Former United States Marine Brian Steidle served for six months in Darfur as an unarmed military observer for the African Union. There he witnessed first-hand the ongoing genocide, and documented every day of his experience. Fired upon, taken hostage, a witness to villages destroyed and people killed, frustrated by his missions limitations and the international communitys reluctance to intervene, Steidle resigned and has since become an advocate for the world to step in and stop this genocide. The Devil Came on Horseback is a gripping memoir that bears witness to unmentionable atrocities and urges all of us to take action.

About the Author

Brian Steidle, a former US Marine, worked for the African Union where he served in Darfur. He has made several return trips to Africa and now gives lectures across America. Gretchen Steidle Wallace is Brian's sister and the founder of Global Grassroots, a non profit organization. Brian and Gretchen live in New Hampshire, USA. For further information, visit www.globalgrassroots.org.

Reviews

You have certainly read about, heard about, and even seen the pictures from Darfur and wondered "Why?" This horrifying memoir, written by a boots-on-the-ground former marine who served in Darfur as an unarmed military observer for the African Union, grips you in the horrors of genocide and of international inaction. Encouraged by his sister (founder, Global Grassroots), to whom he sent emails, the author became a fiery, impassioned advocate for world action. The descriptions of atrocities perpetrated by the Janjaweed ("devils on horseback") in order to "cleanse" an entire people, where Arab Muslims kill African Muslims because the Africans are "too black" defy comprehension. Angered and repelled by the denials and the reluctance of the international community to become involved, Steidle steadfastly used his camera to record the horrors of what he witnessed. Finally, he left the mission to create a documentary and photo exhibit (www.darfurdarfur.org) and to write this chilling account of a four-year war resulting in 300,000-plus deaths and the displacement of 2.5 million people. For its daily eyewitness account of the Darfur genocide, this is recommended for all libraries interested in current affairs or African history.--Mary C. Allen, Everett Lib., WA Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.

This impassioned memoir is a cry of conscience and an informative, if politically and historically limited, analysis by a former U.S. Marine. Steidle began work in Sudan in 2004, as a military contractor with the two-year-old Joint Military Commission to monitor the fragile cease-fire agreement in Africa's longest civil war between the Arab-dominated government of Sudan in the north and the rebel SPLA representing black African tribes of the south. As his career advances, Steidle is drawn into the province of Darfur, where government troops and government-backed Arab militias (known as Janjaweed or the devil on a horse) operate against a 2003 uprising of black African tribes (overwhelmingly fellow Muslims) in a campaign whose virulence and destruction clearly amount to genocide. Steidle, who eventually became an unarmed American military observer for the African Union's cease-fire coalition, composed this account with his sister, an activist and founder of Global Grassroots, in conjunction with their documentary film of the same name and a traveling photo exhibit and college lecture tour. Drawing heavily on notes and e-mails home, Steidle's personal and fluent account effectively channels an idealistic, adventuresome young man's growing frustration and horror in the face of ongoing crimes against humanity and international complacency. (Apr.) Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.