“THE ARAB-ISRAELI COOKBOOK”
Theatre Mir gives voice to the Arab-Israeli conflict in theatrical production and special programs at the Chicago DCA Storefront Theater March 5 – April 5, 2009
Theatre Mir, in association with Chicago DCA Theater, presents the Midwest premiere of The Arab-Israeli Cookbook by British playwright Robin Soans. The production comes to Chicago DCA Theater’s Storefront Theater at 66 E. Randolph Street, from March 5 through April 5, 2009. Members of the press are invited to the opening performance on Saturday, March 7, at 7:30 p.m.
The Arab-Israeli Cookbook brings Arab and Israeli voices together in the stories of ordinary people living in a rich yet divided world in Israel and the West Bank. Based on real-life interviews, this deeply human play weaves the stories and recipes of more than forty characters who reveal common culture and experiences amidst the daily conflict. In restaurants, shops, cafes, and homes, everyone has a story to tell and a recipe to cook.
In 2003, playwright Robin Soans and directors Rima Brihi and Tim Roseman – the one Arab, the other Jewish – traveled to Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza. The play was originally presented in a hit production at London’s The Gate Theatre. It has since been produced in Canada, Japan, and the United Stated and broadcast on BBC World Service in 2006. Theatre Mir’s production is the play’s Midwest premiere.
Performances are Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday afternoons at 3:00 p.m. Tickets are $23 for general admission, $18 for seniors, and $15 for students. Discounts are also available for groups of ten or more. All tickets are available by calling 312.742.TIXS (8497), visiting www.dcatheater.org, or stopping by the box office, open Tuesday through Saturday, noon to 6 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 4 p.m.; and one hour prior to each performance. Post-show discussions moderated by Scott Hibbard and Khalil Marrar of the DePaul University Political Science Department will follow the preview performances on March 5 and 6.
Cast and Production Team
Cast
Walter Brody, Maggie Cain, Susaan Jamshidi, Stephen Loch, Julian Martinez, Mark Richard, Frank Sawa, and Rachel Slavick.
Production Team
Rob Chambers (Director), Marianna Csaszar (Sets), Brandon Wardell (Lights), Laura B. Kollar (Costumes), Brett Masteller (Sound), Christina Pretsch and Chris Chapin (Stage Managers), Eva Breneman (Dialects), Zev Valancy (Dramaturgy), Andrea Fears (Assistant Director), Danica Ivancevic (Producer).
Special Events
In association with the production, Theatre Mir and Chicago DCA Theater will present a series of special events designed to further explore the themes and issues raised in The Arab-Israeli Cookbook.
Monday, March 16, 7pm
Discussion “Staging Conflict: Theatrical Narratives of the Holy Land”
Claudia Cassidy Theater, Chicago Cultural Center
FREE, Reservations encouraged at 312.742.TIXS (8497), or at www.dcatheater.org
Silk Road Theatre Project and Theatre Mir present scenes from their productions of Motti Lerner’s “Pangs of the Messiah” and Robin Soans’ “The Arab-Israeli Cookbook,” two plays portraying unique perspectives on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict: the former an intra-Jewish story about a family of religious West Bank settlers set in 2012 and the latter a verbatim play based on interviews with Christians, Jews and Muslims living in Israel and the West Bank. The program includes a lively panel discussion on the challenges of dramatizing the personal and political within the context of the Middle East.
Wednesday, April 1, 6:30pm
Film Screening “Encounter Point”
Claudia Cassidy Theater, Chicago Cultural Center
FREE, Reservations encouraged at 312.742.TIXS (8497), or at www.dcatheater.org
“Encounter Point” is a poignant documentary about a former Israeli settler, a Palestinian ex-prisoner, a bereaved Israeli mother and a wounded Palestinian bereaved brother who risk their lives and public standing to promote a nonviolent end to the conflict. Their journeys lead them to the unlikeliest places to confront hatred within their communities. The film explores what drives them and thousands of other like-minded civilians to overcome anger and grief to work for grassroots solutions in the face of government inaction. It is a film about the everyday leaders in our midst.
Saturday, April 4, 11am
World Kitchen Class “The Arab-Israeli Cookbook”
Gallery 37 Center for the Arts, 66 E. Randolph
$30, Tickets go on sale Wednesday, March 4 at 12 noon
The Department of Cultural Affairs’ World Kitchen offers this special hands-on cooking class that brings some of The Arab-Israeli Cookbook’s Middle Eastern recipes into your home kitchen. Students must be 16 years or older. Tickets can be purchased at Chicago DCA Theater’s box office, at 312.742.TIXS (8497), or at www.dcatheater.org
Theatre Mir was created in 2007 to actively engage audiences about issues affecting our world today – to entertain as well as to inform. Inspired by the Russian word “mir”, which means both peace and world, Theatre Mir's mission is to create opportunities through entertainment and related education programs for artists and audiences to explore issues facing our multi-ethnic and multi-cultural society and world today. The company presented a production of “The Prisoner’s Dilemma” in 2008 at the Raven Theatre. More information on Theatre Mir can be found at www.theatremir.com.
The Storefront Theater and the Studio Theater, its companion theater located in the Chicago Cultural Center at 77 E. Randolph Street, comprise Chicago DCA Theater, an anchor of the downtown theater district. Chicago DCA Theater offers downtown audiences an off-Loop theater experience with an exciting look at the vibrant emerging and developing theater companies that call Chicago home. Proposals for creative and innovative productions for the January to June 2010 season are now being accepted until May 15, 2009.
Discounted parking is available at Wabash Randolph Self Park at 20 E. Randolph. Patrons can receive the $14 rate by validating their ticket at the Storefront Theater box office.
