Last year marked the formation of a new student group on campus ‘ one composed of students dedicated to aiding the recognition of human rights throughout the world.
In the past year, a group of Binghamton University students have created a chapter of Amnesty International, an international organization that focuses on preventing and ending abuse across the globe.
‘In pursuit of this vision, AI’s mission is to undertake research and action focused on preventing and ending grave abuses of the rights to physical and mental integrity, freedom of conscience and expression, and freedom from discrimination, within the context of its work to promote all human rights,’ states the organization’s Web site.
This AI chapter, though fairly new to BU, has been active since its formation. Last year AI aided in organizing Binghamton’s Justice League’s Day of Action and Hunger Banquet, which brought together student groups to make sandwiches for the homeless. They also raised money for various causes and participated in letter-writing campaigns.
‘We also organized a trip to Brown University to participate in the annual STAND Northeast Darfur Activism conference,’ said Vinny Ialenti, one of the three current co-presidents of Amnesty International. ‘And in the past year, we’ve organized a trip to New York City to attend a large protest at the Chinese consulate because of their relationship with Sudan, site of the deeply troubling Darfur genocide.’
But this year, the number of AI-planned programs has decreased slightly.
‘We did not have as many events as last semester, however, as [co-President] Rich Zamore was busy helping organizing the Patch Adams event and the subsequent trip to Costa Rica to build a library,’ Ialenti said.
Still, the organization had a program this year involving the viewing of ‘The Lost Boys of Sudan,’ which included a presentation by two lost boy refugees, both of whom attend BU, in which they spoke about their experiences.
‘This was extremely interesting, as it allowed us to add a human element to information that usually reaches us as statistics or news stories,’ he said.
The group is full of members who care about the organization’s biggest concern: human rights throughout the world.
‘This semester we have about 30 to 40 people showing up at meetings and most members are enthusiastic about our events,’ said Zamore.
And as the group grows, it is likely that the programming will continue to grow even stronger, Ialenti added.
‘Next semester Amnesty will be very active. We’ve begun planning a charitable concert, T-shirts and more trips,’ Zamore said.