Demonstrating their shock, anger and concern regarding the conflict in Sudan, a large group of students participated in Duke’s National Student Vigil for Darfur Thursday night on the Chapel steps. Students heard reflections from two Sudanese speakers as well as other accounts from Darfur read by members of Justice, a Duke organization advocating for international human rights.

“The vigil served a dual purpose, as a time for reflection and as the beginning point for becoming more engaged in the future,” said sophomore Jordan Kyle, secretary of Justice.

Abdalla Adam, director for relief and development with Darfur Peace and Development, shared his experiences and reflections, emphasizing the background and reasons for the conflict.

“Historically there have been clashes between tribes, mainly because of the lack of resources. But what we have today is bigger than that... The genocide now is directly because of the involvement of the government,” Adam said.

There have been 70,000 recorded deaths since the escalation of violence in February 2003, Adam noted. Slides continuously displayed behind the speakers noted other statistics, including the fact that 1.4 million Darfur residents have been displaced and 60 to 80 percent of children currently suffer from malnutrition.

Student-read accounts provided emotional descriptions of the horrors victims have been experiencing. “If our men go out, they die, if we go out, we are raped—that is our choice,” one account read. In another, a woman described asking her enemy if she could put her baby down while he raped her.

Further accounts reflected on the role of ethnicity in the conflict. “He said I am ugly because my skin is so dark,” one victim had written, referencing the perpetrator’s common use of the terms “black” and “slave.”

Mohamed Adam Yahya, with the Massaleit Community in Exile, provided an emotionally-charged personal reflection, exclaiming his horror at the genocide. “Sometimes we feel we are not human beings because if we were, we would be protected,” Yahya said. Instead, the international community “doesn’t take any action to help. We need serious action to be taken,” he said.

The intensity and “frustration” with which Yahya spoke displayed how important the situation is to him, sophomore Nathan Emery said. Freshman Stephanie Amoako agreed that “When you hear it in person, it really makes your heart hurt.”

In these reflections, Adam and Yahya noted their appreciation for the students who participated in the vigil. “I am really touched by you today, to be here today and to show your support,” Adam said. Yahya agreed that students’ “concern to do something to help Darfur is very appreciated.”

In order to help students better understand why the genocide is occurring rather than simply realizing that it is happening, Justice plans to have discussion panels and professors educate students on the complexities of the situation. Adam noted that it is “very important to know why. It is complicated but not hard to understand.”

But support is not enough to Justice members and the speakers, who agree this support must now be transformed into action. “I would like to see more activism. The awareness level has been very high,” Adam said.

At the vigil, this activism took the form of signing letters to students’ respective congressmen and making financial contributions. These donations will be distributed to the international non-profit organization CARE and the local organization Darfur Peace and Development. Justice officials say they expect to have raised approximately $700.

Duke’s vigil was one of the many vigils that will take place over these next few days. “The idea was to increase visibility by organizing [the national vigils] around similar dates so that it looks more united,” said senior Daniel Kennedy, president of Justice. The National Student Vigil for Darfur includes participation by Harvard University, Georgetown University, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Emory University.