Displace Me

Brittney, Mater, Caroline, Gina, Ross, Lee, Kristine, Davida, Amara, Me, Shana
Amati (?), Shanelle, Shateria (We met Amati and Shanelle there that night)
Davida greeting the sunshine from her hut (Amber and Ross are beside her). Like how I wrote Peace on the side? haha.
Mater/Sean in deep thought after a night of videos, prayer, food rationing, and sleeping on the ground in the card board box (he shared his box with me, haha <- fyi, completely innocent). So why did I sleep in a cardboard box with 4,000 other people in a field and write letters to Mel Martinez (Fl Senator) on a Saturday night? This is why:

"The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) has abducted thousands of children, subjected them to torture or sexual violence and forced them to fight in a violent guerilla army for 21 years—making it the longest running war in Africa. In hopes of providing protection from this rebel militia, the Ugandan government forcibly evicted its Northern citizens from their homes—giving them 48 hours to relocate into camps. Today, more than 1.5 million Northern Ugandans remain far from secure, suffering nearly 1,000 deaths per week due to inhumane living conditions in the camps.

Alcoholism, sexual abuse, HIV/AIDS, inadequate sanitation and lack of education have caused immeasurable damage to two generations and the near-total destruction of Acholi culture. Water is scarce and people are reliant on food to be delivered by foreign aid. If the food isn’t delivered, the people starve. This April, the already meager rations delivered by the World Food Program to the camps will be cut in half due to lack of funding—with school feeding programs and support for HIV/aids victims soon to follow. This will indisputably increase the number of deaths among those already suffering from severe malnutrition—mostly among women, children and the elderly. That is why the timing of this event, and your participation are so crucial.

“Displace Me” is the nationwide event giving Americans the chance to respond.

By traveling to one of our 15 camps and gathering together, the strength of our size will make a visible statement to our government and media that the citizens of the U.S. demand action in ending the war in Northern Uganda, in order to send the Acholi people suffering in the camps and the abducted children back home. The point is to travel; the point is to become displaced yourself.

Saturday, April 28, 2007 say “Displace Me” and leave your homes to bring them home."
-From www.invisiblechildren.com .



I went last night and participated in the Orlando Displace Me. Awesome experience and really taught me the value of talking about issues, raising awareness, and also doing something along with all the talk.

There was actually someone who built a cardboard church where at least 100 people were gathered just singing worship and praising God, it was an amazing sight to see.

Mater, Lee, Caroline, Kristine showing off Mater's hut.