“The (Olympic dream) theme is basically just that everywhere in the world has some standard of living,” she said.

“The people in Darfur need a better life — period.”

Since 2003, when war between the Sudanese government and Darfuri rebels began, about 200,000 civilians have died and about 2.5 million have been displaced, according to the United Nations.

The rally also was meant to gather support for a Michigan Senate bill currently in the Senate Appropriations Committee, which would divest the state’s pension funds from companies directly and indirectly supporting the genocide in Darfur.

A similar bill passed in the Michigan House of Representatives in July by a 103-2 vote.

“Michigan really has an opportunity to be a catalyst,” said Adam Sterling, director of the Sudan Divestment Task Force.

Divesting funds would cut off Sudan’s ability to purchase weapons made in China and Sudan.

More than 70 percent of the weapons are bought with oil industry revenue that could be used for debt relief or infrastructure improvements, Sterling said.

The oil business in Sudan uses foreign investors — the largest being China National Petroleum Corporation — to export more than a half million barrels of oil a day, he said.

More and more states and institutions are divesting. Twenty states have adopted divestment policies from Sudan, 20 states have initiated campaigns and 55 universities have adopted policies, according to Sudandivestment.org.

MSU does not invest in any of the companies under the organization’s scrutiny.

The Michigan House bill has already received a lot of support, but lawmakers haven’t had time to bring the bill to the table because of the recent state budget crisis, said Rachel Kulasa, STAND’s divestment coordinator.

Lansing Mayor Virg Bernero, who also spoke at the rally, said government response to Darfur has been woefully inadequate.

“An atrocity such as what has taken place in Darfur should command the attention of decent people everywhere,” he said.