Actor George Clooney and his father, Nick Clooney were arrested

Actor George Clooney and his father, Nick Clooney were arrested Friday in front of the Sudanese Embassy in Washington. They were participating in a protest intended to draw attention to what Mr. Clooney and fellow activists within a growing humanitarian crisis and no need in Sudan.

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir is blocking food aid to enter the Nuba Mountains in the border region of the country with southern Sudan, according to Clooney. The Sudanese government soldiers have clashed in the area with the rebels linked to Southern Sudan, creating a situation where civilians are desperate for food, while the missiles and bombs raining down on their land.
"This is a time where we have the opportunity to do something because if we do not, in the next three to four months, there will be a real humanitarian disaster," Clooney said before police took him away in plastic handcuffs.

Celebrities help Africa

Clooney and his fellow protesters were arrested after being warned three times not to cross the police line outside the embassy. The high-profile event capped a week that Clooney met with President Obama to discuss Sudan and testified on the subject before a congressional committee. Clooney and his father were released Friday afternoon, according to reports from wire services.

Will the brief detention of a Hollywood actor to make a difference here? It is certainly possible. There's a reason Washington interest groups recruit celebrities for their campaigns against - it works. Congressional aides and government officials who would not blink an eye on world leaders to see the stars align.

Moreover, the great success of 2012 Kony viral video produced by the group Invisible Children already have millions of Americans aware of the persistent problems of Africa. In this context, promoting a deep crisis Clooney and genuine could produce more than one answer to what you may have.

Finally, there is a precedent in Washington, where a protest at the embassy started small, with a few arrests, and then burst into a lobbying campaign nationwide.

In 1984, lawyer and anti-apartheid activist Randall Robinson entered the South African embassy in DC then delegate in Congress, Walter Fauntroy. They refused to leave, and the South Africans made the mistake of having arrested the couple, rather than simply throw out their ears.

That sparked a movement. Every day for months, protesters opposed the apartheid regime's treatment of blacks in line to the time of arrest. Celebrities attended the protest, organized by Mr. Robinson TransAfrica Forum, to help raise their profile.

It was a turning point in America's attitude towards South Africa, leading among other things, the growing congressional pressure for real change in the repressive political system in the nation.

Among those arrested in these protests were actor Danny Glover 1984-85 and Coretta Scott King, widow of Martin Luther King Jr. On Friday, the son of Coretta King, Martin Luther King III, was arrested along with Clooney, like Nicole Lee, current president of TransAfrica.

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