Community Corner
Walk to End Genocide Set For Sunday in Fairfax District
Encino-based organization Jewish World Watch is organizing the event.
Walk to End Genocide Set For Sunday in Fairfax District
What organizers are billing as the nation's largest walk to end genocide will be held Sunday in and around Pan Pacific Park in the Fairfax District. The sixth annual Walk to End Genocide will raise funds, support and awareness for the victims and survivors of genocide in Sudan and Congo, according to Fred Kramer, executive director of Jewish World Watch, the Encino- based group which works to mobilize the public to combat genocide and is organizing the walk.
Funds raised from the walk are used to provide on-the-ground aid through projects like Jewish World Watch's Solar Cooker Project, which provides solar cookers and training to women who otherwise would have to risk rape and death by leaving the safety of their camps to collect firewood, Kramer said. The walk was held in the West San Fernando Valley for its first five years, but was shifted in an attempt to draw more participants, Kramer said. There were more than 2,200 walkers last year, while 1,500 to 2,500 are expected Sunday. More than $145,000 was raised last year, Kramer said.
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The Academy Award-nominated actor and activist Don Cheadle will speak to the crowd, along with Josh Radnor, a star of the CBS comedy ``How I Met Your Mother'' and Lisa Edelstein, a former member of the cast of the Fox medical drama ``House.''
``With the tragic events that continue to unfold in Sudan, Darfur and Congo, public support from all ages, faiths and backgrounds is more important than ever,'' said Janice Kamenir-Reznik, co-founder and president of Jewish World Watch.
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``Los Angeles must raise its collective voice against genocide and mass atrocities. Our Walk to End Genocide is a perfect opportunity to shine a light on people who are suffering in fundamental ways, yet who sadly remain invisible and voiceless to most of the world.''