During the first year of his presidency, George W. Bush reportedly penned the words, “Not on my watch,” in the margin of a report on the Rwandan genocide. Yet seven years later, some 400,000 men, women and children have been killed, and millions have been displaced by brutal, government-sponsored militias in the Darfur region of Sudan. The President himself has termed this genocide.

Actor Don Cheadle (Hotel Rwanda) and International Crisis Group advisor John Prendergast believe that the “Rwanda in slow motion” that’s unfolding in Darfur can be stopped, and that ultimately all that’s needed is the political will to act. The authors begin from the almost flip notion of “send a letter, stop a genocide,” but by the time they’ve laid their foundation and outlined their plan, anything, even ending unspeakable mass atrocities half a world away, seems possible.

The tone of the book is surprisingly positive, considering its dark subject. In fact, the authors contend that a major cause of apathy and lack of action in the international community, particularly the United States, is a sense of hopelessness. They note that the focus of news stories on Africa is nearly always negative, giving a distorted picture of the continent and encouraging the attitude that nothing can be done to help. Conversely, they offer several examples of positive change enabled by grass-roots efforts in developed countries, including the end of Apartheid in South Africa, crackdowns on sweatshops in the U.S. and abroad, and even an end to resurging slavery in southern Sudan itself.

But the authors are not Pollyannas. Cheadle shares his personal doubts and frustrations in recounting setbacks, and Prendergast exhibits the depth of knowledge of complex political situations that can only come from years working to preserve human rights in the worst of situations. Together, they offer an understanding of the situation as it exists and a pragmatic, if optimistic, plan for change. They present a concise and comprehensible history of Sudan from the country’s independence in the 1950s to today’s events, as well as placing Darfur in the context of other conflicts that continue to rage throughout the “horn” of Africa. On this foundation they build their Six Strategies for Change, a blueprint for influencing political will, and devote much of the book to explaining how to implement these strategies. Through activist success stories and sidebars with bulleted lists of practical advice, the authors offer inspiration and suggest specific tactics individuals can employ within each of the six strategies.

Cheadle and Prendergast conclude that the U.S., as the world’s current superpower, is in a unique position to take the lead in stopping and preventing genocide and other mass atrocities, through strong leadership in peacekeeping efforts, by providing intelligence in support of the International Criminal Court’s efforts to bring perpetrators to justice, and through our considerable influence within the U.N. Security Council. They argue that when “We the People” stand up, our government will hear us, and when the U.S. government stands up, the world will hear and act. In short, the book is a call to action, so we may say with conviction, “Not on our watch.”

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