Don’t Cut Life-Saving Aid

Yesterday, I attended an event at the Capitol celebrating the completion of the Southern Sudanese referendum on independence and thanking all the congressional leaders who were involved in efforts to ensure a peaceful outcome. It was an exciting moment to see how we can help create positive change in the world.
One of the best ways for the U.S and Canada to create positive change is through foreign aid, especially to areas that need it so desperately like Darfur. The House of Representatives is expected to vote TOMORROW on unprecedented budget cuts for international humanitarian aid. Just how much is at stake? $1.7 billion dollars of life-saving humanitarian aid is on the chopping block — funding that directly impacts the lives of millions of Sudanese and Darfuri people.

Cuts to specific accounts–like $431 million (50 percent) from International Disaster Assistance, $582 million (36 percent) from Food for Peace, and $687 million (41 percent) from Migration and Refugee Assistance–will significantly impact lives on the ground in Sudan.
Our tradition teaches us, “Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor” (Leviticus 19:16). In addition, Maimonides taught that the highest form of tzedakah (righteousness) is to enable a person to earn his/her own livelihood. Development assistance through foreign aid plays a vital role in the lives of those in the developing world by increasing the ability of families to be self-sufficient, granting them the freedom to create a better, safer, and healthier environment for themselves and their children.
You can learn more by visiting Save Darfur/Genocide Intervention Network Action Alert.