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Darfur documentary raises awareness and action in Cape Town |
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 August 22nd 2007 In August, Shikaya and the South African Sudan Divestment Campaign partnered with While You Were Sleeping and the University of Cape Town activism group, Stand Up, to present three buzz screenings of the documentary The Devil Came on Horseback.
The documentary exposes the genocide in Darfur, Sudan as seen through the eyes of an American witness, former U.S. Marine Captain Brian Steidle, who served as an unarmed military observer with the African Union from 2004 through 2005.
The screenings, which were held at the Labia Theatre in Cape Town, attracted almost four hundred people. Flyers were printed and given to each audience member. After each screening, the audience participated in a discussion around Darfur and the various actions that South Africans can take.
One impact of the screenings has been the creation of a facebook group, I Dont EVER Want To Have To Make A Group Like This Again. The groups was set up by three school girls from Herschel Girls School, Ciara Mulligan, Ally Woods and Nicci Bruce, who had attended one of the screenings with their teachers Nicola Frick and Sue Grove. The girls wanted to immediately do something, so they decided to use the Internet as a platform for activism. The group has already attracted over 540 members in less than two weeks.
Half of the proceeds from the screenings will be donated to an organisation working with refugees from Darfur.
The documentary will be shown again at the Tri-Continent Film Festival to be held in Cape Town in December. Once again, Shikaya and the South African Sudan Divestment Campaign will partner in using the screenings to create awareness and hopefully action around Darfur.
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