Solidarity for Sudan Brie Garner, Mahima Venkatesh, Elodie Uwingobiye, William Sebastien, Crizoline Marde, Mamadou Niangane, Jimmy Gomez, Mohamed Ba
Our Campaign For our campaign, we decided to do a Flash Mob! We presented at Washington Park and Fountain Square in Downtown Cincinnati. Our presentation was to represent the 4 million people displaced due to this conflict. During the Flash Mob, we passed out flyers. Our IHL teammates walked around and talked to the public about the conflict and educated them about South Sudan. The flyers contained information with our Call to Action. People could then spread the word to family and friends, donate to the South Sudanese refugees through the UNHCR, and sign a pledge saying that they will stand in solidarity with the refugees.
The Flash Mob There was one area marked as South Sudan and another as the relocation country. In the beginning everyone stood in South Sudan, and a student whistled to initiate the conflict. Civilians shuffled, representing the initial conflict. Then they froze during the second whistle. Some made it to a relocation country, and others were internally displaced in South Sudan.
Flash Mob Civilians each had a sign explaining their situations. “Because of the Sudanese conflict, I was displaced from my home, enslaved, sexually abused, and forced into a child marriage.” “Because of the Sudanese conflict, I am one of the 12,000 children forced to be a child soldier in 2014.” “Because of the Sudanese conflict, I am one of the 1.5 million people internally displaced in South Sudan.” “Because of the Sudanese conflict and its violence, I was one of the estimated 50,000 killed in 2014.” “Because of the Sudanese conflict, I am one of the 2.5 million people facing acute hunger right now in South Sudan.” “Because of the violence in South Sudan, I was displaced from my home, but I was able to relocate in another country as a refugee.
The Flash Mob The public then walked around and observed. Members from our team spoke with the observers and opened up the conversation about what is happening in South Sudan and handed out the flyers.
The Flash Mob
The Planning Process We met every Friday after school from January until April to study IHL, the Sudanese conflict, and plan our Flash Mob and presentation. Everyone worked together but each teammate also had an individual role.
Flash Mob The day before the Flash Mob, we got together at Withrow High School to practice with all of our volunteers. Most of the volunteers were peers from Withrow HS.
Withrow HS Presentation After the Flash Mob, we did a presentation at a Withrow High School government class. Our teammates were able to educate their peers on the importance of IHL and how it pertains to the conflict in Sudan. After we spoke, we had a very engaging conversation with the students.
Withrow HS Presentation The students took a pre and post survey to measure the effectiveness of our presentation and their understanding of IHL and the Sudanese conflict. All of the students scored higher on the post survey.
Withrow HS Presentation
Social Media Campaign We promoted our cause and posted information about our event on our Facebook Page. Members posted articles, videos, and relevant information about South Sudan and our campaign.
YouTube We promoted our YouTube video on our Facebook page and individually. This was an effective way to reach out to the public that was not downtown at the time of the event.
Pledge We had an online pledge to raise awareness for this conflict and the importance of IHL laws. We had individuals sign our petition to stand in solidarity with the refugees in Sudan and pledge to make a difference. During the Flash Mob, we also had a paper pledge for people to sign.
Who We Reached: Flyers during Flash Mob: 150 Student Presentation + Survey: 22 Video Views: 94 Facebook Likes: 89 In-Person Pledge: 72 Online Pledge: 12