For more information about Theatre Mir’s The Arab-Israeli Cookbook and Chicago DCA Theater, visit call 312.742.TIXS (8497) or visit www.dcatheater.org. The enhanced website features more information about DCA Theater performances and programs, including a blog, photo galleries, and visitor information.
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Note to Press: Electronic images are available at www.dcatheater.org/press or by request.
Showing posts with label Arab. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Arab. Show all posts
Sunday, March 01, 2009
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
New book challenges Arabs and Muslims to defeat extremism to win a Palestinian State
New book challenges Arabs and Muslims to defeat extremism to win a Palestinian State
Chicago -- Palestinians need to overcome the growing movement of secular and religious extremists in their own community before they can be strong enough to overcome the challenges from Israel and create their own independent Palestinian State, says award winning journalist Ray Hanania in a new book "The Catastrophe: The One-State Solution is the No-State Solution. How Palestinians can stand up to the extremistsand create a Palestinian State."
Hanania, whose writings "define the moderate Arab voice," is an outspoken critic of extremism in the Arab and Muslim community.
Consistently denouncing violence on both sides, Hanania argues in his book that Israelis and Palestinians each face an uncertain future as the extremist secular left partners with the fanatic religious right to use violence prevent peace based on compromise, to advance the so-called "One-State Solution," and to exploit Palestinian suffering as a means of preventing them from the only viable option for statehood, the creation of a Palestinian State in the context of a Two-State Solution.
"We are watching as Palestine is being erased not just from the maps but from reality as Israel's government exploits the failures of our leadership and the uncontrolled emotions of our people," Hanania argues.
"Palestinians are being held hostage by these extremists and fanatics on the left and the right who reject any compromise and who live in a dream of the past that has become our nightmare. To save our people, we must reject the rejectionists, embrace compromise and recognize the reality of our situation in the hopes of someday rebuilding a dream that is the cornerstone of justice."
In the book, Hanania also argues that Palestinians must regain the principled moral stand and cannot succumb to the emotions of their failures over the past 60 years of Israel's existence, writing:
"Being honest about one's mistakes -- and failures -- and acknowledging the reality of history, rather than its myths, is a crucial step towards lifting oneself out of defeat. You cannot make something "better" if you do not honestly acknowledge that things are "bad" or you attempt to do so from a "bad" position. Only those who are "better" can make a situation better. Improve it. Correct it. Bring it back to the moral center.
"But just being 'better,' as a relative statement, is not good enough. You are either pregnant or you are not pregnant. There is no in-between. The road to pregnancy is pregnancy. The road to peace is peace. Either Palestinians have a state or they don't have a state. You either support peace or you don't support peace. Those who use violence to achieve 'peace' are not seeking peace at all. The use of violence is in and of itself a rejection of peace. Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims must answer this important issue correctly. We must clean our own house first before we can insist on cleaning out the houses of others, our 'enemies.' We cannot demand justice from others when we deny justice to others in our actions, in our arguments in our beliefs. Doing so is to deny justice to ourselves."
The book is available directly from the author through his web site at http://www.hanania.com/.
"The Catastrophe"
238 Pages, softcover 7 x 9 trade
$24.95
Ray Hanania Enterprises
PO Box 2127
Orland Park, IL., 60462
end
Chicago -- Palestinians need to overcome the growing movement of secular and religious extremists in their own community before they can be strong enough to overcome the challenges from Israel and create their own independent Palestinian State, says award winning journalist Ray Hanania in a new book "The Catastrophe: The One-State Solution is the No-State Solution. How Palestinians can stand up to the extremistsand create a Palestinian State."
Hanania, whose writings "define the moderate Arab voice," is an outspoken critic of extremism in the Arab and Muslim community.
Consistently denouncing violence on both sides, Hanania argues in his book that Israelis and Palestinians each face an uncertain future as the extremist secular left partners with the fanatic religious right to use violence prevent peace based on compromise, to advance the so-called "One-State Solution," and to exploit Palestinian suffering as a means of preventing them from the only viable option for statehood, the creation of a Palestinian State in the context of a Two-State Solution.
"We are watching as Palestine is being erased not just from the maps but from reality as Israel's government exploits the failures of our leadership and the uncontrolled emotions of our people," Hanania argues.
"Palestinians are being held hostage by these extremists and fanatics on the left and the right who reject any compromise and who live in a dream of the past that has become our nightmare. To save our people, we must reject the rejectionists, embrace compromise and recognize the reality of our situation in the hopes of someday rebuilding a dream that is the cornerstone of justice."
In the book, Hanania also argues that Palestinians must regain the principled moral stand and cannot succumb to the emotions of their failures over the past 60 years of Israel's existence, writing:
"Being honest about one's mistakes -- and failures -- and acknowledging the reality of history, rather than its myths, is a crucial step towards lifting oneself out of defeat. You cannot make something "better" if you do not honestly acknowledge that things are "bad" or you attempt to do so from a "bad" position. Only those who are "better" can make a situation better. Improve it. Correct it. Bring it back to the moral center.
"But just being 'better,' as a relative statement, is not good enough. You are either pregnant or you are not pregnant. There is no in-between. The road to pregnancy is pregnancy. The road to peace is peace. Either Palestinians have a state or they don't have a state. You either support peace or you don't support peace. Those who use violence to achieve 'peace' are not seeking peace at all. The use of violence is in and of itself a rejection of peace. Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims must answer this important issue correctly. We must clean our own house first before we can insist on cleaning out the houses of others, our 'enemies.' We cannot demand justice from others when we deny justice to others in our actions, in our arguments in our beliefs. Doing so is to deny justice to ourselves."
