Bicyclist hits Marguerite

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Nina Gonzaludo

Students eat dinner after a day of fasting to raise awareness of the Darfur crisis. Proceeds from the Darfur Stand Fast dinner benefitted Doctors Without Borders.

A Stanford student on his bicycle collided with a Marguerite shuttle yesterday on Serra Street in front of the Main Quad, according to the California Highway Patrol. The student, a junior, was taken to Stanford Hospital with scrapes and bruises and was released soon after.

The student moved into the path of the Marguerite, which was heading toward the Engineering Quad. The accident occurred around 1 p.m.

A representative from Parking and Transportation Services said that the accident is still under investigation.

Students fast for relief funds

About 100 Stanford students joined their peers across the country in a fast yesterday to mark the anniversary of the beginning of the Rwandan genocide and to raise money for the victims of the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, Sudan.

The event, called STANDFast, was not the first instance of student activism addressing this issue, but it marked the first time that both the Islamic Society at Stanford University, or ISSU, and Hillel have partnered with Students Taking Action Now:Darfur, or STAND, a national organization devoted to raising students’ awareness about the alleged genocide in Sudan.

“It’s beautiful to see us working together in a cause for humanity,” said senior Rania Eltom, one of the fast organizers and a member of ISSU. She added that she was born in Sudan and hopes to return once the country becomes democratic.

Students who participated in the fast were asked to donate the money they saved from not buying what event organizers called “luxuries” like gum, snacks and coffee during the day. The organizers collected the money and will give all of it to the humanitarian group Doctor’s Without Borders, which currently works in Sudan refugee camps.

The fast concluded at 5:30 p.m. with a special dinner featuring the a capella group Talisman. Stanford Dining contributed to the event by providing food at a low cost. The organizers and some of the participants wore black as a show of solidarity.

Organizers thought that MTVu, the college division of the MTV network, might be sending a camera crew to cover the event. As of press time, the channel had not yet received permission from the University to set up by Tresidder Union. MTVu has been working with STAND on the national level to publicize the event.

Sophomore Elissa Test, the co-founder of the Stanford STAND chapter, said that the fast was an “apolitical event.”

“This is about the humanitarian crisis, not any kind of political intervention,” Test said.

Junior Brennan Takayama, who participated in the fast, said he was “pretty hungry” by the time he arrived at the dinner.

“Fasting is about personal denial in order to achieve greater things,” he said. “Every time you get hungry it reminds you why you are fasting.”