Poetry contest explores Darfur genocide

By JEWISH REVIEW

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Portland’s Never Again Coalition announces a High Holidays poetry contest and invites all youth 17 and under to submit poems on the genocide in Darfur or what the words Never Again mean to them.

After the Holocaust, the world said, “Never Again.”

Now, another genocide is in its seventh year in Darfur, a region in western Sudan. According to Genocide Intervention Network (www.darfurscores.org),  the genocide has claimed 400,000 lives and displaced over 2,500,000 people since 2003. The Sudanese government in Khartoum and the government-sponsored Janjaweed militia have used rape, displacement, organized starvation, threats against aid workers and mass murder.

“As we begin the new year, we ask our children to give a voice to the people of Darfur by creating a poem on the subject of how we can help or what the words Never Again mean to them,” according to a press release from the Never Again Coalition.

Winning poems will be published as an insert in a variety of  High Holidays publications and newsletters distributed to Jews throughout Portland during Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur.

Youth 17 and under are invited to submit a poem of 100 words of less via email to NeverAgainCoalition@gmail.com by Aug. 16.

With the poem, include the child’s name, age and synagogue affiliation (if any).

The Never Again Coalition suggests visiting the following Web sites for ideas and information: SaveDarfur.org, JewishWorldWatch.org, StandNow.org and http://w3.shorecrest.org/~thirdgrade/GR3/Darfur/index.htm.

The Never Again Coalition is Portland’s Jewish response to the situation in Darfur and other genocidal atrocities. Members from different synagogues, organizations, and backgrounds provide opportunities for Portland Jews to stand together and work towards revitalizing the phrase “Never Again.”