Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project

Tuesday, October 27, 7:00 p.m. St. Joan of Arc Church, 4537 Third Avenue South, Minneapolis. Sami Rasouli, an Iraqi-American with dual citizenship, who left Iraq in the late 1970s, lived in the Twin Cities area for more than 17 years. In November 2004, nearly 30 years after leaving Iraq and following the 2003 invasion and occupation of his country of origin, Sami returned to Iraq to help rebuild his country. During this time, he founded and supported the development of the Muslim Peacemaker Teams, groups dedicated to the principles of nonviolence. He recently brought a delegation of thirteen Iraqis from the city of Najaf to the city of Minneapolis as a part of the Sister City Project. Sami will speak about the situation on the ground in Iraq today; the U.S. pull-out from the cities; the return of the giant oil companies; political divisions; the upcoming elections in January, 2010; and the prospects for U.S. withdrawal and a substantive change in U.S policy toward Iraq. He will also speak about the Muslim Peacemaker Teams in Iraq and the building of peaceful relationships between the people of Iraq and the people of the United States through the Iraqi Art Project, the Sister City Project, Water for Peace, and Letters for Peace (http://reconciliationproject.org). Sami will be joined by his nineteen-year old son, Tarik, who recently returned from a trip to Iraq. Artwork from Iraq will be on display and will be sold to raise money for continuing human rights efforts in Iraq. Sami will be returning to Iraq in January to continue his work there. Sponsored by: Twin Cities Peace Campaign-Focus on Iraq (TCPC) and WAMM. Co-Sponsored by: the Anti-War Committee, Iraq Peace Action Coalition (IPAC), St. Joan of Arc/WAMM Peacemakers, Veterans for Peace (Chapter 27), and others. FFI: Call TCPC, 612-522-1861 or WAMM, 612-827-5364.