Understanding Crisis in Sudan

Viewed through an anthropological lens, the humanitarian crisis in Darfur is infinitely more complex than the mainstream media has framed it to be, according to recent exchanges by anthropologists on this topic. In light of this, Anthropology News has sought to represent a more accurate picture through a wider variety of anthropological perspectives, giving emphasis to the complexities of the situation that the world confronts in Darfur. No easy consensus may be possible. Yet anthropologists are situating today's crisis in detailed historical context.

AAA Committee for Human Rights Draft Statement on the Humanitarian Crisis in Darfur, Sudan (December 2004) Members of the public and policy makers who seek to become aware of the possible dangers of intervening clumsily, out of ignorance of the multiple, cultural, political and ecological dimensions of the crisis, would benefit from listening to the opinions of anthropological experts. Efforts are needed urgently to reverse ethnic cleansing, return the displaced to their communities, and restore their destroyed assets and livelihoods.

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