The book is available directly from the author through his web site at http://www.hanania.com/.
"The Catastrophe"
238 Pages, softcover 7 x 9 trade
$24.95
Ray Hanania Enterprises
PO Box 2127
Orland Park, IL., 60462
end
Saturday, May 17, 2008
EEOC settles lawsuit on behalf of 7 Middle Eastern victims of discrimination by Hawaiian cruise line
EEOC SETTLES CASE INVOLVING DISCHARGE OF SEVEN MIDDLE EASTERN CREW MEMBERS FROM THE CRUISE SHIP PRIDE OF ALOHA
HONOLULU – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced the settlement of a federal lawsuit against NCL America, Inc. for $485,000 to seven former employees and remedial relief.
In its lawsuit, filed in 2006 under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, the EEOC alleged that NCL America discharged seven Middle Eastern crew members from various positions on the cruise ship “Pride of Aloha.” NCL America denied that it had acted improperly against these crew members in agreeing to resolve the lawsuit.
“We are very pleased with this outcome, and NCL America should be applauded for its commitment to prevent discrimination by agreeing to the comprehensive injunctive relief in this case,” said Anna Y. Park, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Los Angeles District Office, which includes Hawaii.
Los Angeles District Director Olophius Perry added, “We encourage all employers to utilize EEOC’s resources to ensure proper EEO training and compliance.”
As part of the two year consent decree resolving the case, NCL America agrees to pay the crew members $485,000. With respect to the injunctive relief, NCL America further agrees, among other things, to revise its policies to ensure a workplace that promotes equal employment opportunity, to hire an EEO consultant, and to provide training to its managers and employees on the company’s equal employment policy and complaint procedure.
The litigation and consent decree were filed by the EEOC in the U.S. Court for the District of Hawaii (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Almraisi, et. al., v. NCL America Inc., et. al., cv 06-00451 SOM BMK, cv 07-00372 SOM BMK).
The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about the EEOC is available on the agency’s web site at www.eeoc.gov.
HONOLULU – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced the settlement of a federal lawsuit against NCL America, Inc. for $485,000 to seven former employees and remedial relief.
In its lawsuit, filed in 2006 under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, the EEOC alleged that NCL America discharged seven Middle Eastern crew members from various positions on the cruise ship “Pride of Aloha.” NCL America denied that it had acted improperly against these crew members in agreeing to resolve the lawsuit.
“We are very pleased with this outcome, and NCL America should be applauded for its commitment to prevent discrimination by agreeing to the comprehensive injunctive relief in this case,” said Anna Y. Park, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Los Angeles District Office, which includes Hawaii.
Los Angeles District Director Olophius Perry added, “We encourage all employers to utilize EEOC’s resources to ensure proper EEO training and compliance.”
As part of the two year consent decree resolving the case, NCL America agrees to pay the crew members $485,000. With respect to the injunctive relief, NCL America further agrees, among other things, to revise its policies to ensure a workplace that promotes equal employment opportunity, to hire an EEO consultant, and to provide training to its managers and employees on the company’s equal employment policy and complaint procedure.
The litigation and consent decree were filed by the EEOC in the U.S. Court for the District of Hawaii (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Almraisi, et. al., v. NCL America Inc., et. al., cv 06-00451 SOM BMK, cv 07-00372 SOM BMK).
The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Further information about the EEOC is available on the agency’s web site at www.eeoc.gov.
Friday, November 16, 2007
New York State Department of Health blocks US-Egyptian study on Hepatitis
PRESS RELEASE
November 17, 2007
New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) Stops a World First U.S. - Egyptian Collaborative Study on Hepatitis C and Blood Ozonation
Recently coming to light is the involvement of the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) in stopping a world-first U.S. - Egyptian collaborative study on hepatitis C in Egypt. According to one of its principals, Dr. Gérard Sunnen, the study, bringing together the Egyptian National Research Centre (NRC) and Medizone International, Inc., a US - based company, sought to evaluate new therapeutic options for stimulating natural immune factors in fighting the disease. “Blood ozonation is an innovative technique of interfacing blood with minuscule amounts of ozone/oxygen mixtures that enhance natural cytokine and interferon production for purposes of viral clearing. This process, if successful, could greatly reduce the cost of current treatments for hepatitis C,” states Dr. Sunnen. In 2002, the NYSDOH stopped the study. “It is a sad day for the some estimated 5 million Egyptian patients, and some 170 million patients worldwide,” he added.
Hepatitis C (HCV) is a chronic affliction caused by a lipid-enveloped virus with a high mutation rate. All pathogenic viruses with high mutation rates are major threats to humanity because they are more likely to behave as they never had before. HCV's wide genetic spectrum and mutational thrust are responsible for its expanding prevalence base and its growing worldwide distribution. By some estimates, hepatitis C world prevalence will reach a quarter billion in a few years.
Hepatitis C preferentially invades the liver, but it can also affect other organ systems, including the bone marrow and the kidneys. Progressive liver destruction may lead to cirrhosis and liver cancer. Indeed, after 20 years, about 25% of hepatitis C patients develop cirrhosis, and another 5% liver cancer. Up to 20% of patients, however, conquer the disease, presumably due to the adaptability and creativity of their immune systems.
The hepatitis C virus is spread by body fluid transmission. Like many other viruses, its life cycle shows fluctuations of relative dormancy alternating with viremic episodes when blood is virally flooded. It is estimated that in any one viremic hepatitis C episode, up to 10 billion viral particles may be generated daily. The immune system in hepatitis C is thus perennially challenged.
