What's next for Iraqi refugees?

March 2011 will mark the eight-year anniversary of the Allied intervention in Iraq, which has produced the most underreported humanitarian crisis of this century. Almost 5 million Iraqis have been displaced from their homes. The great majority of them are living as refugees in neighboring countries and lack basic access to employment, education, healthcare, and human rights protections while their futures remain unresolved. As the New Year begins, Intersections is focused on turning the support obtained in 2010 into an advocacy campaign to keep the refugee crisis on the agenda of American policy-makers.

October’s theatrical advocacy piece, No Place Called Home, served as a launching point for our “Postcards to the President Campaign,” which will take our humanitarian voices directly to the White House in an effort to maintain President Obama’s pledge to fulfill “our moral” obligations to displaced Iraqis. Over 400 postcards have been signed and the number continues to grow. Additionally, as the new session of Congress begins, Intersections seeks your support in reaching out to congressional representatives to become familiar with―and sponsor―legislation that seeks a humanitarian response to this refugee crisis.

While such national media as FOX’s The John Gibson Show have focused on IVAP and the plight of refugees, Intersections currently is looking for sponsors of our artistic work to be presented in Washington, D.C., to further strengthen our advocacy for the millions of Iraqi refugees whose voices have yet to be heard.