Run DMZ to Raise Funds for North Korean Refugees

The Demilitarized Zone, or DMZ, a no-man’s land between the border of North Korea and South Korea—a buffer against illicit border crossings—is 2.5 miles wide.

Despite the odds against a successful crossing from totalitarian North Korea into democratic South Korea, in order to escape poverty, starvation, oppression and forced labor and prostitution, thousands of people make the attempt every year, risking imprisonment, torture, or death.

To assist the international organization LiNK (Liberty in North Korea), which spreads awareness about the atrocious human rights abuses in North Korea, a Smith chapter of the group will host a 2.5-mile fun run, called Run DMZ on Saturday, March 5. The event begins at 10 a.m. on the Chapin Lawn side of the Campus Center.

Tickets ($3 for Five College students; $1 for senior citizens; $5 for others) can be purchased in the Campus Center basement or on the day of the event.

All proceeds will be donated to LiNK and its effort to improve the situation for North Korean refugees and pursuing an end to the human rights crisis in North Korea.