Clinically, in the first few years, hepatitis C is often manifested by vague symptoms of fatigue, headache, and gastrointestinal malaise. Later on, the extent of organ damage determines the severity of its symptom profile.
Medications for hepatitis C include interferons, which are natural cellular products that activate neutrophils, macrophages, and natural killer (NK) cells, and drugs that inhibit enzymes responsible for viral replication (e.g., ribavirin). Success rate is variable and relapses are common. Frequently, these drug cocktails are poorly tolerated leading to discontinuation.
Blood ozonation may initially sound like a toxic process. It is not. Decades ago, German clinicians thought that ozonation could clear blood of pathogens, much as it does water. They devised methods of interfacing ozone with blood so that its cellular elements (e.g., red and white blood cells, platelets) retained their integrity. Immune models have surpassed this early notion of ozone's direct viral clearance. In the miniscule doses in which ozone is administered to blood, it is now firmly documented that blood ozonation stimulates immune system components to produce natural interferons and cytokines capable of initiating viral kill.
It may appear surprising--or even preposterous--to suggest that our own bodies utilize endogenously-generated reactive oxygen molecules, one of which is ozone, to destroy constantly invading microbes. A greatly underappreciated study from the Scripps Institute in California found that ozone is indeed created by our own white blood cells to function as a natural virucidal agent.
The prevalence of hepatitis C is variable in different regions of the world. In the U.S., about 1% of the population is affected, an estimated 4 million carriers. In Egypt, the prevalence rate is the highest in the world. Fully 20% of the population is or has been afflicted by hepatitis C.
In view of this hepatitis C emergency, the National Research Centre (NRC) in Cairo contacted Medizone International, a leader in ozone-based therapeutics. Egyptian health authorities were interested in new therapeutic approaches for hepatitis C, one being innovative technologies of oxygen/ozone administration.
With great enthusiasm, and hope, an NRC - Medizone investigative study was designed, and officially named "Safety and Efficacy of Ozone in the Treatment of Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C."
The study was to involve 66 patients. The main objectives of the study were to measure and evaluate, among other things, hepatitis C viral load reduction with blood ozonation, liver enzyme recovery, and clinical improvement, as measured by scales of health and well-being
Officially, the investigators for this study were:
Principal Investigator: Professor Dr. M.Y. Estefan, M.D., MRCP
Clinical Team:
Prof. Dr. Mouchira A-Salam, M.D.
Prof. Dr. Said Shalaby, M.D.
Dr. Hala Zaki Raslan, M.D.
Dr. Seif W. Morcos, MRCP
Dr. Ibrahim M. Kamal, M.S.
Dr. Yasser A. El-Houssary, M.S.
Laboratory Team:
Prof. Shadia A. Ragab, M.D.
Prof. Mostafa El-Awadi, Ph.D.
Dr. Azza A. Ali, M.D.
Dr. Hanaa R. Mohamed, M.D.
Chemical Engineering Team:
Prof. Gizeen El-Diwany, Ph.D.
Dr. Maaly Khedr, Ph.D.
Statistics:
Dr. Emad El Din Samala, M.D.
Research Designer:
Prof. Dr. Maher Y. Estefan, M.D., MRCP
Study Progress Monitor: The Egyptian and Foreign Committees
Patronage: Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population
The study was well under way as regard the selection of participating patients and the readying of NRC personnel and laboratory facilities where the study was to take place. In 2002, however, through various actions -- and for reasons that can, as of now, only be speculated -- the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) stopped this study. As a result, millions of patients lost a unique opportunity for better health care.
Furthermore, the fruits of this research would have extrapolated far beyond the treatment of hepatitis C. Immune function enhancement is a bonus for a host of diseases. In addition, it appears that those viruses that are lipid-enveloped have increased vulnerability to ozone exposure. Ozone-based therapeutics, administered via innovative technologies, could thus well complement current treatment options for viruses such as hepatitis B, HIV, and influenza, among others.
Promising future directions for ozone-based therapeutics also includes external ozone applications for the enhanced healing of diabetic skin ulcers, all types of poorly healing skin lesions, and war wounds.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Gérard Sunnen, MD
President, OZONICS INTERNATIONAL, LLC
200 East 33 Street, Suite 26J
New York, NY 10016-4831 USA
Tel. 1-212-6790679
Fax 1-212-6798008
Ozonicsint.com
GSunnen@aol.com
November 17, 2007
New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) Stops a World First U.S. - Egyptian Collaborative Study on Hepatitis C and Blood Ozonation
Recently coming to light is the involvement of the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) in stopping a world-first U.S. - Egyptian collaborative study on hepatitis C in Egypt. According to one of its principals, Dr. Gérard Sunnen, the study, bringing together the Egyptian National Research Centre (NRC) and Medizone International, Inc., a US - based company, sought to evaluate new therapeutic options for stimulating natural immune factors in fighting the disease. “Blood ozonation is an innovative technique of interfacing blood with minuscule amounts of ozone/oxygen mixtures that enhance natural cytokine and interferon production for purposes of viral clearing. This process, if successful, could greatly reduce the cost of current treatments for hepatitis C,” states Dr. Sunnen. In 2002, the NYSDOH stopped the study. “It is a sad day for the some estimated 5 million Egyptian patients, and some 170 million patients worldwide,” he added.
Hepatitis C (HCV) is a chronic affliction caused by a lipid-enveloped virus with a high mutation rate. All pathogenic viruses with high mutation rates are major threats to humanity because they are more likely to behave as they never had before. HCV's wide genetic spectrum and mutational thrust are responsible for its expanding prevalence base and its growing worldwide distribution. By some estimates, hepatitis C world prevalence will reach a quarter billion in a few years.
