Dave Eggers, most known for his hilarious quasi-memoir A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, returns with the novel What is the What, an autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng.

Deng is a Sudanese refugee who has escaped encounters with lions and other life-threatening situations—moreover, a dangerous war that has its roots in Darfur—to settle in Atlanta, Georgia. The novel is based on true incidents and the life of Deng, who calls himself one of the Lost Boys of America. According to mcsweeneys.net (McSweeney's is a publishing company co-owned by Eggers), all proceeds from the book will go toward the Valentino Achak Deng Foundation, an organization that financially supports Sudanese refugees in America, the rebuilding of southern Sudan, and peace and humanitarian relief organizations for Darfur. Money raised by book sales will also go toward Deng's college education.

What can you do to help?

• Head to your local library and pick up a copy of What is the What
• Check out McSweeney's suggestions for what you can do to improve the situation in Sudan here
• Take a look at Do Something's ideas on how to Take Action

Why are they fighting?

The major conflict in Darfur started in 2003. Two rebel groups, the Sudanese Liberation Army/Movement (SLA/SLM) and the Justice Equality Movement (JEM), with the support of ethnic groups called the Fur, Masalit, and Zaghawa, wanted to gain more equality in the country and no longer be neglected by the government, who often ignored them. In response to this, the Sudanese government and a government-supported militia group called “Janjaweed” began fighting these two rebel groups. The civilian populations and ethnic groups that have been mainly targeted are those that support the two rebel groups, like the Fur, Masalit, and Zaghawa.

The government has been violently attacking Darfurians, as well as cutting of aid to their regions to starve them. Many people in the region have fled over the border to neighboring Chad for safety. Refugee camps have been set up in Chad and in areas of Sudan.

Have there been any efforts to stop the violence?

There have been many plans to try and control the violence in Darfur, but they have failed. Deadlines have not been met and agreements haven’t been reached.

In May 2006, the Sudanese Government and a group of Darfur rebels agreed on the Darfur Peace Agreement. Unfortunately, this failed, and since then, violence has gotten worse. The Sudanese government doesn't want foreign countries to get involved in affairs in their country, making it more difficult to bring aid to the region.

What needs to be done?

More international help is needed, and action needs to be taken now in order to stop the loss of more innocent lives. Go to the [Take Action] section and do something.

Source:

Save Darfur - www.savedarfur.org

11 Facts about the Darfur Conflict

Fact 1

More than 2 million innocent people have been forced from their homes due to the Darfur Conflict.

Fact 2

At least 400,000 people have been killed.

Fact 3

Over 3.5 million people rely entirely on international aid in order to survive.

Fact 4

The Sudanese government, along with a militia group called “Janjaweed” are responsible for this widespread killing, raping, assault, and village destruction.

Fact 5

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, has called the Darfur Conflict “the largest and most complex humanitarian problem on the globe.”

Fact 6

The UN’s top humanitarian official has said that the conflict is “going from real bad to catastrophic”.

Fact 7

The conflict has been going on since July of 2003.

Fact 8

Although most non-government organizations say that 200,000 to 400,000 people have been killed in Darfur, the Sudanese government claims that only about 9,000 have died.

Fact 9

Though they claim to not support the Janjaweed, the Sudanese government has provided money and assistance to the militia group responsible for massacring ethnic groups in Darfur.

Fact 10

The United Nation HAS NOT called the killing in Darfur “genocide”.

Fact 11

According to a World Food Program, over 355,000 people in the Darfur region have been cut off from food aid.

Sources:

Facts 1-6 from Save Darfur - www.savedarfur.org

Fact 7-11 from Wikipedia - www.wikipedia.org

Photo taken from www.savedarfur.org. Photo credit: Daniel Pepper