Event Report: Sudan Freedom Walk

Simon and Monica Deng march down 1st Avenue in Manhattan It began with the conviction of a single man and ended before US senators, congressmen, and news media. “Everybody is now talking about Sudan. The whole world is talking about Sudan. But nothing gets done. Just talk, talk, talk. Why not walk the walk?” challenged Simon Deng, 45, a former slave from southern Sudan (at right with wife Monica).

On April 5, 2006 Simon and a band of supporters completed an arduous 300-mile trek on foot from New York City to Washington, D.C. as part of the historic Sudan Freedom Walk. The three-week-long event was Simon’s personal protest against the ongoing genocide and slave trade in Sudan — most notably, in the nation’s western Darfur region, where more than 300,000 civilians have been slaughtered and over 2 million displaced since 2003 alone.

For those who have find it difficult to imagine what a 300-mile walk feels like, consider that the grueling Boston Marathon is a breezy 26.2 miles.

How did Simon prepare for such a trek? He didn’t.

Simon talks with his supporters “My people run for their lives and they don’t train to do so,” Simon pointed out. “Back in Sudan, my people are walking for months to get to a place for safety; they are walking months to go and get to a place where there is shelter; they are walking for days and days to get to places and find there is no food. If they are [walking], then why should I not do it here too?” When asked what kept him going, Simon simply explained: “I’m doing this from my heart.”

Indeed, supporters who joined Simon for various legs of his journey found the experience to be a test of will as much as endurance. Sean Cooney, who traveled from Buffalo to support Simon, had already developed several blisters on his feet within a matter of days but told the Delaware News Journal that it was worth it: “It's mind-blowing to think of the suffering [of the Sudanese],” Cooney said. “I'm relying on determination to make this walk, not strength.”

Marchers march along 1st Avenue in Manhattan Simon and his fellow walkers encountered more than blisters — including strong winds, sudden drops in temperature and some resistance from Maryland Police, who refused them passage across the Thomas Hatem Memorial Bridge. (They eventually worked out a compromise pleasing to both groups, which allowed the walkers to make up the 1.5 miles of the bridge elsewhere.)

In all, the walk spanned five states with stops in 19 cities. At its height, the walk drew crowds of nearly 200 in Philadelphia, who took to the streets with Simon to demand an end to the genocide and US intervention on behalf of its victims. Walkers stopped in countless schools and universities along the way where Simon was invited to address crowds large and small; they stayed overnight often with families who had generously opened their private homes.

Manute Bol speaks in front of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. The Sudan Freedom Walk finally came to a close after three long weeks with a rally before the steps of the Capitol in Washington, D.C. on the afternoon of April 6, coinciding with Congress’ debate over the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act, which would require Sudan to comply with several human rights standards or face sanctions. The event drew an unlikely mix of supporters, including: former Washington Bullets NBA player Manute “The Sudanese Swat” Bol (left), Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY), Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS), House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Rep. Michael Capuano (D-MA), Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA), Rep. Joseph Crowley (D-NY), Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN), Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), as well as Walter Fauntroy, former mayor of Washington, and radio talk show host Joe Madison.

Senator Clinton urged fellow lawmakers to take action: “We need to convene a meeting of world leaders to establish a clear plan on how to protect civilians in Darfur. You know it's more than 100 weeks of genocide and we have never had that kind of meeting.”

Senator Sam Brownback encouraged college students to keep up the pressure: “We need you to keep pushing. We haven't seen a student movement in this country for a lot of years. This [issue] needs to be a student movement. You guys need to carry this. Keep pushing. And let me say as well, if you don't people will die.”

The American Anti-Slavery Group's Dr. Charles Jacobs simply urged the crowd to follow Simon’s example: “Simon Deng is an American hero. He walked here from New York City so African people can walk freely in their own land. We said never again, but on our watch today an entire people is methodically being destroyed. If we cannot or will not stop it and save them, then we can at least speak the truth to them in the face of this genocide.”

Click here to see photos from the Sudan Freedom Walk opening and closing events in New York City and Washington, D.C.

More Information

« Back to Event Reports