Last Sunday, rather than sitting on my bum all day and playing video games, I woke up at five in the morning to take a trip up to Washington D.C. for the Darfur rally. After a very long trip, (It was my unfortunate luck to be sitting across the aisle from a couple), we finally arrived. It took nearly an hour to get the bus parked. =/ We all divided our group into smaller groups to better keep track of each other, then headed towards the metro. I've been on the metro before, I've been on the London tube during rush hour but this was by far the most crowded subway I've ever been on.

After getting off, the masses on the metro (my group included) walked five blocks to the Washington Mall. There wasn't anyone screaming "Forrest!" and running across the Reflection Pool; instead there were thousands of people. I have to admit I was a little nervous with so many people around. But it was the sheer number of people that really got me. This rally wasn't about politics or religion--it was about stopping genocide and saving lives. The first hour went really fast, and I even caught myself tearing up a few times. The next hour all the politicians came out (and George Clooney)...and they were campainging. Ew.

I know it's nice to just sit back and watch the world. Just to say "Oh, that's awful...oh well." But you can't just stay apathetic when you know what's going on out there. You can't just back away and say "not my problem, sucks to be you." You have to stand up and fight. When you have a chance to remain silent or stand up and speak, always choose to speak. If you don't, nothing will ever change.

Oh yeah, there was a sign there that said "Fuck Genocide"

Just thought you might like to know.