Hepatitis C preferentially invades the liver, but it can also affect other organ systems, including the bone marrow and the kidneys. Progressive liver destruction may lead to cirrhosis and liver cancer. Indeed, after 20 years, about 25% of hepatitis C patients develop cirrhosis, and another 5% liver cancer. Up to 20% of patients, however, conquer the disease, presumably due to the adaptability and creativity of their immune systems.
The hepatitis C virus is spread by body fluid transmission. Like many other viruses, its life cycle shows fluctuations of relative dormancy alternating with viremic episodes when blood is virally flooded. It is estimated that in any one viremic hepatitis C episode, up to 10 billion viral particles may be generated daily. The immune system in hepatitis C is thus perennially challenged.
Clinically, in the first few years, hepatitis C is often manifested by vague symptoms of fatigue, headache, and gastrointestinal malaise. Later on, the extent of organ damage determines the severity of its symptom profile.
Medications for hepatitis C include interferons, which are natural cellular products that activate neutrophils, macrophages, and natural killer (NK) cells, and drugs that inhibit enzymes responsible for viral replication (e.g., ribavirin). Success rate is variable and relapses are common. Frequently, these drug cocktails are poorly tolerated leading to discontinuation.
Blood ozonation may initially sound like a toxic process. It is not. Decades ago, German clinicians thought that ozonation could clear blood of pathogens, much as it does water. They devised methods of interfacing ozone with blood so that its cellular elements (e.g., red and white blood cells, platelets) retained their integrity. Immune models have surpassed this early notion of ozone's direct viral clearance. In the miniscule doses in which ozone is administered to blood, it is now firmly documented that blood ozonation stimulates immune system components to produce natural interferons and cytokines capable of initiating viral kill.
It may appear surprising--or even preposterous--to suggest that our own bodies utilize endogenously-generated reactive oxygen molecules, one of which is ozone, to destroy constantly invading microbes. A greatly underappreciated study from the Scripps Institute in California found that ozone is indeed created by our own white blood cells to function as a natural virucidal agent.
The prevalence of hepatitis C is variable in different regions of the world. In the U.S., about 1% of the population is affected, an estimated 4 million carriers. In Egypt, the prevalence rate is the highest in the world. Fully 20% of the population is or has been afflicted by hepatitis C.
In view of this hepatitis C emergency, the National Research Centre (NRC) in Cairo contacted Medizone International, a leader in ozone-based therapeutics. Egyptian health authorities were interested in new therapeutic approaches for hepatitis C, one being innovative technologies of oxygen/ozone administration.
With great enthusiasm, and hope, an NRC - Medizone investigative study was designed, and officially named "Safety and Efficacy of Ozone in the Treatment of Patients with Chronic Hepatitis C."
The study was to involve 66 patients. The main objectives of the study were to measure and evaluate, among other things, hepatitis C viral load reduction with blood ozonation, liver enzyme recovery, and clinical improvement, as measured by scales of health and well-being
Officially, the investigators for this study were:
Principal Investigator: Professor Dr. M.Y. Estefan, M.D., MRCP
Clinical Team:
Prof. Dr. Mouchira A-Salam, M.D.
Prof. Dr. Said Shalaby, M.D.
Dr. Hala Zaki Raslan, M.D.
Dr. Seif W. Morcos, MRCP
Dr. Ibrahim M. Kamal, M.S.
Dr. Yasser A. El-Houssary, M.S.
Laboratory Team:
Prof. Shadia A. Ragab, M.D.
Prof. Mostafa El-Awadi, Ph.D.
Dr. Azza A. Ali, M.D.
Dr. Hanaa R. Mohamed, M.D.
Chemical Engineering Team:
Prof. Gizeen El-Diwany, Ph.D.
Dr. Maaly Khedr, Ph.D.
Statistics:
Dr. Emad El Din Samala, M.D.
Research Designer:
Prof. Dr. Maher Y. Estefan, M.D., MRCP
Study Progress Monitor: The Egyptian and Foreign Committees
Patronage: Egyptian Ministry of Health and Population
The study was well under way as regard the selection of participating patients and the readying of NRC personnel and laboratory facilities where the study was to take place. In 2002, however, through various actions -- and for reasons that can, as of now, only be speculated -- the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) stopped this study. As a result, millions of patients lost a unique opportunity for better health care.
Furthermore, the fruits of this research would have extrapolated far beyond the treatment of hepatitis C. Immune function enhancement is a bonus for a host of diseases. In addition, it appears that those viruses that are lipid-enveloped have increased vulnerability to ozone exposure. Ozone-based therapeutics, administered via innovative technologies, could thus well complement current treatment options for viruses such as hepatitis B, HIV, and influenza, among others.
Promising future directions for ozone-based therapeutics also includes external ozone applications for the enhanced healing of diabetic skin ulcers, all types of poorly healing skin lesions, and war wounds.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Gérard Sunnen, MD
President, OZONICS INTERNATIONAL, LLC
200 East 33 Street, Suite 26J
New York, NY 10016-4831 USA
Tel. 1-212-6790679
Fax 1-212-6798008
Ozonicsint.com
GSunnen@aol.com
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
ADC Announces National Civil and Human Rights Center in Michigan
ADC Announces First National Civil and Human Rights Center in Michigan
Officials, Community Members and Supporters Gather for Unveiling of ADC’s Future Landmark Civil Rights Center
Approximately 150 guests, including local, national and international officials, gathered on the ADC-owned property on Chase Road in Dearborn on September 12, 2007, to witness the unveiling of what will be the location of the first-ever American-Arab Center for Civil and Human Rights (ACCHR) in the United States- an ADC project.
