Marina Nemat Speaks at the Closing Ceremony of Life of a Mesopotamian Refugee Fundraiser
From November 16th to the 19th, a handful of students from the Assyrian Chaldean Syriac Student Union (ACSSU), camped outside the Ryerson SCC to emulate the life of a Mesopotamian refugee. They collected donations to send to the displaced refugees in Iraq and Syria. Their goal of $25000 is nearing, having raised a total of $23000 until now.
I personally visited the Ryerson campus two out of the four days and had a chance to interview Rosemary Yachouh, the president of ACSSU, on the subject of the event.
Could you tell me a little bit about LMR?
“There’s six people in that tent, it can be a little uncomfortable. The main thing is telling people who the people of Mesopotamia are and the minority groups that have been severely effected by this.”
What motivated you to take part in this event?
“The last two times this event took place I couldn’t take part in the event because of conflicting schedules. I have family in Syria, and I haven’t been able to go there since 2007. I had tickets booked in 2011 and the flight was cancelled because of the circumstances.”
It sounds like you have some first hand experience with this.
“It is partially personal, but I’m also very passionate about the community. As a student I don’t have enough money to make a difference on my own, but I have a voice, and I can reach out to those who can donate to actually make a difference for these displaced people.”
What was the hardest challenge of this simulation?
“People are busy and it’s not everyone’s interest to stop and talk. People on the street are not pleased to be confronted with the destruction taking place on the other side of the world. It’s not easy to empathize with the Syrian refugee crises because of what happened in Paris, Beirut and places all around the world in terms of terrorism. It’s hard to get the message across… We’re not trying to take sides or favour one group over another.
Maybe the Canadian government did take on a bit too much to bring in 25000 refugees in the next two months, but at the same time I don’t think the Canadian government would have been so drastic if the situation didn’t call for urgency.”
What are the most rewarding moments for you?
“The most rewarding moments are when complete strangers bring us a whole bunch of food or donate money for something that may not have personally affected them.
We spoke to an audience about social justice and one man wrote us a cheque for a $1000.
Even just getting one person to stop and talk about what we’re doing is rewarding, as long as the message is getting out there.”
What kind of response is the event receiving? Positive or negative feedback?
“Very positive, almost 98% positive feedback. Getting comments like ‘good job guys, you’re doing your part.’ We had an exchange student who couldn’t donate any money but he offered to volunteer for our cause! That was pretty amazing.”
In light of recent events (Paris, Beirut, etc) what effect do you think it’s had on your cause?
“I get people asking: ‘Do you think that the refugees coming should be a problem?’
It’s good and bad: some people are just turned off, and some just ignore it. In a way the Paris attack has raised massive awareness of events all around the world, including the situation in the middle east, especially Syria.”
What do you think about the social media activism? i.e. People changing their profile pictures for the recent Paris shooting?
“I chose not to do it. I feel like people are lazy, I feel like people choose a profile picture and that’s the end of their contribution. That’s not to say that people who did change their profile picture didn’t do anything, I’m sure some of those people did their part as well But it gives people a way to be lazy.
Some people are offended because Facebook hasn’t done this for Iraq, or Syria and I think it’s feeding to this cycle of the western society always being of a higher urgency and we’re neglecting third-world-countries where these events have been taking place for decades.
It’s also contributing to Islamophobia. It gives people the opportunity to be discriminatory and hateful. And that’s what people do on social media, they sit there all day, trying to find something to rant about.”
Do you think it’s easier for Westerners to put themselves in Parisian shoes?
“I think Westerners see Paris as a tourist destination and for something like that to happen is a big shock to us. Well you know what? Homs and Halab in Syria were beautiful cities and then all of a sudden ISIS invaded and destroyed them, I don’t remember anyone talking about Aleppo.”
How can people get involved or find out more information about LMR?
“Everybody involved are volunteers… and people are able to find out about it through Facebook and Twitter. We have a promo video that talks more about it.”
Can people donate even after the event is over?
“People can donate anytime, this was our way of getting the word out there and all the money that we’ve raised goes straight to Syria.”
To donate click here.
After a grueling four days of sleeping outside in a small tent cramped with six students, Rosemary Yachouh, President of ACSSU, introduced Marina Nemat, author of Prisoner in Tehran, to speak on her personal experience about living the life of a prisoner during the beginning of the Islamic republic.
She spoke eloquently about her upbringing in Tehran, Iran. Born in 1965, Nemat spoke about the days when she wore her green polka-dot bikini and took her boombox to the beach. She told us about her completely normal life up until the Islamic revolution. In 1979, Nemat was arrested at the age of sixteen for protesting in social gatherings. She spent two years in a polital prison in Tehran, called Evin. She was tortured, forced into marriage, and nearly executed. During her time in Evin, she experienced numerous deaths among her friends.
Nemat commanded the room. All eyes focussed on her. Not a single person could look away. Hearing about the atrocities in Evin focussed everyone’s attention on current events. Many of Nemat’s friends are still, to this day, trapped in Evin and will most likely die there. After a standing ovation, she commended ACSSU for putting on Life of a Mesopotamian Refugee.
Overall Life of a Mesopotamian refugee has raised over $23000. All proceeds will go directly to Syria and are doubled by the Canadian Government until December 1st, 2015. If you are interested in donating or learning more about Life of a Mesopotamian Refugee, please visit the following links for more information.
To learn more: http://www.acssu.ca/events/
To donate: https://goo.gl/xcWlT4
