My hero is going to the Middle East to document the carnage

[Fredda Weinberg]

Hello to all friends, acquaintances, comrades----

I am taking off for the Middle East on Thursday, October 11th and
will be back in LA by the end of the year.

The most gripping stories which the American media have chosen to
ignore is the plight of the millions of Iraqi refugees who have
either fled to neighboring countries or are internally displaced,
living in camps scattered around the country. It is unspeakable what
they have suffered--loss of their homes, their jobs, their schooling,
their finances, etc., not to mention the nightmares and post-
traumatic stress they have suffered due to the violence. Jordan has
accepted over 750,000 refugees and Syria has accepted 1.6 million
refugees but these countries have closed their borders because their
economies can't handle any more and no governments have contributed
funds to help absorb these refugees. Many Iraqis have depleted their
savings and now young Muslim women are turning to prostitution for
money to feed their families. There have been some cases of child
trafficking for money, as well as an increase in illicit drug use.

So I am going to document this tragedy, a direct result of the U.S.
occupation. I have packed up, and with a new professional video
camera, a still camera, and my passport and visas, I am going to
Amman, Jordan and Damascus,Syria to interview Iraqi refugee families
for my documentary. I have hired an Iraqi cameraman and an Iraqi
translator who will always accompany me. I am hooking up with some
humanitarian relief organizations in Amman which frequently travel to
Iraq and will be joining them so I can interview internally displaced
Iraqis. Of course this depends on whether Bush will start bombing
Iran or if Turkey invades northern Iraq to fight the Kurds.

I have spent months on the internet making contacts with Iraqi and
Jordanian and Syrian activists who are helping me find refugee
families to interview. I also intend to interview representatives of
the Jordanian and Syrian governments.

While there have been a slew of American documentaries about Iraq,
the majority of the voices heard are American or British. I intend to
put a face on the Iraqi people and let them talk about their country,
what life was like back in the 60's, 70's, 80's, and what happened
after the first U.S. bombing in 1991, the subsequent sanctions, and
the 2003 U.S. invasion and occupation.

I will also be attending 2 Middle East International Film Festivals--
one in Abu Dhabi in October and one in Dubai in December as a member
of the press representing the International Documentary Association.
This will be a tremendous opportunity to meet filmmakers from the
Middle East and other parts of the world whose political
consciousness is leap years ahead of most American filmmakers.

I'll send periodic e-mail updates during my trip. If there is
breaking news, I'll contact those of you in the alternative media.

Joan Sekler
http://www.unprecedented.org