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Student Task Force 2006-2007 Campaign
Primary photography by Patricia Williams
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During the 2005-07
school years, the STF advocated to protect human rights in
Darfur. Along with awareness-raising events, petitions, call-ins
and postcard campaigns, Palisades Charter High School students
presented advocacy artwork to their elected representatives. Click on the drawings below to enlarge.
by Nicholle Payne
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by Caroline Mendonca
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by Annie Pendergrast
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USC Global Day
April 23, 2007
Corey Jackson, Senator Barbara
Boxer's Los Angeles Field Representative, was one
of the guests of honor at the USC Camp Darfur. Mr. Jackson
agreed to attend the event so that STFers could hand
over petitions addressed to the Senator, thanking her
for her leadership in the Senate in bringing protection
to the people of Darfur. STFers also shared their advocacy
efforts with USC students, and a group of Santa Clarita
middle schoolers, as well as a representative from their
friend Congressman Henry Waxman's office.
For a slideshow of the event,
click here.
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STF
Meets with HRW Researcher David Buchbinder
April 18, 2007
Students at New Roads High School and STFers from Wildwood School met
with HRW researcher David Buchbinder who spoke of his work in Eastern
Chad. He had recently returned from six weeks in the area. He touched
on historical, political, economic, geographic, military and social issues
that impact the people embroiled in this crisis: Arab and non-Arab groups,
the Chadian and the Sudanese governments, and the United Nations. To
read David Buchbinder's latest report on Chad, please CLICK
HERE.
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STF
meets with Ishmael Beah
April 6, 2007
Bestselling author and former child soldier Ishmael Beah met with STF
and discussed his childhood in Sierra Leone and the onset of the civil
war that pushed him to join the army as a young boy. Given the increasing
use of child soldiers in Darfur, STFers were very interested in Ishmael’s
remarks, and were pleased to hear about the “Child Soldier Prevention
Act of 2007,” (Durbin Bill) and encouraged all who attended to
support this bill by calling their senators.
To watch a short video on child
soldiers featuring an interview of Ishmael, please CLICK
HERE.
For a slideshow of the event,
click here. |
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Crossroads “Silhouettes
of Darfur”
March 22, 2007
Crossroads students may have been alarmed by the presence of chalk
outlines of bodies on the ground all over their campus. No one had
died in Santa Monica, however: Crossroads’ STF pursued a new
avenue of awareness-raising in a unique action they called “Silhouettes
of Darfur.” Each “silhouette” contained names of
Darfuri victims or destroyed villages. STFers also collected signatures
to accompany a letter to the Sudanese Ambassador to the U.S, urging
him to comply with a variety of international protocols.
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New
Roads Camp Darfur
March 21, 2007
The new Human Rights Watch Student Task Force at New Roads introduced
150 fellow New Roads students to the humanitarian crisis in Darfur. Unlike
other Camp Darfur events, New Roads decided to focus exclusively on the
crimes against humanity and humanitarian crisis in Darfur. Five tents
were set up, each of which featured two STFers who provided background
information on Darfur and life in the camps. In addition to the Darfuri
testimonials, New Roads students heard first-hand accounts from Gabriel
Stauring and Camp Darfur participant Stacey Martino of their visit to
the refugee camps in Chad.
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STF
Ambassadors Present at Santa Monica Library
March 18, 2007
Joined by Benjamin Ajak, one of the Lost Boys of Sudan, STF Ambassadors
for Darfur from Wildwood, Crossroads and Venice High gave a moving presentation
to the Santa Monica audience on the background of the crisis in Darfur
and what the international community has done to stop these crimes against
humanity. Ajak is co-author of "They Poured Fire on Us from the
Sky".
For a slideshow of the
event, click here.
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Cornerstone
Prep Charter School Camp Darfur
March 1, 2007
The Cornerstone middle school students' Camp Darfur experience began
with an introduction to genocide by Selma and Alfred Benjamin, two Holocaust
survivors. Later, STF docents introduced the students to Darfur's violence
in three tents dedicated to the history of the Darfur crisis, food, education
and water in the refugee camps. In a fourth tent, the middle schoolers
shared what they had learned and read Darfuri victims' testimonies.
For a slideshow of the event,
click here. |
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Meeting with Congresswoman
Jane Harman
February 23, 2007
STF members from Venice High met with Congresswoman Jane Harman to
present her petitions collected during Camp Darfur (see above), and
to urge her to make Darfur a priority on the Congressional agenda.
Harman was encouraged to see young people engaged in such important
international human rights issues and welcomed the STFers' suggestions.
In addition to urging her stronger leadership role to protect the people
of Darfur, STF requested that she include Darfur on her website to
demonstrate her concern for the crisis and to help raise awareness
among her constituents.
For a slideshow of the event,
click here.
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Crossroads
Camp Darfur
February 12-13, 2007
The STFers acted as docents and escorted their classmates-from 7th graders
to 12th graders-through four tents dedicated either to a genocide (Cambodia,
Rwanda) or to political and social aspects of the current campaign of
ethnic cleansing in Darfur. STFers discussed life in refugee camps (access
to food, water, and education), and Gabriel Stauring provided firsthand
accounts of what he saw over the course of his two visits to camps in
Chad. At the end of their visit, students were encouraged to sign a petition
to Senator Barbara Boxer, thanking her for her dedication to stopping
the crimes against humanity in Darfur.
