by Kelly Ann Griffin

Created on: April 17, 2008   Last Updated: May 01, 2008

Don Cheadle, Academy Award winner for his acting in Hotel Rwanda, the historical film on the Rwandan genocide of 1994, has become determined to shed light on the current humanitarian crisis in Darfur. After the release of Hotel Rwanda and its accompanying success in 2004, Cheadle was able to travel to Darfur and its Western neighbor, Chad. He and his fellow traveling partner/human rights activist, John Prendergast, explained "As we sat in a refugee camp in Chad listening to Fatima describe how most of her family was killed by Sudanese government-sponsored Janjaweed militias, we found it incomprehensible that the world could not muster the political will necessary to protect her surviving family members or to hold the killers accountable." Cheadle has since mustered his own crusade to bring about awareness and save future victims from the Janjaweed's devastating violence.

In 2005, with the beginning of Cheadle's pioneering efforts to raise awareness of the genocide, Live for Darfur was initiated for celebrities and activists to dedicate their work for the Darfur crisis. Such performers as U2, Coldplay, Queen Latifah, and Carlos Santana participated, as well as Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel. In September of 2005, Cheadle also spoke out on the unfolding genocide during the Save Darfur Coalition's "National Day of Action" in Washington, D.C., as well as the National Leadership Assembly to brief groups on the violence and poverty in Darfur.

In May of 2007, Cheadle and Prendergast released their collaborative book, "Not on Our Watch: The Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond." The book outlines six practical steps that average citizens can take part in to help bring a quickened end to this genocide, from raising funds to lobbying the government. A portion of the book's proceeds have been donated to ENOUGH, an organization focused on ending genocide and human rights violations around the world.

Cheadle has also joined forces with celebrities George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, as well as civil rights lawyer David Pressman and producer Jerry Weintraub to found the NOOW (Not On Our Watch) project. The celebrities themselves have donated millions of dollars to keep vital humanitarian aid flowing into the Darfur region, while NOOW is also a key tool to engage our culture and citizens to donate and help save lives. Cheadle and the NOOW team also set up benefit screenings of the blockbuster film, Ocean's Thirteen, donating the profits to the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and their NOOW foundation.

From January to May of 2007, Cheadle co-produced the documentary Darfur Now, which intertwines the stories of six people trying to end this ongoing turmoil in Sudan. Cheadle and Clooney traveled to both China and Egypt to meet with government officials concerning the political unrest and violence, as these two nations have tremendous trading investments and interest in Sudan.

From appearances on news talk programs such as Hannity and Colmes to interviewing on MTV, Don Cheadle has persisted in a relentless four year effort to stop an unchecked genocide, which has already cost 400,000 lives. Impassioned by his role in Hotel Rwanda as the Hutu hotel owner, Paul Rusesabagina, who saved 1200 Tutsi Rwandans from murder, Cheadle cannot seem to let Darfur pass by our apathetic noses in another ignored crime on humanity. What one voice can do may not be enough to stop a genocide, but it may be enough to start a revolution of concerned people about their Sudanese brothers and sisters. Cheadle states, "I don't think I can change everything by myself. I just have to stand up for those things that I told myself are important things to stand up for."

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