In her recent column about the ongoing genocide in Darfur, Sara Weinberger reviewed the history of intense activism in this country seeking to stop the crimes against humanity in Darfur and elsewhere in Sudan.
There were petitions, rallies, demonstrations and even arrests. There was testimony before Congress and testimony at the United Nations.
There were banners and bumper stickers all over the U.S. and the Pioneer Valley.
It was all happening 10 years ago. Tragically, the killing has not stopped. Arson, rape, mass murder, and famine have continued. But the activism has quieted and faded as other disasters have taken over the news.
Elie Wiesel, the well-known survivor of the Nazi Holocaust, said, “What astonished us after the torment, after the tempest, was not that so many killers killed so many victims, but that so few cared about us at all.”
A good place to begin will be to let Sudan and the world know that we do care about the people of Darfur. Rep. Richard Neal might begin by signing Rep. Jim McGovern’s letter imploring the president to re-prioritize protection of civilians in Sudan.
Henry W. Rosenberg
Northampton