US teen’s fund drive turns him into Darfur envoy
August 28, 2007 (BOSTON) — When he first heard of the crisis in Darfur, American high school student Nick Anderson knew he had to do something to help.
Working with friends, he raised more than $300,000 online to help Sudan’s war-torn region, where some 200,000 people have died and more than 2 million people driven from their homes, aid agencies say. After that outpouring of support, Anderson wanted to see Darfur for himself.
On a tour of Darfur with aid group Oxfam America this month, Anderson was surprised to hear Sudanese teens ask for the training and materials to turn their refugee camps into permanent towns.
“They want to move forward with their lives and build structures that are made of bricks, not of plastic sheets,” said Anderson, 18, Oxfam’s U.S. youth ambassador whose job is to reach out to high school and college students.
The crisis began in early 2003 when non-Arab rebels took up arms, accusing the government of not heeding their plight in the remote, arid region. The Sudanese government mobilized Arab militia known as Janjaweed to quell the revolt and Khartoum estimates the death toll at closer to 9,000.
Anderson was taken by Darfur teens’ desire to put their tragedies behind them and get on with their lives.
“Everyone I encountered was really gung-ho about rebuilding,” Anderson, of Conway, Massachusetts, said in an interview this week. “They just need the tools, and we as Americans can help provide those things.”
In addition to raising aid money for refugees, U.S. activists have asked investors to dump holdings in companies that do business in the east African nation. China in particular has extensive oil investments in Sudan.
In March, U.S. actress Mia Farrow in a Wall Street Journal article called on companies involved in the 2008 Beijing Olympics to try to persuade Chinese officials to help resolve the Darfur crisis.
Sudan has pushed back, in the last week saying it would expel three prominent foreigners, including U.S. aid group CARE’s country director for Sudan.
Despite the turmoil in the region, Anderson said he was struck by the common interests of teens worldwide.
“Talking to these kids, I recognized myself and I recognized my friends,” Anderson said. “They’re all talking about popular music and sports stars.”
Of the money Anderson helped raise, $75,000 went to Oxfam, with the balance going to the Save Darfur Coalition and the International Rescue Committee, according to an Oxfam spokeswoman.
(Reuters)