Members of a student club at Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School have started a letter-writing campaign to persuade the County Council to pass legislation to divest county pension funds from businesses connected to Darfur, a war-torn region of Sudan.

Lyz Glickman started the Save Darfur Club last year in response to conflict in the African country that has left thousands of people dead.

"Money can only go so far, and students can only do so much," said Aleah Bowie, a 16-year-old junior from Bethesda. "We need help from our politicians."

Last week club members hosted several events to bring attention to the issue. On Friday, wearing T-shirts with the words "Don't stand by. Stand up," and "Save Darfur," they collected nearly 60 letters. Students also sold green "Save Darfur" wristbands and organized a bake sale to raise money for STAND, a nationwide anti-genocide coalition of students.

The club sponsored a guest speaker from the Darfur Interfaith Network on Thursday, and students participated in a musical performance in the school's atrium. Glickman said she was happy with the response to the events.

"I had no idea if one person was going to come, so getting this many was impressive," she said. "This far exceeded our expectations."

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