Staff Report

Cooperstown High School students are not waiting on the world to change.

There is growing alarm in the modern world about genocide, ethnic cleansing, and other crimes against humanity, and a group of Cooperstown students are gearing up to educate themselves and their community about such issues.

According to organizers, CCS is in the progress of beginning its own official chapter of STAND, which originally stood for Students Taking Action Now Darfur, though the organization now includes genocides throughout the world.

STAND is ``the student led division of the Genocide Intervention Network,’’ and is dedicated to raising awareness and helping to prevent and end genocide. This student-based and student-run organization was founded at Georgetown University in 2003, and has since expanded to include more than 850 chapters in middle schools, high schools, and colleges in 25 countries worldwide.

One cannot simply join STAND, said CCS Chapter organizers Anna Kramer and Amy Bishop.

They said if someone wishes to become a part of the organization, he or she has to prove it through various activities such as fundraising.

According to Kramer and Bishop, Cooperstown High School’s journey to become an official chapter began in 2008 when seniors Laura Derouin and Anna Weber went to the District 7170 Rotary Youth Leadership Conference.

There, they learned about the Unatego STAND chapter, and returned to CCS inspired to create a Cooperstown STAND chapter, said the organizers.

Around the same time, CCS held a showing of ``Schindler’s List,’’ the 1993 Spielberg film about the Holocaust, for grades10-12, said Kramer and Bishop.

They said the 11th and 12th grade honors English classes began researching genocide and a small group of students began to dedicate themselves to learning more about the genocides and other crimes against humanity that are occurring in the world.

According to the organizers, the Cooperstown School Board of Directors gave permission for the students to begin a CCS chapter of STAN D, and on May 27, 2009, the Cooperstown fledgling chapter of STAND held its first meeting.

``Very well attended by members of all four grades, the meeting made it clear that the CCS chapter of STAND will be established and it will thrive for years to come,’’ wrote Kramer and Bishop in an e-mail Although there have been weekly meetings already, the 2009-2010 school year will be the CCS chapter’s first official year.

According to organizers, meetings will continue on a twice-amonth basis throughout the summer.

Organizers said the Board of Directors for the 2009-2010 school year was elected during the second meeting. Committees that will focus on specific areas, such as Darfur, the Congo, ``Rape as a Tool of War,’’ and child soldiers, were also formed.

The third and final meeting for the 2008-2009 school year occurred on June 10th. According to organizers, the gathered students briefly discussed the recent news, such as the dangerous situations in Somalia and Sri Lanka.

One of STAND’s goals is to educate and raise awareness, therefore the group spent time reviewing maps and learning about web sites to visit in order to research, said organizers.

Organizers said the committees that were formed at the previous week had the task of researching their specific areas in depth.

The group also discussed activities to do in order to gain a better sense of understanding about the situation that the refugees in genocide and war-torn areas are faced with, according to organizers.

For the summer, the group has decided to organize a 5K run/walk, followed by an Open Mike Night, to raise money and awareness.

The tentative date is August 1, and the Open Mike Night will be held at Lakefront Park in Cooperstown.

The Open Mike Night is open to community members, so bring your poetry, songs, and music and help raise genocide awareness. Donations would be welcomed, and the money raised by both the 5K and the Open Mike Night will go to an aid group in an area afflicted by genocide, war, and crimes against humanity.

To learn more about STAND, go to standnow. org, or to learn about the fledgling CCS chapter of STAND, go to standnow. org/chapter/ccs.