Not on Our Watch

by Don Cheadle

  This has been my experience for some time now, ever since I worked for a couple congressmen in the 1980s. The squeaky wheel gets the grease. If we can make enough noise and demonstrate that there will be a cost for those politicians who just ignore us, then we can change things. I’ve seen it happen again and again. This is the foundation of our democratic system. Either use it, or we lose it on the issues we care about the most.

  If the voices of those working on behalf of Darfurians were initially too soft to be heard, they are now coming together and becoming too loud to be ignored. In the summer of 2004, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and American Jewish World Service organised a Darfur Emergency Summit. John, Gerry Martone of IRC, and Elie Wiesel, the Nobel Prize–winning author and Holocaust survivor, spoke to the assembled. Elie Wiesel’s passionate speech about the importance of being heard was a potent wake-up call. ‘How can I hope to move people from indifference if I remain indifferent to the plight of others? I cannot stand idly by or all my endeavours will be unworthy.’[8] He told the group to stop using the phrase ‘Never Again’ if they were not going to respond to Darfur. Because it was happening again. His words had a profound effect: for many, Darfur moved from being just another crisis to being a genocide. The cause suddenly had a different feel; people’s sense of responsibility was triggered, and the Save Darfur Coalition was born. The time had come to start forcing people to care, and to act.

  By 2006, in response to increased citizen advocacy, President Bush began feeling the heat. After sitting on the sidelines for three years as his senior officials searched for quick fixes within the narrow confines of the policy constraints outlined above, Bush began weighing in publicly. Obviously fed up with the status quo, he took many people by surprise, including his own top advisors, when he called for NATO to help protect civilians and stabilise the security situation in Darfur. ‘We need more troops,’ Bush said in February 2006. ‘And so I’m in the process now of working with a variety of folks to encourage there to be more troops, probably under the United Nations. But it’s going to require, I think, a NATO stewardship, planning, facilitating, organising—probably double the number of peacekeepers that are there now.’[9] These unscripted public pleas Bush made were a direct result of citizen advocates making their voices heard right up to the president. After that declaration, the debate intensified.

  During the late spring and early summer of 2006, the situation in Darfur deteriorated significantly, even after a peace deal was signed between the government of Sudan and one of the three Darfurian rebel groups. Bush administration officials continued to give the president no workable options to ameliorate conditions in Sudan beyond the status quo, so the president’s bold assertions were never followed up and operationalised fully.

  We hope that such a bureaucratic fumble is never allowed to happen again. The only way to do that is by turning up the heat and making as much noise as we can about Darfur and other crises involving mass atrocities against our fellow human beings.

  Through the stories in this book that show individuals making a difference in a variety of ways, we hope to inspire people to get involved. The smallest of actions—writing letters to government representatives and parliamentarians, meeting members in their constituency offices, penning opeds, raising money—can make the biggest of changes—even galvanising action to end genocide!

  DON:

  It seemed innocent enough. My manager asking me, ‘Do you want to be a presenter at the Live 8 concert in Philadelphia?’

  This ‘super,’ worldwide concert was going to be an unprecedented, historical event.

  It took all of a second for me to answer.

  ‘Hell, yeah.’

  It wasn’t until I stepped out of the wings and took my first step onto the stage in Philadelphia that I truly considered where I was and what I had agreed to. And that is absolutely the wrong time to consider anything other than reading the words off of the teleprompter. My little voice inside my head was thinking the same thing, and he must’ve been nervous too, ’cause he started yelling at me: ‘Just keep walking; you out here now, fool! Can’t do anything about it at this point! Go! Get on your spot! Read the teleprompter! Oh yeah, and relax, man!’

  I’d never been to Philadelphia before but had always wanted to see the city that one of the baddest groups in hip-hop, The Roots, placed at the centre of most of their songs. So Bridgid and I—kiss, hug, love to the kids—hopped on a plane and headed to the land of sound. We were a little giddy. We don’t really do a lot of the celebrity life thing, so this major concert outing was very big for us. Incredible entertainment by some of the most exciting acts in the world, happening all around the world, yet free to the Philly folk, and in service of an inarguably noble cause. Wow. All that altruism sounded too good to be true. This was an enormous outpouring of energy and effort, promoters forgoing the opportunity to maximise their financial upside, all for Africa, no less? It didn’t make sense on the face of it. I better understood the goals of the G-8 meeting next week: ‘Get money, baby!’ But Bob Geldof was the creator of both Band Aid, the supergroup of popular musicians that raised millions through hit singles, and Live Aid, the huge concerts that had generated over $100 million for famine relief. If I was going to throw in with anybody in such a grand way as this, might as well be with him.

  I’m introducing two acts tonight, Bon Jovi first (classic) with Kanye West to follow (Mr. Kanye ‘George Bush doesn’t care about Black people’ West? Love that). And punctuated throughout my introductions is the message of the evening: Wake up. Stand up. Get involved. Do the right thing. Speaking of which, after complaints that there weren’t enough Black acts on the bill, Russell Simmons made some calls and changed the profile. Bono also called Jay-Z to ask him to pull more hip-hop artists into the mix, and was equally accommodated. I wondered if in four days the G-8 Summit, the meeting of the most powerful people in the world, would enjoy similar cooperation: ‘Yo, Chirac, need more bases in the southern part of France. Cool?’

