Today marks the kick off for the week-long Dollars for Darfur campaign, a campus-wide effort to raise $40,000 for the refugees of the Darfur conflict that has displaced more than 2.5 million people and killed more than 400,000.
Sponsored by 11 different organizations, Dollars for Darfur will feature numerous fundraisers held throughout the second week in October. All proceeds raised go directly to USA for United Nations High Council for Refugees, a non-profit organization that provides food, water, shelter and protection to refugees, which was founded in 1950 by the United Nations.
“The situation in Darfur is horrific,” sophomore Mackenzie Warren, creator of the Dollars for Darfur campaign, said. “While our efforts won’t solve the crisis, they will brighten the lives of a few displaced Darfurians.”
According to Warren, her mission is not only to raise money for a good cause, but, more importantly, to increase awareness of global issues on the SMU campus and “unite the student body in an effort that allows us to think beyond our own comfortable existence.”
“It just started off with me wanting to do something,” Warren said. “Mostly I wanted to do this because this is a genocide that’s taking place over there that is so unknown. It’s been happening since 2003 and some people haven’t heard about it; some people don’t know where it is on a map. I don’t care how much we raise. If one kid Googles Darfur because of this, then I’m happy.”
Also during the week, the Perkins School of Theology and SMU’s Human Rights Education Program are co-sponsoring the “Does Dallas Care?” symposium on Darfur on Oct. 9-11, which includes lectures and a panel discussion. On the last day, Dallas residents are encouraged to “dine for Darfur” at participating restaurants where five percent of total sales will be donated to help refugees.
“I decided to have it coordinate with the “Does Dallas Care?” conference,” Warren said. “Dollars for Darfur is mostly a social and fundraising event, so it’s nice to pair it with something that’s more educational.”
Fundraising events include a kick-off party at Across the Street Bar hosted by Kappa Alpha Order, a late night hot dog sale hosted by Kappa Kappa Gamma, a soft drink sale hosted by LEAD, and a doughnut sale hosted by Chi Omega.
“I wanted people to have plenty of opportunities to get involved,” Warren said. “If they couldn’t make one event, then there’s always another event they could go to. I wanted it to be in your face.”
In addition to fundraisers, specially designed T-shirts will be sold for $10 that feature the Dollars for Darfur logo and participating sponsors. Tables will be set up outside Hughes-Trigg until Oct. 11 where the T-shirts will be sold.
“I designed the logo with Evyán Stuart, a friend from Las Vegas,” Warren said. “I’m an artist and she’s an artist, so we drew up some drawings and collaborated on it. She used her technology to make my drawings better and more printable. The red at the top is like the blood, suffering, death and atrocity. The doves are peace and hope that the United States and other countries are giving to Darfur. The flowers are the growth that we hope Sudan and Chad are going to go through to get back to where it was all those years ago.”