The press conference, included remarks from ADC Michigan’s special guest Mr. Fahad Mohamad Kafoud, Deputy Chief of Mission of the State of Qatar, along with Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly, Arab American News Publisher Osama Siblani, ADC National President and Former Congresswoman Mary Rose Oakar and ADC Senior National Advisor and Regional Director Imad Hamad. Speakers praised ADC Michigan for it’s commitment to enhancing the lives of Arabs in the United States and across the world and commended them on this initiative that will forever change the political landscape of America.
Additional officials included Wayne County Clerk Cathy Garret, Dearborn Police Chief Michael Celeski, Director of the Governor’s Office Kimberly Trent, Dearborn Heights Councilman Tom Berry, City of Dearborn Councilman George Derani, representatives from the congressional offices of John Conyers, John Dingell and Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, and representatives from the offices of US Senators Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow, along with numerous congressional liaisons and community leaders. In addition, a number of media outlets were also present to document this momentous occasion.
Mr. Kafoud was presented with a special acknowledgement from Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly and Congressman John Dingell, for Qatar’s efforts to enhance the lives and protect the civil liberties of Arab Americans in Michigan. ADC is expecting to break ground on the Center in the next couple months. For more information on this event and the ACCHR, please read the Detroit Free Press feature at: www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article.
end
Officials, Community Members and Supporters Gather for Unveiling of ADC’s Future Landmark Civil Rights Center
Approximately 150 guests, including local, national and international officials, gathered on the ADC-owned property on Chase Road in Dearborn on September 12, 2007, to witness the unveiling of what will be the location of the first-ever American-Arab Center for Civil and Human Rights (ACCHR) in the United States- an ADC project.
The press conference, included remarks from ADC Michigan’s special guest Mr. Fahad Mohamad Kafoud, Deputy Chief of Mission of the State of Qatar, along with Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly, Arab American News Publisher Osama Siblani, ADC National President and Former Congresswoman Mary Rose Oakar and ADC Senior National Advisor and Regional Director Imad Hamad. Speakers praised ADC Michigan for it’s commitment to enhancing the lives of Arabs in the United States and across the world and commended them on this initiative that will forever change the political landscape of America.
Additional officials included Wayne County Clerk Cathy Garret, Dearborn Police Chief Michael Celeski, Director of the Governor’s Office Kimberly Trent, Dearborn Heights Councilman Tom Berry, City of Dearborn Councilman George Derani, representatives from the congressional offices of John Conyers, John Dingell and Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, and representatives from the offices of US Senators Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow, along with numerous congressional liaisons and community leaders. In addition, a number of media outlets were also present to document this momentous occasion.
Mr. Kafoud was presented with a special acknowledgement from Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano, Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly and Congressman John Dingell, for Qatar’s efforts to enhance the lives and protect the civil liberties of Arab Americans in Michigan. ADC is expecting to break ground on the Center in the next couple months. For more information on this event and the ACCHR, please read the Detroit Free Press feature at: www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article.
end
Thursday, November 01, 2007
Society of Professional Journalists National Arab American Journalists Association join forces
Wednesday, Oct. 31, 2007
Contact:
Clint Brewer, President. (615) 301-9229, cbrewer@spj.org
Beth King, Communications Manager, (317) 927-8000, ext. 211, bking@spj.org
For Immediate Release:
Society of Professional Journalists,
National Arab American Journalists Association join forces
INDIANAPOLIS – One of the nation’s oldest journalism-advocacy organizations and the country’s largest professional association for Arab-American journalists have joined to form a special membership group within the Society of Professional Journalists.
By providing tips, resources, training, mentoring and related discussion, SPJ and the National Arab American Journalists Association (NAAJA) will work together to develop a dialogue that is sure to encourage newsroom diversity, crossover memberships and a greater understanding of cultures within the profession.
“This is the first step in a renewed effort by SPJ to reach out to all journalists across different cultures and media,” SPJ National President Clint Brewer said. “SPJ wants to foster and atmosphere in the organization where all journalists are welcomed and find value in being a member.”
The concept of membership sections was introduced in 2006 by the Society’s national Board of Directors as a way of furthering member benefits in SPJ. With these special sections, members would be able to connect and interact regularly at professional levels, regardless of the medium in which they work. In early 2007, Ray Hanania, president of NAAJA, submitted a proposal for consideration to form the first membership section with the Society that would attract Arab Americans who work in journalism or who are journalism students. In May, the board voted to create the Arab American membership section within the Society. The blog "Al-Sahafiyeen," meaning “the journalists” was launched Oct. 15 on SPJ.org.
“Our goal in pursuing this is to provide a professional resource where Arab Americans can find guidance as they pursue careers in journalism,” Hanania said. “And when it comes to professional journalism, no other organization offers more resources and support than the SPJ. We also hope the new SPJ-Arab Journalism Section will serve as a resource for all journalists on issues related to Arab Americans and the Middle East.”
Membership into the Arab-American section is open to any SPJ member who pays an additional $10 per year to their national dues. The money raised will go toward grants for programs related to Arab-American journalism issues.
The NAAJA was launched in 1999 to help professional Arab-Americans journalists network. It has hosted four journalism conferences and has more than 150 members nationally.
Founded in 1909 as Sigma Delta Chi, the Society of Professional Journalists promotes the free flow of information vital to a well-informed citizenry; works to inspire and educate the next generation of journalists; and protects First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and press. For further information about SPJ, please visit www.spj.org .
end
Contact:
Clint Brewer, President. (615) 301-9229, cbrewer@spj.org
Beth King, Communications Manager, (317) 927-8000, ext. 211, bking@spj.org
For Immediate Release:
Society of Professional Journalists,
National Arab American Journalists Association join forces
INDIANAPOLIS – One of the nation’s oldest journalism-advocacy organizations and the country’s largest professional association for Arab-American journalists have joined to form a special membership group within the Society of Professional Journalists.
