Editor’s Note: This blog originally appeared on iactivism.org i-ACT visited the “new arrival” area in refugee camp Goz Amer. Over 2,000 people have been living in improvised huts since May 2013, having escaped extreme violence in Darfur. They now join the over 300,000 refugees that have been living in camps in eastern Chad for almost […]
Author: Gabriel
Gabriel co-founded Stop Genocide Now in 2005, which gave birth to i-ACT in 2009.
He became involved in the situation in Darfur out of a sense of personal responsibility. He believes the power of community and compassion, combined with personal empowerment, can bring about meaningful change.
In the Summer of 2008, we accompanied Mia Farrow to Darfuri refugee camps on the Chad-Sudan border. As the Beijing Olympics were about to start, we looked to bring attention to the ongoing violence in Darfur and the positive role China could have in stopping it—but we also wanted to show the beauty of the […]
When I First Met Adam
“We’re looking for a teacher named Adam,” I asked the first man we saw, when we arrived at a refugee camp with a funny name, Kounoungou, back in 2008. “Adam” is a very common name with Darfuris, and in a camp with more than 20,000 people, there was probably hundreds, maybe even thousands of Adams, […]
During the last 10 years, Guisma went from living with her brothers and parents in their village in Darfur, to seeing two older brothers killed during the brutal attack on their home, another younger brother die during the escape to Chad, and a little sister die in the refugee camp that is now Guisma’s home. […]
I became active in the Darfur movement in late 2004. I did not know exactly how I’d be able to participate in alleviating what was and continues to be overwhelming human suffering. I just knew I needed to act. One of the very first campaigns I helped create and organize was a 100-Day Fast for […]
I had the privilege to meet the International Criminal Court’s first Prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, not long ago. I told him that he was greatly admired in Darfuri refugee camps, where he was seen as a hero, and there are many children in the camps named Ocampo. I also told him that they would not compromise […]
Why Not Darfur?
It doesn’t get any easier. I recently went on my eleventh trip to eastern Chad, where I visit the refugee camps that are home to more than 250,000 Darfuris.
The Law Offices of Bart Fisher has been hired as a lobbyist for the Government of Sudan. Mr. Fisher has agreed to support the Sudanese government’s effort to be removed from the U.S. State Sponsors of Terrorism list. Help us tell Bart Fisher to stop using his law firm to help the Government of Sudan avoid consequences […]
We Roll With It
I have been saying this quite often, where it has become something of a mantra for this trip. In Tchad (as you see Chad written out here), you have to roll with it. Things seldom go the way you would like them to or even the way you expect, even if you don’t like what you expect! […]
Camp Kounoungo
The i-ACT team visits Camp Kounoungo. Gabriel meets up with his old friends Jacoub and Fatne.