No profit from genocide

By Beth Tellman

Genocide. Genocide. This word should shock us all, the way it seems to shock a portion of humanity every time it occurs: the Holocaust, Armenia, Rwanda, Cambodia. Never again, never again, never again.

The long record of genocide is one of overwhelming acquiescence, but this time, ordinary citizens are trying to write a different ending.

By now, it is my hope and reasonable expectation that every student at this school has heard of the genocide in Darfur.

Though a genocide of 500,000 people and displacement of over 2 million more can seem overwhelming, Santa Clara students decided to make a difference.

For one week in October, students slept in a refugee tent in front of Benson, wrote letters to government officials and raised thousands for humanitarian aid groups in Darfur. Not only were our efforts recognized by nearly every local news media outlet, but by national newspapers as well. The New York Times mentioned us on Jan. 16, in Nicholas Kristoff's article, "Car Washes and Genocide."

Other students at Santa Clara replicated a mini refugee-camp and slept in it. They limited themselves to 1,000 calories a day because that's what Darfuris are limited to. Afterward, the students donated the savings to aid groups.

Then we took it a step further. We decided to explore divestment movement.

The divestment movement literally entails selling stocks and investments in companies that abet genocide in Darfur. The movement attempts to mold both company and country behavior. When companies lose investments, they are forced to change their unethical ways in order to continuing making economic profit. Otherwise, divestment will run them into the ground.

Twelve states, including California, have sold all stocks in companies such as PetroChina, Rolls Royce and Sudatel, all of which promote and perpetuate the genocide in Darfur.

Sudatel, for example, is a company that controls cell phone service in Darfur. Before militia attack a particular village, they notify Sudatel which village they plan to bomb. Sudatel then shuts off phone service so families and neighbors cannot communicate with each other. As the militia goes from house to house, one family cannot notify the next of the coming onslaught.

Harvard, Yale, Stanford, the entire UC system and a slew of other universities active in stopping genocide in Darfur have already divested.

Santa Clarans for Social Justice followed a targeted divestment model when seeking to remove all Santa Clara-owned stocks and investments in companies promoting the genocide in Darfur. SC4SJ focused on the 24 worst companies in their investigation. The list of offenders included those who were resistant to change via shareholder activism, as well as companies which did not benefit the majority of the Darfuri population. The last thing we wanted to do was cripple the Sudanese economy and cause massive layoffs of Darfuris.

These divested states and schools make headlines in American newspapers analyzed by Sudanese politicians.

Additionally, divestment creates a modeling effect as university and socially responsible mutual funds compete to stay ahead of the ethical curve.

My fellow Broncos, I am happy to announce that Santa Clara is far ahead of the ethical curve. We are not invested in Darfur, and we never were.

After a three-month-long process of obtaining company information from the Sudan Divestment Task Force and a series of e-mails and meetings with the university's Chief Financial Officer John Kerrigan, SC4SJ recently received the news that Santa Clara's investing policy is socially responsible and in no way abets genocide in Darfur.

Though we did not have to run a formal divestment-campaign, the inquiry process forced our group to educate ourselves on the issue and find a place where business meets social justice face to face.

I am blessed to attend a small university where CFOs meet with students challenging and questioning investment policies. I am honored to work with intelligent, passionate students who choose to spend their free time putting an end to genocide.

However, the fight is far from over. Genocide is still happening. The international community has allowed this genocide to continue for four years; you are a member of this international community. What have you done to stop genocide today? How will you make sure that "Never again" is not another shallow cry?

Beth Tellman is an individual studies major with an emphasis in sustainable globalization.