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The phrase "Black Lives Matter" seems hollow today, as the world remains largely indifferent to the catastrophic conflict in Sudan. The war, which began in April 2023, has claimed tens of thousands of lives, displaced more than 10 million people, and left 13 million more at risk of famine. Most of those affected are Black lives, yet this horrifying scenario has not garnered the media attention or public outcry it deserves.

The Sudanese conflict stands as a glaring indictment of global negligence. Unlike wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, which dominate headlines and spur mass protests, Sudan's tragedy is scarcely covered by the media. Politicians seldom mention it, and social media is eerily silent on the matter. According to aid organizations, this conflict has resulted in "the world's worst humanitarian crisis," yet it is conspicuously absent from front pages and broadcast news.

The atrocities committed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) are staggering in their brutality. These forces, a rebranded version of the Janjaweed militia responsible for the Darfur genocide two decades ago, have resumed their campaign of terror. Maryam Suleiman, a refugee now in Chad, recounted to the New York Times the harrowing incident when RSF gunmen entered her village. The gunmen declared their intent to eliminate all Black people, executing males over ten years old, including Maryam's brothers. Infants were not spared; babies were thrown to the ground and drowned. Women and girls were subjected to widespread rape, dehumanized as "slaves" by the RSF.

Despite the horrific scale of this ethnic cleansing, there is no clear estimate of the death toll, partly because no one is officially counting the dead. The absence of a stable state apparatus and the dangerous conditions have made it impossible for international NGOs to operate effectively on the ground.

Kate Ferguson from Protection Approaches highlights the difficulty in attracting policymakers' attention to the crisis. Media coverage has been vastly disproportionate, with the violence in Sudan receiving far less attention than the conflicts in Israel and Gaza. Ferguson suggests that part of the reason might be a collective fatigue; many perceive the Darfur crisis as an issue that was "resolved" 20 years ago and are unwilling to confront it again.

Western progressives, who once took to the streets for Black Lives Matter and George Floyd, have remained largely inactive regarding the mass murders in Sudan. The complex nature of the Sudanese conflict, with neither side fitting neatly into the oppressor-vs-oppressed narrative, makes people reluctant to engage.

The silence from both the media and activists is a sobering reminder that global attention is often a scarce and selective resource. The people of Sudan should not have to fit a simplistic moral narrative to deserve our empathy and action. It is time for the world to turn its gaze to Sudan and acknowledge that Black lives in Sudan matter just as much.