Why do you STANDFast?
Submitted by matthewheck on 2 December 2008 - 11:46pm.
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It doesn’t take much to change the world.
Any other day, I might have difficulty believing such a statement. But not today.
I have witnessed the phenomenal ability of our movement to grow and reach out to others: STAND has more than 700 chapters across the nation; over 700 students converged on D.C. for our third National Student Conference; and, in three years of Darfur Fasts, we have raised $500,000 for Civilian Protection.
But now, the stakes are higher than ever. In addition to maintaining the Civilian Protection Program in Darfur, we are now expanding to Burma too.
Today, I’m asking you to STANDFast with me and thousands of other students around the world as we raise money to protect civilians in Darfur and Burma. Specifically, I’m asking you to give up one nonessential item and donate the money you would have spent on that to STANDFast. To put it simply:
The cost of ONE 12-ounce can of RedBull can provide a woman with a donkey for one week to collect firewood.
The cost of ONE Venti-sized Mocha at Starbucks can provide early warning of an impending attack to civilians in eastern Burma.
But you don’t have to stop there. Host a speaker, take pledges, hold a die-in, table by your library, or take a page from the Pellham Memorial High School’s STAND chapter and make a video…
There’s no limit to your creativity, just as there is no limit to our collective potential.
I STANDFast because I believe that when we work together, we can change the world--one Redbull and one Mocha at a time.
And, now, as you STANDFast today, I want to hear from you.
Why do you STANDFast?
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Imagine if, where governments had failed, private donors had succeeded by jamming the radio towers in Rwanda that were inciting and guiding perpetrators during the 1994 genocide. On December 3, your STAND chapter can help do what we couldn’t do in Rwanda by taking action to protect civilians.
Current humanitarian aid projects and peacekeeping efforts in Darfur and Burma have been unable to protect civilians. You can join thousands of students and take protection into your own hands right now.
I STANDFast
I STANDFast to be part of something bigger than myself. To be part of the bigger picture. To not be so selfish, and to prove to others that teenagers may not all be so self-centered.
I STANDFast to save lives, to affect change.
I STANDFast because I see it as my duty as a human being to help others in any way I can.
Lauren Tibbitts
lauren.tibbitts@gmail.com
STAND Juneau, Chapter President
I STANDFast
I STANDFast to protect civilians in Darfur and Burma. I STANDFast to remind myself why this movement is so important.
I STANDFast to show the
I STANDFast to show the people in my community that even though Darfur and Burma are so far away, it's important to do whatever we can to make a difference in their lives, and every little bit adds up. When governments won't protect their people, it's up to us to protect them.
I STANDFast to show the
I STANDFast to show the international community that protection and security must come first; I STANDFast to show that small donations can save lives.
I STANDfast to remind myself
I STANDfast to remind myself how much work there is left to do. I CAN give up eating food for a day, whereas the people of Darfur are forced to starve. It is the most solidarity I can offer for the day, and raising money for civilian protection is the most effective thing I can do for the people of Darfur. I STANDfast to remind everyone else around me that we can, we are, and we will make a difference.
STANDfast
I STANDfast to prove that the political will to end genocide DOES exist! "Never doubt that a small group of committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has" ~Margaret Mead
Because I can
I STANDFast because I can - because I am lucky enough to live comfortably and free from violence and attacks, and because I know that there are still those living out there who do not share my luxury. I STANDFast because I stand against genocide and mass atrocity, and I will continue to do so until there is a world without genocide.