Behind The Blue

Recently, blue images have taken over all social media platforms as people have posted them as their profile pictures, but do you really know the truth behind the blue? These simple blue images are being used to bring awareness to the current massacre in Sudan. Protests began to rise this past December and have escalated over the months.

The current president of Sudan at the time was Omar al-Bashir. al-Bashir had an extensive reign which lasted from 1989-2019, a total of 30 years. He operated under a democratic republic, but it was a stern dictatorship. Not only did he make laws to restrict women’s rights, but he is responsible for the recent genocide and war crimes against non-Arabs in Darfur.

This past April, al-Bashir was arrested and removed from power. From here, the Sudanese military council announced that they would remain in control for three years as Sudan transitions to democracy. The council thought al-Bashir’s arrest would bring the protests to an end, but it caused just the opposite to occur. The Sudanese people only want a democracy and for authority to be transitioned to a civil Sudanese person, however, they are very so getting the run around by the military council.

June 3rd, 2019 the military council used unlawful and brutal violence against protestors during a peaceful sit-in. At least 100 protesters were killed and over 500 were injured after soldiers opened fire and attacked them. It has become clear that Sudan officials are downplaying how critical and dangerous the conditions are for the Sudanese civilians as dozens of women have reported that they have been raped and bodies are being found floating in the Nile River. Strong women are leading the protests and are being abused and mistreated the most in this on-going massacre.

On this day Mohamed Hashim Mattar was also allegedly shot and killed by the Sudanese military. His favorite color, blue, could be found throughout all his social media platforms. His friends and family began to share the blue image throughout their platforms in honor of his life. Today, thousands of people all around the world have changed their profile pictures to this very blue image to show their solidarity and raise awareness of the on-going crisis in Sudan. Though some may undermine the power of the blue image, it is actually tickling people’s curiosity leading them to research why people have changed their profile pictures to blue. Ultimately, people are at least becoming educated on what is happening. There is always more to a story than what is showcased on social media. The blue image is a great way to spread awareness, but the goal is to truly support our brothers and sisters in Sudan with more than just an image.