Not on Our Watch

Not on Our Watch: The Mission to End Genocide in Darfur and Beyond is a nonfiction book by human rights activist John Prendergast and Academy Award-nominated actor and humanitarian Don Cheadle. Published by Hyperion in 2007, it chronicles the widespread killings in the Darfur region of Sudan, which claimed up to half a million lives and was the first genocide of the twenty-first century. The authors also examine other mass atrocities in other parts of the world, offering suggestions about the steps ordinary folks can take to stop the suffering. Not on Our Watch, which was a New York Times bestseller, won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Nonfiction Literary Work.

The book opens with a foreword by the Nobel Prize laureate and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel, who calls Darfur "today's capital of human suffering." He compares the Darfur situation to the Holocaust and the Rwandan genocide, two other epic-scale exterminations in which the majority of the world turned a blind eye. We must, Wiesel says, never again turn away from the tragic plight of our fellow human beings, no matter how uncomfortable it may make us or how far away it may seem. To do so would place us on the wrong side of history.

Following Wiesel's foreword is an introduction by then-Senators Barack Obama and Sam Brownback. A Democrat and Republican, respectively, they remind readers that ending mass atrocities like Darfur is not a partisan issue. It is a human issue, a literal matter of life and death. To end genocide takes diplomacy, financial resources, and security measures. Ultimately, it takes ordinary people speaking up, holding their elected leaders accountable, and pushing for meaningful action that aims to fulfill the promise of Never Again.



Prendergast and Cheadle begin by explaining exactly what "not on our watch" means. Is it the job of elected officials to police situations like Darfur? Is it the military's role? Or is it every world citizen's responsibility to look out for his or her fellow man? The answer: It is all of these things—the "watch" belongs to anyone who decides to take it up. However, to effectively take it up, one needs to do more than talk; one needs to take action. That is what this book is about.

Prendergast and Cheadle explain what constitutes genocide and how these events don't happen in a vacuum, and they don't happen overnight. They are "slow-motion" crimes that take years of building, through the methodical stoking of hate to the stripping of basic rights and liberties, from the flagrant disregard for human rights laws to the targeting of innocent civilians. Nearly all genocides are made possible by a general lack of concern and awareness on the part of the larger world and a media that does not prioritize the seriousness of the crimes in progress. Overcoming these obstacles and building the political will to act are the only avenues to avoiding genocide—if it isn't already too late.

So, how, then, does one act in the face of such daunting and widespread carnage? Prendergast and Cheadle layout a six-point plan of action. First, raise awareness: Talk about these atrocities to everyone and anyone who will listen. Second, raise money; genocides are nothing if not humanitarian disasters and providing fast, effective, tangible relief requires funding. Third, write letters, to the President, your Congresspeople, your Governor, and anyone else with a public platform that can elevate and broadcast the message of what's happening; also, write to aid organizations and human rights groups and ask what you can do to make things better. Fourth, join one of the organizations, be counted among the chorus of voices calling for action and change, and give of your time, no matter how little or insignificant your contribution might seem. Fifth, call for divestment. Look for businesses that are either knowingly or unknowingly lending financial support to those in control of orchestrating the atrocity, and pull your support from these businesses, encourage others to follow suit, and put pressure on the businesses to stop funding genocide. Finally, lobby the government. Make phone calls, circulate petitions, stage protests, and request meetings with your Congresspeople. The government only works when used in service of the people's needs—and there is no greater need than bringing an end to genocide, whether it's happening in your backyard or on the other side of the world.



Not on Our Watch also serves as a diary of Prendergast and Cheadle's journey to activism in Darfur. They discuss their motivations for getting involved and how this work has become a major focal point of their time, energy, and resources. They understand the gravity of the situation in Darfur, and their goal is to get others to understand it too. They also provide an accessible primer on the events that led to the situation in Darfur, as well as a discussion of some of the other genocides of recent years, including the atrocities in Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.