Earlier tonight, the Center for American Progress was packed with people who wanted to hear and learn more about what is going on in the Sudan.
John Prendergast, co-chair of the center's Enough Project moderated a panel that included Dave Eggers, Craig Walzer and Franco Majok.
- Eggers is the author of the memoir A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius and the novel What is the What, in which he helped Valentino Achak Deng tell his story of escape from the Sudan.
- Walzer, editor, Out of Exile:
Narratives From the Abducted and Displaced People of Sudan - Majok, one of Sudan's "lost boys" who lives in Boston and works with refugees and who recently returned to Sudan to build a school in his native village with donated funds.
To get things started, Prendergast said that he wanted to challenge the notion of 'giving voice to the voiceless,' saying that the people in the Sudan have voices and can speak for themselves. I agree; perhaps we just have not been listening
Prendergast noted that the crisis in Darfur is just the latest manifestation of a far-reaching conflict that stretches back decades and that the preceding war was seven times a deadly as the current conflict.
Majok noted that he sees identiy as the crux of the conflict.
Walzer discussed the importance of asking people whar their lives were like before war tore things apart and letting that evolve into a three dimensional story. Since many in the public are aware of the Lost Boys, he took time to tell the stories of women who also were displaced.
He also showed a brief clip to demonstrate life in Cairo for some Sudanese refugees. Getting out of the Sudan or away from the immediate danger of war is only half of the equation. Refugees are marginalized and get little support whether they end up in places like Cairo or remain internally displaced, stranded in forgetten zones of the Sahara.
When asked what the focus should be, Majok talked about several issues, but concentrated on the referendum that will take place in 2011. The U.S. leaned heavily on the Sudanese government to get this peace agreement signed, Part of it stipulates that in 2011, southern Sudan will be able to vote on whether or not they want to secede and form their own country. Majok and the rest of the panelists agreed that problems with carrying out this referendum couldl re-ignite conflict.
Many of the audience members work with aid organizations and are well-versed in the conflict, so I was grateful for the opportunity to learn more. Just as the forum only touched on part of the story, I can only touch on part of the forum.
I will say that for those who think that the arts and politics are not aligned, reading the life stories of the people in the Sudan has swayed many into political action--be it attending protests or sending donations. What is the What is a powerful and moving account and no doubt those who read Out of Exile will also find themselves moved.
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