Creative Campus

On November 18-19, 2008 the Creative Campus partnered with the student organization Apwonjo, the College of Arts And Sciences, and the Culverhouse College of Business and Administration to put into motion one of the largest awareness campaigns ever initiated on the University of Alabama’s Campus "Action for Africa".  The project set out to spread awareness of the genocide in Darfur by distributing 4,000 black balloons on campus on November 18, 2008.  Each balloon was distributed along a sticker printed with statements such as; "One hundred children," "One hundred mothers," "One Hundred brothers," totaling the estimated 400,000 people who have been murdered in the Genocide in Darfur.  Preparing and distributing 4,000 balloons was a huge undertaking, but does not compare to the number of lives that have been taken.  The visual impact of seeing that many black balloons along with the knowledge of what they represented made a memorable impact on the campus community.  "Action for Africa" culminated at the UA Ferguson Center with the screening of "They Turned Our Desert Into Fire" a film by Mark Brecke along with panel discussion and testimonials by Darfur refugees living in Birmingham, AL. The following day provided an opportunity to assess the impact of the awareness effort.  On November 19^th countless students flocked to the Ferguson Center to take part in a letter writing campaign to the people of Darfur to let them know that the have not been forgotten.  These letters were translated into their native language and copies were sent to our local representatives to make them aware that University of Alabama students and community are concerned over the genocide.  Action for Africa was highly successful, visibly impacting 4,000 students, faculty, and community members, but touching the lives of countless more.

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