MONTREAL/September 24, 2007—
Save Darfur Canada, the Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies (MIGS), Darfur/Darfur, and the Concordia chapter of Cinema Politica are hosting a series of events to raise awareness about the ongoing crisis in Darfur, Sudan, which has tragically claimed 300,000 lives and displaced 2.5 million people over the past 4 years.
The series begins with a fundraiser for Save Darfur Canada and Dafur / Darfur on September 26th from 6 - 8 pm in the Glass Court of the Jean-Noël Desmarais Pavilion at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (1380 Sherbrooke West). The evening launches the Montreal installation of Darfur/Darfur, a projected photo display featuring the work of 8 award-winning photographers, currently touring 24 international cities over 24 months. A variety of notable speakers will be present, Darfur/Darfur curator Leslie Thomas, genocide prevention scholar Dr. Gerry Caplan, and , and Quebec writer François Avard who visited Darfur earlier this year. The event is open to the media; see www.SaveDarfurCanada.org for further details and press kits.
The public Darfur/Darfur diplay will be digitally projected on the exterior facade of the Michal and Renata Hornstein Pavilion of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts (1379 Sherbrooke West), from 8 to 11pm nightly from September 26th to October 3rd, 2007. Accompanied by a haunting musical score, its powerful images chronicle the personal experiences of Darfuris amidst the chaos, violence, and humanitarian relief efforts in Sudan and neighbouring Chad. For more information on the exhibit visit : www.DarfurDarfur.org.
The series continues on October 29th at 7:30pm with a screening of the critically acclaimed documentary The Devil Came on Horseback, in room H-110 of Concordia University’s Henry F. Hall Building (1455 Maisonneuve West). The film follows former U.S. Marine (and Darfur/Darfur photographer) Brian Steidle on an official observer mission to Darfur with the African Union in 2004. Accessing regions the international community had not, he was unprepared for the violence, human tragedies, horrors and devastation he witnessed. Steidle subsequently returned to the U.S. to expose what he had seen to the world. Visit the Cinema Politica website for more film information: www.cinemapolitica.org/films/60. Dr. Frank Chalk, director of MIGS will follow up the screening with discussion on the urgent steps required to address the security and humanitarian crises in Darfur.
For more information on any of the above contact: Tara Tavender, Executive Director,
Save Darfur Canada at 514 923-8368 or Tara@SaveDarfurCanada.org.
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Source :
Tanya Churchmuch
Senior Media Relations Advisor
Concordia University
