GLOBAL RELIEF:  FOCUS ON SUDAN

Teens for Tzedek Group Purchase of Darfur Wristbands!

Send TFTZ an E-mail tzedek@jccgb.org with your name and

address to let us know if you're interested.

We know there are many different wristbands out there, but TFTZ thinks this one is special.  Darfur is not a natural disaster than can not be prevented, as in South Asia.  While both are tragedies, Darfur is a human inflicted tragedy that Jews especially feel incredibly connected to.  It is genocide plain and simple and has been ignored by most people and governments for far too long.  Please let us know if you are interested in a group purchase.  They will cost anywhere from $1.50 to $2.00 depending on how many get involved.

Again, send TFTZ an E-mail tzedek@jccgb.org with your name and

address to let us know if you're interested.

__________________________________________________________________

Teen Comments:  By Julie Shapiro, South Area TFTZ

Right now, hundreds of people are dying in the Sudan , an east African nation south of Egypt . Largely ignored by the international community, they have received little support or protection.  

The conflict has dragged on for years.  Presently, the problem has moved to the western region of Darfur .  Backed by the Arab Sudanese government, janjaweed, Arab militiamen, have instituted a reign of terror. Their main goal is simply to annihilate the African Sudanese population. And this is about race, not religion, since the victims are also Muslim.  However, they are not Arab and have 

their own distinct culture, which the government and janjaweed are trying to destroy.  In order to eradicate this race of people, the janjaweed murder and rape them, destroy villages, kill livestock, 

and poison wells with the human and animal bodies.  Those who are lucky manage to escape to refugee camps. But the conditions are atrocious, with no running water or sanitation and rampant disease.

Over 50,000 people have died so far. And no one has stepped in to stop it. Although Secretary 

of State Colin Powell finally declared the conflict a genocide last month, the United States will 

not intervene. The United Nations has done nothing, either, partly because the Arab nations will 

not vote against the Sudanese government and because others,mainly China , Russia , and 

France, refuse to impose sanctions because they get oil from the country.

But how many lives is that oil worth? 50,000? 100,000? Human rights groups are estimated that 

over one million will die by December because the rainy season will begin and the scant aid now 

goes to the camps will be almost entirely cut off.  Meanwhile, most of the world remains silent and 

so history is here to repeat itself again.  After every genocide, leaders vow that it will never happen again. But here it is, before our eyes, and it is well underway.  If you want to find out how to get involved, write to tzedek@jccgb.org and let me know what you think.  Also, if you scroll down 

below, you can click on any of these organizations to find out more about this crisis and learn how 

to help.

__________________________________________________________________