Afro-Iraqis have been subjected to oppression, racism, and discrimination. Their rituals are disparaged as barbaric and irreligious. This panel, co-presented by IARP and the Lotus Cultural Women’s League, explores the significance of Afro-Iraqi rituals and Afro-Iraqis’ resilience in facing stigmatization and discrimination in Iraq.

Interpretation will be provided in English and Arabic.

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ABOUT THE PANELISTS
Amir Al-Azraki is an Arab-Canadian playwright, literary translator, Theatre of the Oppressed practitioner, and Associate Professor and Coordinator of Studies in Islamic and Arab Cultures Program at Renison University College, University of Waterloo. Among his plays are: Waiting for Gilgamesh: Scenes from Iraq, The Mug, and The Widow. Al-Azraki is the author of The Discourse of War in Contemporary Theatre (in Arabic), co-editor and co-translator of Contemporary Plays from Iraq, “A Rehearsal for Revolution”: An Approach to Theatre of the Oppressed (in Arabic), and co-editor and co-translator of Arabic poetry by female poets in Consequence, The Common, Poetry Foundation and Talking Writing. He has recently translated Representations of the Other: The Image of Black People in the Medieval Arab Imaginary by a Bahraini critic Nader Kadhim, which will be published by McGill-Queen's University Press.

Thawrah Yousif Yaqoob is a retired Afro-Iraqi professor of theatre. She is an actor, dancer and director. She taught acting and body techniques for 20 years at the University of Basra. She has a bachelor’s, master’s and PhD in performing arts from the College of Fine Arts, Baghdad University. Currently, she is a project manager for Lotus Cultural Women’s League.

Elham Nasser Al Zubaidy is a visual artist and the daughter of the late well-known Iraqi visual artist Nasser Al Zubaidy. Since graduating from the music program at the Fine Arts Institute in Basra, Iraq in 1984, Elham worked extensively with local and international civil society organizations, and noticed that initiatives were mostly concerned with supporting widows and divorced women. She saw a need to support educated women such as visual artists, playwrights, journalists, and writers who work in culture, art, and media in Iraq.

ABOUT THE LOTUS CULTURAL WOMEN’S LEAGUE
Located in Basra, Iraq, the Lotus Cultural Women's League was founded in 2016 by a local group of female artists. The organization emerged from an identified need to support educated women to be leaders advancing society for the betterment of all women, children, and community members. Today it is a cultural non-for-profit organization with a mission to provide training, advocacy, cultural promotion, and psycho-social support. It serves women, youth, children, and any community members interested in advancing the civil rights and leadership of women in society.