Time for Celebration in The Republic of South Sudan

There is a long road ahead for the people of the new Republic of South Sudan and the people of Sudan.  There are vexing issues that will require their respective governments to drop hardline positions to find compromise. There are many years of pain and anger and frustration that have to be overcome.  But this past Saturday was a remarkable step for people for whom peace and security has been so long denied.

These links are to a video and a photo slideshow from the celebration.  Let's share this moment with the Sudanese people, Northern and Southern, and then let's get back to our work of keeping awareness focused on the situation, so they can continue with their work of building two nations co-exisitng peacefully. 

This is an excerpt of the new Republic of South Sudan's National Anthem and a link to the full lyrics and a file where you can hear the song.

"Land of great abundance

 Uphold us united in peace and harmony

Oh motherland!

We rise raising flag with the guiding star

And sing songs of freedom with joy

For justice, liberty and prosperity

Shall forevermore reign"

Have you found images or videos that you think we should share?  Please send them to me and I'll post them throughout the month.

South Sudan’s Independence -- Action Items

Tomorrow is the birth of a new nation, The Republic of South Sudan.  The people of south Sudan have come so far to get here, but there is still a long journey in front of them.

Here are some things you can do from wherever you are:

This is a petition sponsored by Avaaz calling for action from the international community to end aggression against the people of Nuba.  Here’s what they say:

“To the UN Security Council member countries: We call on you to take decisive action to stop the brutal ethnic cleansing ongoing in Sudan, including making all efforts to arrest President al-Bashir and others indicted by the International Criminal Court, imposing robust sanctions on those responsible for mass killings, and fulfilling your responsibility to protect the people of Sudan. For too long the world has watched al-Bashir commit grave crimes against humanity, and offered only words of condemnation. It is time for action.”

This link takes you to Sudan Action Now’s facebook page where you can get a status update blurb that they are asking people to post for the weekend. 

Educate yourself about the situation, and tell people.  This link is to a good summary of the situation, also from Sudan Action Now.  The Enough Project has good information on their blog as well.  If you have an OMB t-shirt wear it tomorrow.  Raise awareness of the issue wherever you go.

Sudan Action Now is also tracking gatherings focused on Sudan, that are happening in July around the country.  You can find one near you here.

And plan on attending the One Million Bones 4^th Sunday event for Sudan.  It’s July 24^th at our office in Albuquerque. We start at 2pm and always have delicious treats.

This is an historic event and we have the opportunity to tell our leaders that we expect them to support the positive efforts of the new nation and of North Sudan to bring peace, security and justice to the people of these nations.  Keep the pressure on.  Tell your representatives, friends and family.  Let’s show that we can make a positive impact through our actions.

Again.

As a poet, I find word definitions interesting because I’m reminded or surprised or struck by the nuances of words, even commonly used and understood words like “again.”

Here’s what struck me about the word again when I looked at its definition today.  It, of course means what we all think of it as meaning, “another time” or “once more.”  But depending on how the word is used, it can also mean, “on the other hand” — she may, and then again, she may not.

We have failed miserably in our actions when we use the word again, as in never again, as in not another time. The title of this opinion piece by Nicholas Kristof says it all: Yet again in Sudan.

Words are powerful, and while they don’t provide aid to people displaced by genocide, nor medicine to those injured by atrocities, they can provide comfort, and most importantly, all of us at One Million Bones hope, they can spur change.

What if rather than saying never again, which we continue to fail at spectacularly, we made a pledge to use the word again with the “on the other hand” meaning.  What if we started saying we may let atrocities happen in Sudan, and then again, we may not. What if we started saying we may let mass rapes in Congo continue another 22 years, then again we may not. Never again is a catchy slogan, but maybe it loses power because it doesn’t mention the crux of the issue:  Atrocities.  Genocide.  Mass rape.  If we looked at situations around the world this way, as a concrete choice between letting atrocities go on, or stopping them would that make it easier for us to make never again mean never again? I have no answer, there may not be one, but something has to change, and why not start with how we talk about the world?

We have an opportunity in Sudan, we can let the killing, fighting and suffering go on, and then again we could end it now. This makes for a tidy little segue from R2P to Sudan, but it addresses the singular question I ask myself: How can anyone in a position to do something about Sudan, or any of the other places we talk about, continue to let these atrocities happen?

PS. I like Kristof’s work.  If you do as well, here is a link to his bio, and to his blog, and you can find his twice weekly op-ed pieces at the NYTimes website.

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An off schedule post for the people of Congo

It's from May, but I just found this article. I'm going off schedule because I want to share it right away, and thank Eve Ensler from the bottom of my heart for writing it.

Congo is heartbreaking to me. For 14 years all the people of Congo have been living in fear, with violence, death and rape all around them. 

And, this article absolutely captures it, for me.  We let these crimes go on, and on, and on. And every day each and every one of us don't take some action, whether large or small, the crimes continue. We have to realize that our politicians are not going to do anything if we don't make them!

Let me say it again: We have to realize that our politicians are not going to do anything if we don't make them.

One Million Bones is about raising awareness about these kinds of atrocities. It's about giving people a reason to care enough about other people half a world away that they will take some kind of action to help them. If you're reading this blog post, and you haven't before, please take the next step: Take Action. And if you have taken action already, please do it again.

Here's a link to Congo Global Action, please click it to see what you can do. 

Here's another from Raise Hope for Congo. 

Here's one more, from Enough!. 

This is for a British organization called Congo Now.  I say contact them too.   

And, please share this information with friends, family and co-workers. That's how it will happen.

It's so over used, but I'm doing it anyway: let us be the change we want to see in the world.