Action 1: Self-Educate, Self-Empower
–Survivor of the Armenian Genocide.
As a member of the anti-genocide movement, you’ve been alerted to the need to work to prevent and stop genocide wherever it occurs. In order to do this, we must arm ourselves with the knowledge needed to stop genocide in its tracks. So over the summer, while your school reading has slowed down, pick up a few books or films and take the time to empower yourself with everything you need to be an effective leader in the anti-genocide movement – educate yourself, empower yourself, and keep up the good fight! Click Here to download as a PDF.
Reading List * Suggested Websites * Movie List
Summer Reading List for Inspired STAND members:
| ANTI-GENOCIDE | |
 | The Responsibility to Protect – International Committee on Intervention and State Sovereignty The quintessential document that every STAND activist should read: this book explains the principle of the Responsibility tp Protect Doctrine, which is something STAND bases its entire advocacy platform around. For more advanced study |
 | A Problem from Hell: America in the Age of Genocide – Samantha Power Another informative book for STAND activists should read: this goes into the modern face of genocide and describes the trends of response (or lack thereof) of the American government to this most egregious crime against humanity. For more advanced study |
 | Hard Choices : Moral Dilemmas in Humanitarian Intervention – Jonathan Moore ed. This book details a collection of essays detailing the moral dilemmas inherent in humanitarian intervention from Somalia until the end of the 1990s For more advanced study |
| DARFUR | |
 | Darfur: The Ambiguous Genocide – Gerard Prunier. For a really comprehensive and in-depth look at the history of Darfur, the question of whether or not Darfur is a genocide, and one of the most balanced portrayals of the conflict. For more advanced study |
 | The Devil Came on Horseback – Brian Steidle Brian Steidle is a former US Marine who volunteered to be a military observer for the African Union in Sudan, and this is his account of what he saw on the ground. One of the most vivid, honest, and compelling descriptions of the conflict that gives insight you can’t find anywhere else For intermediate study |
 | War in Darfur and the Search for Peace– Alex de Waal A series of essays written by leading Sudanese and international specialists on Darfur, including research, analysis, and opinion. For more advanced study. |
 | Not on Our Watch : A Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond – Don Cheadle and John Prendergast A great introduction to both the Darfur genocide and the movement to end it. Written by activist-actor John Cheadle and leading Darfur activist John Prendergast. For beginning study |
| BURMA | |
 | The River of Lost Footsteps: Histories of Burma – Thant Myint-U An elegant and well-told introduction to the history of Burma and how it got to its present state, told through the narration of scholar Thant Myint-U. For beginning study |
 | The Making of Modern Burma– Thant Myint-U A more in depth extension of the narration and background presented by The River of Lost Footsteps by the same author, this goes less into the far-reaching history of the country and goes more into how modern day Burma came what it is. For beginning study |
 | Burma: Insurgency and the Politics of Ethnicity – Martin Smith Ten years old, this book is one that goes well into the ethnic elements of the conflict and how they relate to Burma today and is important for understanding why STAND is addressing this conflict. For intermediate study |
 | The Voice of Hope – Aung San Suu Kyi Over a period of nine months after being released from house arrest, Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi tells her perspectives on the crisis her country faces to Alan Clements in an engaging book. For intermediate study |
| CONGO | |
 | The All Things Must Fight to Live: Stories of War and Deliverance in Congo – Bryan Mealer A recent and illuminating book, this is A foreign correspondent's gripping account of his experiences in Congo, told through the long scope of the country's deep and brutal history. For beginning study |
 | King Leopold’s Ghost – Adam Hochschild A classic account of the early history of Congo as a Belgian colony and the brutal rule that shaped so much of Congo’s history For more advanced study |
 | Congo Wars: Conflict, Myth, and Reality – Thomas Turner This book, by a lifelong authority on the Congo, makes sense of the world’s least reported and least understood major war For intermediate study. |
 | Stakes of the Congo War – John F. Clark ed. Details the involvement of foreign actors, economic pressures and the change in African conflict paradigms on the Congo Wars. For more intermediate study |
Suggested Websites
 | Over the summer of 2008, Brown University students Colin O'Brien (former STAND National High School Outreach Coordinator) and Scott Warren (former STAND Student Director) are embarking on a trip to Africa. So far they have traveled to Zimbabwe, and Kenya, and will visit the refugee camps bordering the Chad-Sudan region, Ethiopia, and Tanzania. Throughout the trip, Colin and Scott hope to capture the individual perspective on the various conflicts that have recently engrossed the continent. Through talking and engaging with people on the ground, they hope to bring their story home, enabling us to further understand the complex continent. Additionally, Colin and Scott will provide individual analysis of the various countries they plan to visit. Please follow them throughout their trip with their blog. |
 | Visit the STAND blog to get links to news articles to hear the latest information regarding Sudan, Burma, and Congo. E-mail questions about what is happening on the ground to Sabina Carlson at education@standnow.org. Also, if you would like to receive Sabina’s weekly news briefs, ask to be added to her list! |
 | The 2008 Regional Conferences introduced you to the Enough Project’s 3P’s + Prevention. Read more on the “Three P’s” framework, as well as papers and briefings on Sudan and Eastern Congo, by visiting the Enough Project website. |
Summer Movie List
 | Prayer of Peace: Relief and Resistance in Burma s War Zones - Matt Blauer This film sheds new light on the survival struggle of Burma’s Karen people. Blauer illegally crosses the border several times to help local relief workers bring medicine and material aid to those displaced by the Burmese Army. With candid interviews and stunning footage of recent events, the film brings a fresh awareness to an often ignored but important issue in this troubled nation. |
 | 60 Minutes - The War Against Women (January 13, 2008) Highlights the violence against women taking place in the Congo. Rape is a weapon of war in the Congo, and it is destroying them, their families, and entire communities ABC News Nightline Congo: The Hidden War Congo is being torn apart by war and chaos, and is costing millions of lives. Due to insecurity, no one is quite sure what is going on. A UN peacekeeping force only controls a few towns. The civil war between groups is supercharged by greed, due to the immense wealth of the nation. More than three million have been lost in this war, mostly through disease and starvation. |
 | Darfur Now – Ted Braun Follow the stories of several major players in the conflict in Darfur: a UCLA graduate in Los Angeles, California, to a Darfurian woman who joins rebel forces, to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, to a United Nations humanitarian on the ground in Sudan, to an internationally known actor and activist, and finally to a community leader in a West Darfur refugee camp. |
 | The Devil Came on Horseback – Brian Steidle/ Ricki Stern and Anne Sundberg Following the story of Brian Steidle (who wrote a book of the same name) A documentary that exposes the genocide raging in Darfur, Sudan as seen through the eyes of a former U.S. marine who returns home to make the story public. Shows footage and a side of Darfur that few else have seen. |
Click Here to download Action 1 in PDF format
