The TakePart Top 10 Weekly Roundup is a compilation of the week’s most notable stories from our entertainment-meets-social-action blogging network. Check out some of our most popular stories of the week, as well as a few TakePart blogger favorites!

TakePart Gang:

Sudan Leader Charged with Genocide: What Are the Reactions? by Wendy Cohen

Inconvenient Truth of the Day: Al Gore Speaks on Climate Change by Joshua Tremblay

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Nicole Hughes:

“Farms in the Sky” a Solution to Global Food Crisis?

Wal-Mart Launches Eco-Bling Project

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Andy Kondrat:

NYC To Bring in 300 Hybrid Taxis Per Month

Coolio To Educate Students On Climate Change

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Jon Popham:

Pickens’ Plan for Energy Independence

On “Rent” Closing, the East Village, and Gentrification

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Gina Telaroli:

Batman Morals: Top 5 Lessons from the Capped Crusader’s Films

Emmy Nominations Kick “The Wire” to the Curb

 The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court filed genocide charges yesterday against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, accusing him of masterminding attempts to wipe out African tribes in Darfur.

The AP reports that the this is the first time prosecutors of the ICC have issued charges against a sitting head of state. The changes that al-Bashir will be sent to the The Hague anytime soon are very slim.

Luis Moreno-Ocampo asked a three-judge panel at the ICC to issue an arrest warrant for al-Bashir accusing him of killing 35,000 people and displacing 2.5 million people forced from their homes in Darfur and still under attack from government-backed janjaweed militia.

“Genocide is a crime of intention we don’t need to wait until these 2.5 million die,” he told The Associated Press.

Here is an update since yesterday’s announcement:

• Iran says the news of the charge is “unpleasant” and they want have always supported the “legitimate” government of Sudan led by Bashir.
• The USA offered an ambivalent response to the charges against Sudan’s President
• Genocide charges don’t appear to be a threat to Omar al-Bashir. with support from the Arab and African world, Sudan’s president showed no signs of giving in to pressure.
• China expressed “concern” over the charges of Genocide as China now faces difficult choices over its relationship with Bashir and this in addition to the internation pressure China is feeling over the Beijing Olympics.
• China also urges the ICC to rethink the Sudan arrest warrent
• Some UN officias worry that the warrent will complicate the delicate peace process 
• Sudan is urging the UN Securty Council to block the prosecution of al-Bahir
• The Director of Human Rights Watch’s International Justice program says:

Charging President al-Bashir for the hideous crimes in Darfur shows that no one is above the law. It is the prosecutor’s job to follow the evidence wherever it leads, regardless of official position.

takepart with Darfur Now

Darfur Now is a documentary released by Warner Independent Pictures, written and directed by Ted Braun, which explores the Darfur conflict through the first-hand experiences of Don Cheadle, Hejewa Adam, Pablo Recalde, Ahmed Mahmoud Abakar, Luis Moreno-Ocampo, and Adam Sterling. It is a call to action, a call to take action against the genocide that is going on right now– as I write this and as you read this–in Darfur, Sudan. And the Darfur NOW College Tour is not just a movie tour. Organized by STAND (a student anti-genocide coalition) and Participant Productions, the Darfur NOW College Tour is a series of screenings of the film and music concerts, which raise awareness and funds to help the people of Darfur. Don’t miss the closing concert this Thursday, which features performances by OK Go ROCK&ROLL NICO VEGA ZION I RHYMEFEST, AREPA, STAR AFRISOUND, and ANA DIM MAK. The featured speakers are Adam Sterling, from the Genocide Intervention Network, and John Prenderdast.

So and go the concert.
May 29th@ 6pm-11pm
@ UCLA Ackerman Grand Ballroom,
UCLA Campus

And it’s free, with a suggested donation to a great cause, so why would you miss it?

And here’s a map (so you really have no excuse to miss it!)

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