In case you haven't heard, there is a major genocide currently under way in the Darfur region in western Sudan, along with the corresponding humanitarian catastrophe.
This week in Darfur, Janjaweed militiamen attacked a convoy of refugees and aid workers, and executed 30 people. Some of the victims were shot, and some were actually burned to death. As attacks continue in Darfur and the security situation continues to deteriorate, more and more Darfuris will need to seek safety by leaving the country. Some of them will make it to the United States to seek asylum from the U.S. government.
Unfortunately, the United States will say that many of the persecuted who manage to flee cannot be protected in our country. Why? Because they may have given "material support" to a violent group in Darfur. Women who were raped by rebels and then forced to labor for their rapists, and children who were forcibly recruited by rebel groups from the refugee camps, could be denied protection in the United States due to the sweeping definitions of terrorism that are currently in use in our refugee and asylum law.
Take action right now to protect refugees and asylum seekers who desperately need the protection the United States can offer.
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