March Advocacy Wrap-up

Posted by Susan

We’re wrapping up our March focus on Sudan today, although the situation is still so precarious that I expect, regretfully, we’ll have to return to it before April is finished. This article explains the current build-up of troops in the contested Abyei region, and shows, that despite the progress that has been made, the long-standing conflict between north and south Sudan still plagues the region.

This photo, by Tim Freccia, from the Enough project’s flickr photostream shows the devastation in Tajalei village allegedly burned to the ground by northern forces. The Satellite Sentinel project images show the build-up of troops in the vicinity of three villages, Bongo, Goli and Diffra.  How many more homes are going to be lost?  How many more lives are going to be lost?  How many more children, women and men have to suffer before we decide that never again means never again? 

We all have busy, complicated lives and this is happening so far away that it’s easy to let ourselves think of it in abstract terms.  But the atrocities happening aren’t abstractions, and the people they’re happening to aren’t abstractions either. One Million Bones is harnessing the power of numbers in a very visible way.  We’re going to show our politicians and our fellow citizens what a million voices looks like.  In the meantime, we urge you to sign Enough’s petition calling for action in Sudan. Click here and make your voice heard.

Next month OMB’s advocacy focus is on women living and working in times of conflict. We invite you to our 4^th Sunday event on March 27^th.  It’s a panel discussion titled, Portrait of the Artist as Activist, featuring Valerie Martinez, our own, Naomi Natale, Chrissie Orr, Kirbie Platero and Molly Sturges.  Carol Boss will host the panel. We’ll talk about these women’s work at the intersection of art and activism and introduce next month’s advocacy. The panel starts at 1pm at the OMB office at 102 Gold SW in Albuquerque.  We’ll follow it with a bone-making workshop.