  ‘You got it, GW. Anytime. Holla at your boy.’

  Probably not. How the world leaders would react to the plea from the Live 8 family—to ‘Make Poverty History’ by wiping out debt for 18 of the poorest countries in the world, a $50 billion request—that remained to be seen. But today in Philly, Alicia Keys, Linkin Park and Jay-Z, Maroon 5, Stevie Wonder (just to name a few), and dozens more in ten such concerts all over the world, are lifting their voice as one. Music as movement. Beautiful.

  ‘And now, Jersey’s own, Bon Jovi!!’

  The Philly crowd screams in unison as if these orange state boys were born and bred just down the block.

  ‘See there? Listen to ’em. You did fine. OK. You’re done. You can go ... C’mon, move your …’

  ‘Wait!’ I scream back at my little voice, tired of being pushed around. I take my eyes from the teleprompter and let myself look up for the first time at the full expanse of human beings grooving in front of me. Some say there were 600,000 people stretched down the parkway in front of the Museum of Art. Others say 1.5 million. I say, ‘Damn, that’s a lot of people. I don’t care how you slice it.’

  And there’s even more watching in stadiums, on streets, television, and a live Internet stream—many, many millions more, all listening to our prayers for peace, our calls to action.

  My voice crowds in. ‘All silently judging you. Get the hell off the stage!’

  Discretion being the better part of valour, I obey and slink back to the wings just in time to see Beyoncé building with Alicia Keys backstage. It’s then that I know I’ve died and gone to hip-hop heaven, a small sacrifice to be sure.

  [1]All Things Considered, National Public Radio, 22 July 1994.

  [2] Gerald Martone, ‘Neglected Crises: Playing the Blame Game,’ Inter-Action Monday Developments, Volume 24, Number 12 (31 July 2006).

  [3] ‘The D
arfur Genocide,’ Wall Street Journal op-ed, 24 March 2005.

  [4] Mark Bixler, ‘Historic Peace Agreement: Q&A / John Danforth,’ Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 12 January 2005.

  [5] Testimony to U.S Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, 9 September 2004.

  [6] See Remarks as Prepared for Delivery by Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, for the House Armed Services Committee, Wednesday, 5 February 2003.

  [7] Paul Richter, ‘Rwanda Violence Stumps World Leaders,’ Los Angeles Times, 30 April 1994.

  [8] Save Darfur Coalition press release, ‘Diverse Coalition Issues Statement and Call to Action on Sudan,’ 2 August 2004. Available at www.savedarfur.org

  [9] White House Press Release, ‘President Discusses Global War on Terror,’ 17 February 2006.

  6

  Activist Beginnings and Success Stories

  ‘To stay quiet is as political an act as speaking out.’

  Arundhati Roy, author and activist addressing an audience at UCLA, 27 May 2003

  Over the past two decades, many citizens’ movements have sprung up in the United States and around the world that have addressed international issues with intelligence, creativity, dedication, and, most importantly, success. By examining activist efforts from around the world and even in Sudan before the Darfur genocide, we can learn what tools were successful during the recent past and apply them in the fight to end mass atrocities today.

  Anti-Apartheid

  Citizen activism played a crucial role in ending the apartheid system of racial discrimination in South Africa. We were overjoyed to see the climax of this incredible surge of activism—the fall of apartheid and the release of Nelson Mandela—and the world played a role in making it happen. During the late 1970s, the media increased its coverage of the racial discrimination and increasing violence of the regime in South Africa. People wanted to do something to help end apartheid, and activist groups began divestment movements to channel support for the cause into meaningful change. Activists recognised that convincing city and state governments to dump their stock in companies that did business with the white supremacist apartheid government would put financial pressure on those companies to stop doing business in South Africa. As a result, the South African government would become more isolated internationally.

  In its early days, this divestment movement was largely student driven. Though condemned by university officials, student protests during the early and mid 1980s had the support of human rights, labour, and civil rights leaders, such as Reverend Jesse Jackson. When constituents began voicing their support for the students, the lawmakers responded. In 1986, the US Congress passed the Anti-Apartheid Act, which blocked the import of South African products and prevented new corporate investment in the country as well as US bank deposits from South African government agencies. US investment in South Africa dropped from $2.8 billion in 1983 to $1.3 billion in 1985, with 80 out of 350 US companies operating there leaving by 1987. The economic pressure generated by American citizens helped to force the South African government to change its ways. Mandela was released from prison in February 1990 and was elected president of South Africa in 1994. The apartheid era was over.