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STF
Representatives Meet Congressman Henry Waxman
January 28, 2007
Two STFers from Pacific Palisades High and Wildwood attended the Pacific
Palisades Democratic Club meeting to present Congressman Henry Waxman
with petitions collected during actions at their schools. Both the Congressman
and the audience were impressed with the STF’s dedication to stopping
the crimes against humanity in Darfur. Waxman urged the students to keep
up the good work, advising them in particular to continue putting pressure
on President Bush.
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Venice
High Awarded CTA Peace and Justice Caucus Youth Activism
Certificate of Commendation
January 27, 2007
STFers from Venice High attended the California Teachers Association's
annual conference in downtown Los Angeles to accept a certificate of
commendation from the CTA's Peace and Justice Caucus for their dedication
to the plight of Darfurians. The ceremony included a number of awards,
granted both to individual youth activists and to groups, and the STFers
listened attentively to the inspiring stories of youth making a difference
across the state of California.
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Wildwood
School Camp Darfur
January 23, 2007
The Wildwood STF incorporated comparative elements into the camp set-up;
however, they also discussed availability of medicine, health care, and
water in the camps. To this end, their "refugee camp" featured
laptops with the game "Darfur is Dying" set up, so their fellow
students could identify with a Darfuri refugee who must seek water or
firewood. Another way in which Wildwood personalized the Camp Darfur
experience was by incorporating Darfuri refugees' testimony, read by
various STFers during their colleagues' visit to the tents. |
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Ambassadors for
Darfur
The STFers from all four schools worked together to
create an advocacy program called Ambassadors for Darfur
that brings their dedication to Darfur to other schools
and community organizations. The STF Ambassadors for Darfur
took part in several training sessions, during which they
have learned about the history of the Sudan and have created
presentations that will help spread the word about the
plight of Darfurians. These Ambassadors are planning visits
to elected representatives and presentations in schools
and public libraries. The Ambassadors for Darfur recognize
that education is the first step in an advocacy campaign,
and want to share this wisdom with anyone who will listen. |
Photograph by Jenny
Alexander
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i-ACT
and Gabriel Stauring in Chad, searching for Ahmat:
Over winter break, while
most students were relaxing or traveling, members of
the STF logged on to Gabriel Stauring's Stop Genocide
Now website to watch his iAct videos,
posted each day during his 15 day visit to Chad and the
refugee camps along Chad's border with Sudan. STFers,
hoping for news from Ahmat, a teenager that Gabriel met
during
his 2005 trip to Chad, watched video and posted words
of encouragement and resolve on the i-ACT discussion
forum.
Click here for
Gabriel Stauring's interview with Ahmat.
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Pacific
Palisades Charter High "Die-In for Darfur"
December 14, 2006
30 Pacific Palisades Charter High students "died" during their
lunch period. Dressed in black shirts, STFers staged a "Die-In for
Darfur" to raise awareness among Pali High students of the continuing
and increasing violence in Darfur. While many of the club members lay
dead, their fellow STF members read Darfuri refugee testimonies over
a microphone, so that the student body could hear a sampling of the crimes
against humanity committed on a daily basis in Darfur. Other members
collected signatures on a petition urging Congressman Henry Waxman to
continue to fight for the protection of Darfurians.
For more on this event, please click
here to refer to the Palisadian Post article.
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Rich Schmitt/Palisadian
Post Staff Photographer |
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Camp Darfur at Venice
High
December 6, 2006
Venice High compared life in a refugee camp with life in the U.S. in
various ways, including displaying the daily food ration of an American
teenager (hot dogs, apples, etc.) next to the daily ration of a refugee
(millet mixed with ginger and onion, when available). Each tent featured
an STFer who gave a brief presentation on the topic and fielded questions
from over 1,500 visitors throughout the day. They collected nearly 2,000
signatures on a petition to Congresswoman Jane Harman, urging her to
do more to protect the people of Darfur. For more on this event, please click
here to see the article in the Santa Monica Mirror.
For a slideshow of the event,
click here. |
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HRW
Annual Dinner
November 15, 2006
Over 50 STF members and faculty advisors attended this event, thanks
to sponsorship by HRW donors. The dinner honored three human rights defenders
from Nepal, Zimbabwe and Mexico. The STF, along with Gabriel Stauring,
set up a Camp Darfur tent and welcomed guests while raising awareness
about the campaign of ethnic cleansing in Darfur. Several STFers manned
clipboards with a petition addressed to President Bush, pressing him
to do more to keep Darfur on the international agenda.
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Photograph by Jenny
Alexander
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Advocacy
Training Workshop
October 13, 2006
Over 40 STF representatives from Crossroads School, Pacific Palisades
Charter High School, Venice High School, and Wildwood School gathered
to receive up-to-date information about the deteriorating crisis
in Darfur, Sudan, and to work together to plan a yearlong awareness-raising
campaign dedicated to the protection of the people of Darfur. Many
ideas were generated, including the creation of a program of Ambassadors
for Darfur (see below).
For a slideshow of the
event, click here.
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