Lend a hand so Ikhlas can stand and teach
Al-Salam Alaikum! My name is Salam Murtada and I am a volunteer for the Iraqi & American Reconciliation Project (IARP).
I am writing to you about Ikhlas Muhassan Abbas, a young Iraqi teacher who was hit by an errant missile in August of 2004 (see her statement below). In order to save her life, the doctor had no choice but to amputate her left leg and right foot. As a result, she became disabled and confined to a wheel chair at a very young age. She lost her teaching job, a profession she loves, and became dependent ...
The Unreturned to Show at UNHCR Refugee Film Festival in Tokyo
The Unreturned, directed by IARP volunteer Nate Fisher, was selected for the 5th UNHCR Refugee Film Festival in Tokyo in October 2010.
The Unreturned follows five Iraqis and their families who are among the 40 percent of the country's middle class who have fled the country since 2003. Without them, Iraq still lacks reliable electricity, clean water, sanitation, and health-care services. This is an unmitigated disaster for Iraq, a shattered nation that desperately needs its native professional class to return and help itself rebuild.
The UNHCR Refugee Film Festival raises awareness of the world’s 43 million ...
The Art of Conflict
For up-to-date information on the show, click here.
Two Iraqi artists participating in the
show will be at the Minneapolis Aquatennial
on July 18, 2010. Come to welcome them and see their work!
"I am happy to say I went to the opening of the exhibition at
Tarnish and Gold gallery, and thought it was very impressive work. I also attended the evening of the two artists from Iraq speaking about their
work, and their countries. Again, I was deeply impressed by
the many aspects of the activity, the lively, honest presentations
and richness of feeling all around. Throughout was the strong
sense of spiritual presence, of a true ...
Water in Iraq
By Mika Thuening
Thirteen-year old Hassan Khalid was suffering from fever, headaches, and vomiting. He had drunk water from a tap and contracted typhoid. Unfortunately, Hassan is not alone in falling victim to the unsafe water of Iraq. In 2007, the World Health Organization confirmed over 3,300 cases of cholera, a disease that spreads through contaminated water, resulting in at least 14 deaths.[1] The number one killer of children under 5 years of age is water borne diseases such as diarrhea, typhoid, and hepatitis.[2] Although these diseases are preventable by treating water for human consumption, millions of Iraqis remain at risk ...
Minneapolis Students Send Postcards to Iraq
Students at Perpich Center Arts High School in Minneapolis, USA recently created postcards to send to students in Iraq as part of their "Women and Water" project. The students also wrote messages on the backs of the postcards. Below is a sample of what will be sent to Iraq.
If your school would like to be involved in the Iraqi Art Project, please contact us.[gallery order="DESC"]
Special Report: Assessing Mental Health Needs in Najaf
On January 28, 2010, Dr. Liz Wieling traveled to Najaf, Iraq to collaborate with the Muslim Peacemaker Teams to conduct an initial assessment of mental health needs and psychological trauma of families in Najaf. To read the report, click here.
The project began in 2008, when Sami Rasouli, founding member of the Muslim Peacemaker Teams in Najaf, Iraq, along with Dr. Sara Axtell and IARP's Kaia Svien and Kathy McKay, visited with Dr. Wieling about the possibility of collaborating to address the needs of families in Najaf affected by the long standing psychological trauma resulting from four decades of war and ...
Minneapolis and Najaf are Sister Cities!
After more than a year of moving toward this goal, the Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project (IARP) and our partner in Iraq the Muslim Peacemaker Teams (MPT) are celebrating the beginning of a formal Sister City relationship between Najaf, Iraq and Minneapolis, MN USA. On Friday, July 31st, the Minneapolis City Council passed a resolution by unanimous vote establishing the two cities as official Sister Cities.
A Sister City relationship is a formal agreement signed by the governing bodies of each city committing to long term sharing of cultural, educational, and citizen resources. It is a symbolic statement of friendship ...
Educational Materials
One day, a teacher was showing art by Iraqi students to a third grade classroom in Minnesota. A boy looked up and asked in a shaky voice, “You mean, there are children in Iraq?”
In response to this innocent, heart wrenching query, the Iraqi & American Reconciliation Project (IARP) has created educational materials for school students, youth and adults.
Here's how the project works:
Read over the lesson plans for ideas you like.
Read the background articles on schools, education, and water in Iraq.
Download the PowerPoint of your choice and select the presentation format that works best for you. (Note: All PowerPoints include Speaker ...
Water for Peace Action at Al-Ghadeer Kindergarten in Najaf
Below are some images of children at Al-Ghadeer Kindergarten in Najaf, where a small water purifier unit was recently installed by the Muslim Peacemaker Teams. 150 kids attend the school.
Thanks to the sisters at Racine Dominicans for donating the purifier unit.
I feel bad for the kids having to sit through so many pictures! (there are many more not shown here...)
"A Quiet but Undeniable Cultural Legacy"
Anthony Shadid at the Washington Post has a recent article about the pervasive influence of the American occupation on Iraqi culture (copied below). According to Shadid, some (mostly younger) Iraqis have embraced elements of American culture like rap, heavy metal and tattoos, while other Iraqis reject the changes. Great article, makes me wonder: how many Americans could name one famous Iraqi singer, or one Iraqi TV show, or one Iraqi Arabic word, or other marker of Iraqi pop culture?A Quiet but Undeniable Cultural LegacyU.S. Occupation of Iraq Will End, but a Host of American Influences May Linger By Anthony ...
Iraqi Artists
Muslim Peacemaker Teams, IARP's partner in Iraq, recently hosted an art show for Iraqi artist Shaima'a Saad at the Youth & Sport Najaf Center. Below are some images from the show, which over 500 people attended. This is a good example, I think, of an Iraqi artist empowered by a peace-building non-profit organization and then helping to change others' perceptions and ideas through art.
