Darfur Hideous: Gabriel Staurling - "pressure on the top"

""Gabriel Stauring, a co-founder of Stop Genocide Now and the organizer of the mock refugee camp, agreed that putting pressure on politicians is the most effective method. "The biggest bang for your buck would be to go to the top," he said. “Call the president. "" [full article blow]

Mr. Staurling, when, WHEN in history has "put pressure on the top" through phone calls brought social justice, social change? Are your examples Civil Rights? Gay Rights? Women's Rights? Ending the Genocide in Vietnam??? You have a responsibility to the people of Darfur. Your words can KILL them. What experience and expertise do you have, what precedents can you site to justify your recommendations? Yes, your behavior enables you to continue your grants for this nice, "feel good" dog and pony show (Camp Darfur) you do to support yourself, but what else qualifies you? By the way, do you still feature those nice pretty photos in your Darfur tent - the ones that dissipate any and all emotion regarding genocide - those pretty women and smiling photos? Are you still just one more of the efforts that uses Darfur and the Holocaust to aggrandize and advance the material interests of Jews (and Darfur nonprofits)?

The virtues of "call the President" and similar lobbying are what besides:
* Entirely acceptable to the "status quo" power structures that have allowed every genocide to go unstoped?
* Safe?
* Easy?
* No cost?
* No risk?
* No time required?
* Comfortable?
* Good training to become a cigarette lobbyist?
* Looks good on a resume?
* Makes the rich, white, upwardly mobile college kid feel less guilt about all their other advantages that they squander on themselves?
[You might add to your list of suggestions - sitting under a poster of Darfur Genocide and masturbating. Just a thought. Is also really big "bang for the buck."]

This (photo from South Africa STUDENT anit-apartheid struggle) is how STUDENTS have brought about social change. Or, were the real anti-aparheid heros the rich US college kids that from the safety of their campuses, and to the advancement of their connections/careers got companies to divest; and these stupid kids in the photo (and the 1000's like them) were just ignorant idiots throwing their lives away for nothing (for the glory of it)?


Mr. Staurling -
a. I may be entirely misinformed and if infact there is some significant level of personal risk, cost, sacrifice that your effort involves for you I humbly appologize. If indeed you are in some way behaving with the heroism that Genocide demands of the human being I am deeply and truly sorry for any discomfort that this blog entry may cause you. But if you are extremely sacrificial here, you will forgive me because you see that you and Eric Reeves are the only ones!
b. If I am NOT incorrect in my information then you sir are not alone, not to be singled out (see Darfur Genocide a Fraud), and it is not my intention to do so. You are in great company as far as I can see: USHMM, Save Darfur, Nick Kristof, Samantha Power, Jerry Fowler, George Bush, State Department, Senate, House, WE THE PEOPLE, Catholic Church, Judaism, Islam, "Christians".... These in the Save Darfur "movement" will leave no stone unturned (provided that it is of low personal cost, risk, discomfort and provides considerable upside to current and future career opportunities.)
c. It is neither my desire nor intention to hurt you or anyone else personally. However, you have assumed a position on the Darfur Genocide stage, what you do matters, and to the degree what you do is Heroic you should expect as much or more attention from the likes of me as you have received in this post; and as others have received on this site.

Genocide Conference Spotlights Darfur
BY Corinna Matlis
Contributing Writer
Monday, February 5, 2007

Opening with a talk by well-known author Dave Eggers and concluding with a mock refugee camp, the last of six regional anti-genocide conferences took place at UC Berkeley this weekend.
The event was organized through the Berkeley chapter of STAND: A Student Anti-Genocide Coalition, a national organization mobilized largely to take action against the ongoing genocide in Darfur, the western region of Sudan.

“Our goal is to train Darfur activists in lobbying, divestment and in dealing with the media,” said Jordan Steiner, a senior at UC Berkeley majoring in peace and conflict studies, who organized the event.

The conference started Friday night and ended Sunday afternoon, attracting just shy of 200 people, Steiner said.

“It was amazing,” she said. “We achieved our goals, so I hope we can help in some way.”

In addition to Eggers’ talk, the conference included a documentary on Darfur, a talk by Jerry Fowler, the former staff director of the Committee on Conscience at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, and workshops all day Saturday and Sunday morning. The mock refugee camp on Memorial Glade, called Camp Darfur, ended the conference on Sunday afternoon.

After speaking about his recently released book following the struggles of a Sudanese refugee, Eggers said the most important action to take to stop the Darfur genocide is to write a letter to a senator or representative.

“Action in Darfur would be a good legacy for the new Congress,” he said.

Gabriel Stauring, a co-founder of Stop Genocide Now and the organizer of the mock refugee camp, agreed that putting pressure on politicians is the most effective method.

“The biggest bang for your buck would be to go to the top,” he said. “Call the president.”

Stauring currently travels around the country bringing Camp Darfur wherever it is requested.

The project began after Stauring returned from a refugee camp in Chad

at the end of 2005, said Tsai Yi Chan-Beal, a member of Stop Genocide Now

who travels with Stauring.

The eight tents set up on Memorial Glade Sunday presented information about the ongoing genocide in Darfur as well as the genocides in Armenia, Cambodia, Bosnia and Rwanda, and the Holocaust.

“We start with Armenia as the first genocide of the last century and end with Darfur, the first genocide in this century,” Stauring said. “We haven’t learned anything in 100 years.”

Camp Darfur also gives those who attend a chance to record a video, delivering a personal message for the refugees that Stauring said he will bring to refugee camps in Chad.

“On my first visit, a lot of refugees asked if people even knew about them,” Stauring said. “It was a powerful experience to show people do care about them.”

After the Sunday morning workshops, many of those at the conference staged a “die-in” in the center of the ring of tents.

“It’s about being in solidarity with people across the world,” said Natalia Khalifa, a sophomore at UC Berkeley majoring in development studies and one of the co-chairs of publicity for the conference.

Ashley Newman, the regional outreach coordinator for STAND, said the conference was a success.

“It was really about forming a community of activists,” she said. “I think people have been empowered to keep doing what they’re doing.”

Contact Corinna Matlis at cmatlis@dailycal.org.