  Debt Relief

  For many decades, the world’s poorest countries spent billions of dollars to repay debts to wealthy nations and international institutions, often leaving little for development, health care, or education. These debts were incurred by past regimes mostly during the Cold War, when the United States, the Soviet Union, and international banks loaned billions of dollars to mostly corrupt and unaccountable governments. Current governments are saddled with these debts, siphoning off funds that otherwise could be used for investment or social services. Recognising the debilitating effects of debt on poor countries, development agencies, trade unions, students, and churches came together in the 1990s to advocate for debt relief.

  Debt relief activists recruited high-profile spokespeople, including Bono, the charismatic lead singer of the Irish rock group U2. By the time world leaders met in 2005 for the annual G-8—the ‘Group of Eight’ of the world’s most powerful economies—summit meeting, debt relief was on the global agenda. In the lead-up to the summit, the anti-poverty organisation ONE teamed with Bono, Bob Geldof, and the screenwriter Richard Curtis to plan rock concerts in each of the G-8 countries. Over one million people attended the concerts, with another 3.8 billion watching online or on television.

  When the G-8 met in Scotland they agreed to 100% debt cancellation for 18 of the world’s poorest countries and significant increases in foreign assistance spending. Debt relief activists cite the rewards of their activism: When governments provided debt relief to Uganda, the country used the money that would have gone to debt payments to improve primary education and HIV/AIDS education and treatments; in Mozambique, half a million children were immunised; in Tanzania, school fees were eliminated; and in Benin, school fees for rural students were waived. Reduced or forgiven debt payments have helped these countries concentrate on the basics—raising the standard of living and ending extreme poverty.

  Anti-Sweatshops

  The modern effort to eliminate sweatshops and improve labour conditions for garment and footwear workers started to gain momentum during the early 1990s. As the debate over ‘globalisation’ heated up, increasing reports surfaced of abusive labour practices. By 1994, US Secretary of Labour Robert Reich began a campaign to enforce the Fair Labour Standards Act in response to media reports of sweatshops in the United States. Consumer, human rights, and labour groups started coming together, targeting specific corporations with strikes, boycotts, and demonstrations. Labour rights advocates began operating across national borders in an effort to expose and shut down sweatshops internationally.

  In 1996, a furore erupted over the working conditions at Honduran garment factories that produced clothing for the Kathie Lee line at Wal-Mart. In a good faith gesture, talk show host Kathie Lee Gifford allowed these factories to be inspected by local, independent human rights monitors to ensure conditions improved. She has since become active in the anti-sweatshop movement, helping keep national attention on the topic. Growing unease helped launch sweatshop-free enterprises, such as American Apparel, the popular clothing store that began in 1997. A year later, this national concern about domestic and offshore sweatshop conditions led to more factory inspections, labour and wage guidelines, labelling, and the creation of a White House task force by President Clinton. Once again, citizen activists had influenced US policy.

  HIV/AIDS

  As HIV tore through Africa during the 1980s and 1990s, the epidemic far outstripped the resources dedicated to controlling it by Western countries. It was not until 2003 that this began to change, when President Bush made the surprising decision to create an Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, a major increase in HIV/AIDS funding, announced during his State of the Union Address. In real terms, the results of these efforts are staggering. In 2003, the US government’s contribution to fighting HIV/AIDS was $840 million; two years later, that figure was $2.3 billion. In 2005, President Bush signed the United States Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria Act into law and launched the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). PEPFAR dedicates $15 billion over five years to support prevention efforts, provide ARV treatments, and care for HIV/AIDS patients in 15 of the worst afflicted countries in Africa and the Caribbean. It is still not enough, however.

  Bush referred to this initiative as ‘a work of mercy beyond all current international efforts to help the people of Africa.’[1] Why did an administration better known for its sceptical approach to foreign aid decide to confront the problem of HIV/AIDS in Africa? The answer lies in Bush’s allusion to a ‘work of mercy,’ a religious reference designed to resonate with a surprising constituency of citizen activists who had been pressuring the government for action: evangelical
Christians.

  During the 1980s and 1990s evangelical Christian groups were better known for denouncing HIV/AIDS as a consequence of homosexuality and drug use than for efforts to prevent and treat the disease. However, Christian missionaries and aid agencies working throughout Africa witnessed firsthand the devastating consequences of the disease for that continent. They realised that no matter the politics of HIV/AIDS in America, it was their responsibility as Christians to mobilise their fellow believers to do something about the pandemic.

  In February 2002, Reverend Franklin Graham, son of the legendary evangelist Billy Graham, and a close spiritual advisor to President Bush, brought together more than 800 Christian leaders and overseas missionaries to promote the involvement of conservative Christians in fighting HIV/AIDS. Throughout the following year, Reverend Graham and other Christian leaders quietly prodded the White House to get involved. Key White House advisors, including speechwriter Michael Gerson, were receptive, and so was Senate majority leader Bill Frist, who had personally worked as a medical volunteer with HIV/AIDS victims. By coupling the moral imperative of fighting deadly disease with data to demonstrate the effectiveness of prevention and treatment efforts, Christian leaders were able to convince the President to act on HIV/AIDS.