“If every member of the House and Senate had received 100 letters from people back home saying we have to do something about Rwanda, when the crisis was first developing, then I think the response would have been different.”

– the late U.S. Senator Paul Simon, 1994

To protect civilians in Darfur and bring this genocide to a halt, we must hold our elected officials accountable for their action – and inaction.  
                                                      

What Constituents Can Do
We can compel elected officials to support Darfur-related legislation and take other key actions through legislative advocacy – letter-writing, call-ins, and direct lobbying. What’s more, we can attend campaign events and ask tough questions about Darfur, write op-eds and letters to the editor to call attention to the need for substantive action, mobilize other members of the community to contact their elected officials to demand action, and more.

What Elected Officials Can Do
What can our elected officials do to stop genocide in Darfur? Plenty. Visit http://www.darfurscores.org/ to find out if your members of Congress make the grade on stopping genocide.

Every member of Congress receives a letter grade based on their support for key Darfur-related legislation and other initiatives.

What STAND Is Doing

Join STAND students around the country in pushing for key legislation to make sure that Congress is making the grade on stopping genocide.

The Making the Grade campaign will center around Darfur Report Cards to pressure our members of Congress into action. You can download report cards for all 535 members of Congress from www.DarfurReportCards.com. Each individual report card will have the elected official’s name, his or her grade, and a complete listing of all key legislation s/he has and has not supported. There will also be a section for “notes” where you can write messages to your members of Congress based on their performance. 

Show your representatives that stopping the genocide in Darfur is important to you. Urge members with poor Darfur records to step up.  Ask members with good records to maintain their commitment to the people of Darfur. Urge newly-elected members to start off their terms on the right foot by supporting Darfur legislation.  Use these report cards not only to educate yourself, members of your community, and the media, but also to build a relationship with your members of Congress and hold them accountable for their record against genocide.

Check out the links below for more info on Darfur Report Cards.

And, as always, remember to report all your chapter's work -- STAND leaders want to know what you're up to so we can better help you!

Please email advocacy@standnow.org for any questions on how you can put pressure on your elected leaders.