By providing tips, resources, training, mentoring and related discussion, SPJ and the National Arab American Journalists Association (NAAJA) will work together to develop a dialogue that is sure to encourage newsroom diversity, crossover memberships and a greater understanding of cultures within the profession.
“This is the first step in a renewed effort by SPJ to reach out to all journalists across different cultures and media,” SPJ National President Clint Brewer said. “SPJ wants to foster and atmosphere in the organization where all journalists are welcomed and find value in being a member.”
The concept of membership sections was introduced in 2006 by the Society’s national Board of Directors as a way of furthering member benefits in SPJ. With these special sections, members would be able to connect and interact regularly at professional levels, regardless of the medium in which they work. In early 2007, Ray Hanania, president of NAAJA, submitted a proposal for consideration to form the first membership section with the Society that would attract Arab Americans who work in journalism or who are journalism students. In May, the board voted to create the Arab American membership section within the Society. The blog "Al-Sahafiyeen," meaning “the journalists” was launched Oct. 15 on SPJ.org.
“Our goal in pursuing this is to provide a professional resource where Arab Americans can find guidance as they pursue careers in journalism,” Hanania said. “And when it comes to professional journalism, no other organization offers more resources and support than the SPJ. We also hope the new SPJ-Arab Journalism Section will serve as a resource for all journalists on issues related to Arab Americans and the Middle East.”
Membership into the Arab-American section is open to any SPJ member who pays an additional $10 per year to their national dues. The money raised will go toward grants for programs related to Arab-American journalism issues.
The NAAJA was launched in 1999 to help professional Arab-Americans journalists network. It has hosted four journalism conferences and has more than 150 members nationally.
Founded in 1909 as Sigma Delta Chi, the Society of Professional Journalists promotes the free flow of information vital to a well-informed citizenry; works to inspire and educate the next generation of journalists; and protects First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and press. For further information about SPJ, please visit www.spj.org .
end
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Arab American National Museum and ACCESS win $150,000 McGregor Award
NEWS
Contact:
Kim Silarski
313-624-0206
ksilarski@accesscommunity.org
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MCGREGOR AWARDS $150,000 TO ACCESS AND AANM
Dearborn, MI (October 25, 2007) – The Arab Center for Economic and Social Services (ACCESS) has accepted a $150,000 grant from the McGregor Fund, a Detroit-based philanthropic organization. The money is designated for implementation of a comprehensive community relations and marketing campaign for the Arab American National Museum (AANM), a project of ACCESS.
“These funds represent vital resources to spread the word about the existence of the Arab American National Museum, which has been open for less than three years,” says Museum Director Dr. Anan Ameri. “As a new institution with a national focus, we hope to reach all Americans with our messages – that Arab Americans have long been part of the fabric of this country, making significant contributions; and that the Arab American experience is the same as the experience of all the various ethnic groups who immigrated to the U.S. in search of a better life.”
The McGregor Fund is a private foundation established in 1925 by gifts from Katherine and Tracy McGregor “to relieve the misfortunes and promote the well-being of mankind.” The foundation awards grants to organizations in the following areas: human services, education, health care, arts and culture, and public benefit. The area of principal interest of the foundation is the city of Detroit and Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties. The McGregor Fund has granted nearly $180 million since its founding and had assets of $197 million as of June 30, 2007. Visit www.mcgregorfund.org for additional information.
The Arab American National Museum documents, preserves, celebrates, and educates the public on the history, life, culture, and contributions of Arab Americans. We serve as a resource to enhance knowledge and understanding about Arab Americans and their presence in this country. The Arab American National Museum is a project of ACCESS, a Dearborn, Michigan-based nonprofit human services and cultural organization. Learn more at www.arabamericanmuseum.org and www.accesscommunity.org.
The Museum is located at 13624 Michigan Avenue, Dearborn, MI, 48126. Museum hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Wednesday, Friday and Saturday; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Thursday; noon-5 p.m. Sunday. Closed Monday, Tuesday; Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day. Admission is $6 for adults; $3 for students, seniors and children 6-12; ages 5 and under, free. Call 313-582-2266 for further information.
###
Contact:
Kim Silarski
313-624-0206
ksilarski@accesscommunity.org
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MCGREGOR AWARDS $150,000 TO ACCESS AND AANM
Dearborn, MI (October 25, 2007) – The Arab Center for Economic and Social Services (ACCESS) has accepted a $150,000 grant from the McGregor Fund, a Detroit-based philanthropic organization. The money is designated for implementation of a comprehensive community relations and marketing campaign for the Arab American National Museum (AANM), a project of ACCESS.
“These funds represent vital resources to spread the word about the existence of the Arab American National Museum, which has been open for less than three years,” says Museum Director Dr. Anan Ameri. “As a new institution with a national focus, we hope to reach all Americans with our messages – that Arab Americans have long been part of the fabric of this country, making significant contributions; and that the Arab American experience is the same as the experience of all the various ethnic groups who immigrated to the U.S. in search of a better life.”
The McGregor Fund is a private foundation established in 1925 by gifts from Katherine and Tracy McGregor “to relieve the misfortunes and promote the well-being of mankind.” The foundation awards grants to organizations in the following areas: human services, education, health care, arts and culture, and public benefit. The area of principal interest of the foundation is the city of Detroit and Macomb, Oakland and Wayne counties. The McGregor Fund has granted nearly $180 million since its founding and had assets of $197 million as of June 30, 2007. Visit www.mcgregorfund.org for additional information.
