Instead of heading for the beach at the end of spring semester, a group of concerned Claremont Colleges students leave this Saturday, May 14, on an 11-day road trip up and down California to raise awareness of the ongoing genocide crisis in Darfur.
The group of five, from Scripps, Claremont McKenna, and Pomona Colleges, will visit churches, synagogues, and high schools, as well as California Assembly Members in Sacramento. They also hope to speak with representative for Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer. Their goal: to speak with as many people as possible about the human rights violations in Sudan, encourage them to get involved with the movement to stop the genocide, and raise funds for relief.
Daniela Urban ’05, one of three Scripps women involved in the planning, along with seniors Lisa Jacobs and Allison Wither, said that the idea for the trip began when several students went to El Salvador this spring on a program sponsored by the American Jewish World Service. “We not only participated in assisting the development of a small community,” said Urban, “but we also learned about the importance of social action and our responsibility towards protecting human rights and preventing or, better yet, eliminating poverty.” The AJWS program encourages students to continue their involvement with social justice projects upon their return.