should be done about it. If the stories of women being gang raped daily do not strike a chord with you; if this picture of a little girl hit by a bullet does not make your stomach twinge in anger; if you are not swayed by hearing about those who barely escape their villages as government Antonov aircraft attack; if it does not bother you that some 2.5 million are internally displaced in Darfur; if after all this you are not moved to tears, or better yet, to action, then I don't know what to say. After all, what use is there in crying over spilt blood (or milk for that matter) if you don't do anything about it. The people of Darfur have no need of your sympathy lest it compel you to action on their behalf.

As for "Never Again," it's catchy, I suppose, but therein lies its problem. Whenever we've uttered those words the implication is that it has already happened again. "Never again" is rendered useless by those who say it and invest no energy into it. Those on whose behalf it is said depend on those of us who have the power to stop genocide when we see threats of it today to breathe life into these too often used words. Sure, it's nice to have it on a t-shirt or on your laptop or clipped to your bag. However, it must not remain simply a slogan but MUST become a credo. Perhaps there's a curse on "never again." All I know is that ever since we've uttered it after the Holocaust, after Bosnia, and after Rwanda it's been too late. There is some value in the phrase, however; the power lies in the charge the phrase entrusts to humanity and is a hope for the future.