Students Gather to Raise Awareness on George Washington University Campus
Last Saturday, the STAND core chapter of George Washington University held the second annual STAND Fair, an event to raise awareness and encourage students to participate in the anti-genocide movement. Ka.jpg)
iser Kabir, President of the GW STAND chapter said, “The purpose of STANDFair is to not only make our GW STAND organization visible but to reach out to the GW community and show everyone the anti-genocide movement is going strong. It’s a fun way to get people interacting with each other and learning about the conflicts in Sudan, Burma and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).”
The event, held in Kogan Plaza, featured live music, food, and games to draw attention to selected conflict areas. After each game, s
tudents answered a question about the various conflicts, based on flyers and handouts at the table, and then received a ticket for food. The game “Bobbing for Burma” had many bobbing for apples, before participating in signing a U.S. Campaign for Burma advocacy letter. “Stand for Sudan” allowed students to create a colorful banner with painted footprints, while also learning about the conflict in Darfur. Finally, “Digging for the DRC” which had students attempting to find “conflict minerals,” taught students about conflict minerals and the various actors in the DRC.
Along with these games, a general advocacy table covered historic genocides, current genocides, and emerging conflicts in an interactive map, where participants could learn about these events before calling 1-800-GENOCIDE.
The event successfully allowed students and other participants to connect with the larger movement, as well as the GW chapter of STAND, while listening to music and enjoying each other’s company. It brought DC students together to learn about conflicts and participate in an advocacy action in a casual and positive space. The fair games may have been silly but they taught participants about conflicts in a digestible way. The seeds of later action have potentially been planted, as everyone left the event with issues to think about.
