Author: Michelle Park & Julie Xu
The Office of Religious and Spiritual Life (ORSL), in coordination with various on-campus organizations, will put on a variety of educational programs this April in observance of Genocide Awareness Month. The events are aimed to educate and promote awareness on campus and throughout the larger Los Angeles community.
“Although the month of April also represents many other important issues, I think genocide is very current and relevant in today’s society and people must be aware,” director of the ORSL Reverend Susan Young said. She is spearheading the project.
Students Taking Action Now for Darfur (STAND), Hillel, the Armenian Students Association (ASA), Project Safe, First Nations, UNICEF and the Social Justice Film Club are all involved. The Office of Student Life (OSL), the Intercultural Community Center (ICC) and ORSL are coordinating activities.
ASA will host the Armenian Genocide Recognition event on April 25, just one day after the 96th anniversary of the atrocities. The event will include a speaker and a discussion on the challenges with achieving international recognition.
“We hope that everyone who attends the event has a better understanding of what occurred 96 years ago and how it still has an impact on the Armenian community today.” ASA co-president Diana Shaginian (junior) said.
The ASA will also circulate a petition to encourage recognition of the Genocide.
STAND will sponsor CAMP Darfur on April 4-7 with ORSL. The interactive display in the quad will feature information on the Armenian, Cambodian and Rwandan Genocides as well as on the Holocaust and the genocide in Darfur.
“We want Oxy students to, at the very least, become aware of the world outside the Oxy bubble,” STAND member Alana Murphy (sophomore) said.
First Tuesday Speaker John Prendergast will talk about issues in Sudan as well as conflict minerals in Africa on April 5. Prendergast is a human rights activist. He has collaborated with President Clinton, George Clooney, Tracy McGrady and other influential figures to promote awareness around the world.
Hillel is also taking a large part in April’s events. On Tuesday, April 26, at 7:00 p.m. in Lower Herrick, Hillel will be hosting holocaust survivor Gabriella Karin.
The organizations will also host three film screenings. The Social Justice Film Series will show “Pushing the Elephants” on April 6, a film about a woman in the Democratic Republic of Congo. “Hotel Rwanda,” a film based on the true story of Paul Rusesabagina, a man who saved the lives of thousands of Tutsis during the genocide in Rwanda, will be screened on April 8. On April 13, ORSL and the Social Justice Film Series will be screening “The Last Survivor,” an educational documentary that tells the story of survivors of numerous genocides.
Although the information may not be uplifting, Young thinks it is necessary that students are informed.
“Individuals in society and society as a whole has a job to learn from the past and not redo the past,” Young said.
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