Sometimes I wonder how many people would know what or where Darfur was if it wasn’t for George Clooney. The handsome actor certainly has devoted a ton of his time turning the spotlight on the impoverished people who live in the region of Sudan. Both Libby and I have documented Clooney’s ongoing work to bring humanitarian efforts to the region and it seems as though the “ER” star’s work is paying off.
According to Clooney, his “Ocean’s Thirteen” co-stars recently donated a huge chunk of change to humanitarian efforts in Darfur. Clooney along with his “Ocean’s” pals, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle and producer Jerry Weintraub helped raise $9.3 million for Darfur, most of which was contributed at a dinner during the film’s premiere last month at the Cannes Film Festival.
Clooney told news reporters that more than half of the money has already been doled out to various groups, which deal with delivery aid to Darfur. Clooney is the co-founder of a humanitarian group called Not on Our Watch, which helps to focus global attention on the plight of the 2.5 million civilians in Darfur who have fled their homes.
“There are only a few things we can do – protect them where we can, and provide food, water, health care and counseling,” Clooney said. “We’re just trying to get them to live long enough to get to the next step.”
According to Clooney, part of the money raised in Cannes—-about $1 million—-went to the U.N. World Food Program. The organization pledged to use the money to deliver food and other necessities by helicopter to inaccessible villages in Darfur. Another $2.75 million went to the International Rescue Committee, according to the actor turned advocate. Not on Our Watch has also donated $750,000 to the relief agency Oxfam and $1 million to the charity Save the Children.
You’ll recall when Clooney first went public with his promise to help the people of Darfur he shared some startling statistics, including the fact that more than 200,000 people have died in the region since 2003, when local rebels took up arms against the Sudanese government.