Focus on Refugees

In April, IAO organized two events aimed at drawing attention to the Syrian refugee crisis and its consequences for the US and the world. The initiative commenced with the showing of the movie, “After Spring.” The film illuminates the refugee crisis following two families in a refugee camp and the aid workers fighting to keep the camp running. Viewers experience what it is like to live in the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan--the largest of many camps hosting Syrian refugees. With no end in sight for the Syrian conflict or the refugee crisis, the families profiled must learn to rebuild their lives in a place that was never meant to be permanent.

One week after the showing of “After Spring,” IAO organized a panel discussion on the plight of Syrian refugees. At this event, Dr. Robert McKenzie, an expert in forced migration and refugees and refugee resettlement and integration, and senior fellow and founding director of the Muslim Diaspora Initiative at the New America Foundation, discussed refugee rights, the implications of the refugee crisis in Europe and beyond, and possible policy responses. Ms. Roya Naderi, HQ Director at the Karam Foundation, discussed the work of this non-profit in supporting Syrian refugees in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan, as well as internally displaced persons in Syria. Ms. Akhras Sahloul, founder and Executive Director of the Syrian Community Network, discussed the plight of refugees in the United States and her organization’s work in resettling Syrian refugees in the greater Chicago area. Dr. Jeanie Bukowski moderated the discussion.