What do you do when you have No Place Called Home?
What do you do when you have No Place Called Home?
Since my arrival in New York and the start of the field research for my PhD, I have had the honor of being involved with a deeply moving piece of theatre called No Place Called Home.
Written and performed by Kim Schultz, No Place Called Home was born out of Intersections International’s Iraqi Voices Amplification Project (IVAP). This project took a cohort of eight artists around the Middle East to meet, interview, and engage with displaced Iraqi refugees. This group spoke with families and individuals in various settings throughout Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon. Every single individual this group spoke with had a story. Every single one was displaced. Some were separated from their family. Some had lost their family. Some were Muslim. Some were Christian. They were men, women, and children. But the one thing that unified all these individuals was that they were diasporic refugees due to the US-led Iraq war and had No Place Called Home.
Upon return from their trip, these artists (of various fields including visual arts, music, and the performing arts) were tasked with using their creative talents to raise up the awareness of one of the greatest under-reported humanitarian issues of the modern era: the Iraqi refugee crisis. As an aside, to give context, the conflict in Darfur displaced between 1.9 and 2.7 million people, while it is reported that upwards of 4 to 4.5 million Iraqis are displaced (roughly 2 million externally and 2.5 million internally). Kim’s contribution to IVAP was the creation of an original one-act, one-woman show that carries forth the voices of those she spoke with throughout the Middle East. It shares the pain, their dreams, their hopes, and their love (it is after all a love story that wasn’t supposed to be a love story).
Having both watched and performed music for this production, I can personally say that this production is not some liberal hippie fluff piece. It is one of the most moving pieces of theatre I’ve ever seen. Kim’s experiences and the stories of these people come through in a way that does not preach while communicating and honoring the experiences of a proud, honorable, and hurt people. It does all this without victimizing them, in representation or in reality. And, absolutely shameless plug, it is currently touring following its successful off-Broadway run. So if you are part of a university, a community center, a local theatre and would like to bring this production to your area, hit me up in the comments and I’ll put you in touch with Kim.
That said, this piece reminds us of the humanity of these individuals. It burns their stories into your memory and, God Willing, shares a bit of the hopes of, and for, all Iraqi refugees. And through this, they become not a 1 in over 4,500,000 statistic, but a living person with whom you share a connection and a planet. And, if you’re an American citizen, it reminds you of your ethical responsibility.
As most know, while I’m incredibly politically involved and savvy, I do not typically put my political agenda out into media unless I feel the issue is of great importance. I just do not promote my agenda this way. It’s just not my style.
This issue, however, is not one of politics. This is a humanitarian issue. No matter how anyone feels about the war in Iraq, it happened. It happened at the primary behest of the United States. The United Kingdom supported this effort as well. And as an American, I must say to my fellow citizens, that it is our responsibility to assist those who were displaced due to the actions of our government. Most of these people were ordinary people living under a dictator, oppressed by both him and the economic sanctions levied against him. And now they have No Place Called Home.
I’d argue this matter is more timely and pressing than ever. In the US, we are in the midst of yet another election year, coming right after we have declared an official end to the nearly 9-year long Iraq War. It is time to place this matter squarely on the agenda of whatever party or individual you support. Now is the time to take action, as the security and safety of these refugees is in even greater jeopardy than ever before. The Arab Spring has started to give rise to hopes, democratic autonomy, and (God Willing) a more understanding and tolerant world. Yet it has also brought about regional conflicts. And, in places such as Syria, it has created further instability and hardship for Iraqi refugees. Now those individuals, who had started trying to rebuild a home in a land they fled to, are losing the semblance of stability they had been able to regain.
If we can inspire such large numbers of people and corporations to take actions against the SOPA and PIPA acts, and can bring about today’s Internet Blackout, then surely we can similarly harness our social technologies and efforts to help bring attention to, and hopefully start to abate, the most underreported humanitarian crisis of this century.
Thus, I urge you, check out the resources that have been made available by Intersection International, the No Place Called Home website, take a minute to read the latest OpEd by Rev. Robert Chase, director of Intersections, or (if you’re in New York) come see Kim and I perform excerpts from the play tomorrow night (Thursday 19th, Jan 2012) at the Illuminated Metropolis Gallery where the work of Omar Odeh (the real life basis for the central character in the play, aptly named Omar) is being exhibited: http://www.facebook.com/events/316513688388515/.
That’s me off my soap-box. God Willing with some effort, the hopes of these, and all people really, can start to become manifest.