Senior projects put spotlight on Darfur
By Eliav Appelbaum eliav@theacorn.com

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers JOINING FORCES- Santa Susana High School seniors Jamie Trafficanda, left, and Cindy Chen are working on senior projects to raise money for victims of violence in Darfur. Cindy plans a movie screening of "The Devil Came on Horseback" at Moorpark College on Saturday, Feb. 23.

With Darfur, Sudan in the throes of genocide during the last three years, Cindy Chen is astounded that many people have no awareness at all of what's happening there.

A senior at Santa Susana High School, Chen wants to change that.

The 17-year-old is inviting the public to attend a screening of "The Devil Came on Horseback," a documentary about the ongoing human rights catastrophe in Darfur, at 2:15 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 23 at Moorpark College Performing Arts Center.

The admission charge is $5, with all proceeds donated to the nonprofit Global Grassroots.

"It's time to raise awareness about it," said Chen, who wants to study cultural anthropology in college. "I think this film is a good way of teaching an audience about what's going on there."

But there's a stumbling block. Chen must raise a producer's fee of $300 to screen the film in public. So far, she's had trouble finding sponsors. She even contacted activist celebrities like Don Cheadle and George Clooney, but "their publicists said they couldn't help," according to Chen.

"That's been her biggest problem," said Gene Hatton, a Santa Susana government and economics teacher. "She came up with this idea for her senior project, and it's a great idea. . . . She's basically educated her class about this situation. She has a great concern, but the hardest thing for any young person is that they have a desire about an issue and then people around them don't have a clue, especially on this one."

Chen isn't the only Troubadour to focus on Darfur for a senior project.

Jamie Trafficanda is organizing Run for Darfur, a Santa Susana High School jog-a-thon. She hopes students will request donations for every lap they complete.

The event will be held on Tuesday, Feb. 19 during periods 2 to 7. All the money raised will aid World Vision, a nonprofit organization.

Trafficanda, who wants to major in international studies at San Francisco State in the fall, was inspired to help after she read "Not on Our Watch: The Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond," a book written by Cheadle and John Prendergast.

"I thought this was a good way to raise money and get people involved," said the student body president, 17, who is offering prizes to the individual and the classroom that raises the most money.

"(The fact that) no one's doing anything really inspired me," Trafficanda said. "In the past, we might have said, 'Oh, we would have done something if we knew about it.' Well, we know about it. The technology's there, the money's there, but we're not doing anything. There's no willpower to do anything."

For their senior projects, students must write a seven to 10page research paper, make an oral presentation and organize a portfolio. Chen has a thirst to learn about the world. She wants to study and volunteer abroad after she graduates from college. She feels there's an obligation for the privileged to help those in need.

"I really do hope people will be interested even though Darfur is really far away and completely foreign to most of us," Chen said. "Even if they do hear about it, they might not care. Being Americans, we have the power to make a difference. I think we should get involved and at the very least educate ourselves about everything that's going on in the world. We need to support causes, especially human rights issues."