On April 12, Clark students walked into the amphitheater to find Camp Darfur’s white tents set up with names of different genocides. Armenia, Holocaust, Cambodia, Bosnia, Rwanda and Darfur were written in order of historical order on the tents that students were able to walk into.

Approximately 806 students participated during the event that was sponsored by the PTSA, most of whom attended with their history classes. When each class would arrive at the amphitheater, two representatives from iACT spoke to the students about genocides and taking action to bring light to these events. Once they had finished speaking, students were able to walk in and observe the tents.

Inside the tents were photos, letters, quotes and drawings from the genocides to provide students an informational experience. “Going through these tents and seeing the hardships that people have been through has truly made me emotional,” said junior Kevin Shirali. “It’s terrible to see that genocide is still going on in our world and many people are unaware of it.”

The genocide in Darfur has been ongoing since 2003. It is the first genocide of the 21st century. Darfuri men, women and children have been slaughtered, raped and tortured. They are being targeted by the Janjaweed, a group of government-armed and funded Arab militias. Over 480,000 people have been killed and 2.8 million displaced.

Camp Darfur is an awareness and educational event that is run by the iACT organization. The event has camped in places all over the United States. “Our goal by doing this is to educate people about the different genocides that have happened and remind people that these events are still happening,” said Felicia Lee, a member of iACT that helps bring Camp Darfur to campuses. “We hope our exhibit reminds people that there continues to be ways to be engaged and be involved. We want to inspire people to take action.”