The Arab American National Museum documents, preserves, celebrates, and educates the public on the history, life, culture, and contributions of Arab Americans. We serve as a resource to enhance knowledge and understanding about Arab Americans and their presence in this country. The Arab American National Museum is a project of ACCESS, a Dearborn, Michigan-based nonprofit human services and cultural organization. Learn more at www.arabamericanmuseum.org and www.accesscommunity.org.
The Museum is located at 13624 Michigan Avenue, Dearborn, MI, 48126. Museum hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Wednesday, Friday and Saturday; 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Thursday; noon-5 p.m. Sunday. Closed Monday, Tuesday; Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Day. Admission is $6 for adults; $3 for students, seniors and children 6-12; ages 5 and under, free. Call 313-582-2266 for further information.
###
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Arab-Muslim American Journalism adds new voice to mainstream American media
Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Ahmed Soliman
Oct. 24, 2007 732-715-9775
New Voice Emerges in American Media
Arab & Muslim-American Journalists Offer Essential Perspective
(Maple Shade, NJ, Oct. 21st, 2007) — Arab and Muslim-American journalist Ahmed Soliman believes his new book, “Born in the USA: Reflections of an Arab and Muslim-American Journalist,” will give mainstream Americans a fresh perspective into the Islamic and Arab Worlds that is unique and rare.
Soliman argues that despite the events of Sept. 11th, 2001, Americans still do not understand the Arab and Muslim Worlds. By sharing his many interviews with Arab and Muslim leaders in the post-Sept. 11th World he believes he can not only change that but also improve the American journalism profession.
“There have been many post 9/11 books written with the Muslim-American perspective and some written by journalists who have covered such stories as the war on terror, domestic surveillance and the conflict between Israel and Palestinians,” explains Soliman who has been a journalist for more than seven years.
“But I think I bring a special knowledge as a professional journalist who has covered international issues for the past two years and who is both Arab and Muslim. I believe I bring a fresh and more objective perspective to the international discussion on these and other important issues. It’s a freshness that contrasts the sometimes cynical views often reflected in the writings of longtime, veteran journalists, many of whom are neither Arab nor Muslim and who have witnessed the often tragic events of the Middle East repeat themselves over and over again.”
The book features many voices and opinions not often heard, based on firsthand interviews Soliman conducted as a reporter for broadcast and print Arab, Muslim and mainstream American newspapers.
“It's not often that Americans really get to hear the perspective of the Pakistani foreign minister on such issues as the war on terror, and whether or not the US government is correct in saying that they're not doing enough. Understanding the people on the other side of the ocean is crucial to resolving our contemporary challenges,” he says.
And, Soliman believes the book might help initiate “a broader discussion about the role of our own American media, whether that is opening some eyes among editors and news directors about the importance of integrating more diverse voices in their newsrooms, specifically regarding Arab American journalists, or also aspiring Arab American journalists who could benefit from the experiences I share in the book.”
Like many Arab and Muslim Americans, Soliman had planned on entering a professional career in medicine or engineering. But it was when he wrote an essay that received immediate notice and was recognized with a prestigious journalism award that he decided to pursue journalism, instead.
“Prior to the 9/11 attack, the vast majority of Muslim-Americans entered the engineering and medical fields, the result of the influence they received from their immigrant parents,” explains Soliman, who worked for two years as senior anchor and producer for the nationally televised Daily World news on Bridges TV.
“The result was that Muslim-Americans, now numbering over 7 million according to the Zogby poll, never had much influence on public opinion or policy. Now, after the 9/11 attack, the few of us who did enter the journalism field are trying to keep the dialogue and coverage in the media more balanced and insightful.”
Soliman’s story is a poignant, eye-opening portrayal of the challenges facing media coverage of the Arab and Muslims, and on international issues including the war on terror, and racism.
“No reasonably minded person would disagree with anything [Soliman] has said in this book,” said Ambassador Richard Parker, former U.S. representative in the Middle East.
Prior to working at Bridges TV, Soliman produced and directed a post-911 documentary for a PBS affiliate titled Born in the USA: Muslim Americans. The film followed a Muslim American doctor and teacher in the months following the September 11th Attack, and received positive reviews and press from WCBS – TV in New York, The Star Ledger Newspaper in New Jersey, and The Home News Tribune. Soliman started his career as the Managing Editor of the Gazette-Leader, a weekly newspaper for the towns of Elizabeth and Hillside in New Jersey, where he covered crime, education, and government related stories. He also interned for WNBC-TV in New York.
“It’s not always easy being an Arab and Muslim-American journalist. A lot of people in our profession throw obstacles in our way,” Soliman argues.
“But I believe that when your argument is for more objective and balanced coverage, by way of including more diverse voices in the perspectives offered in the media, eventually people will realize that it can only be a good thing. Writing Born in the USA was just the next domino in the set that will be falling on this issue.”
Soliman is a columnist with the Arab Writers Syndicate (www.ArabWritersGroup.com) and a member of the Steering Committee of the Society of Professional Journalists-Arab American Journalists group. He is also a member of the Arab professional journalism associations NAAJA (www.NAAJA-US.com) and AMEJA.
The book is available from most major bookstores, and online from Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com. It is published by iUniverse Inc., in New York.
ET
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Ahmed Soliman
Oct. 24, 2007 732-715-9775
New Voice Emerges in American Media
Arab & Muslim-American Journalists Offer Essential Perspective
(Maple Shade, NJ, Oct. 21st, 2007) — Arab and Muslim-American journalist Ahmed Soliman believes his new book, “Born in the USA: Reflections of an Arab and Muslim-American Journalist,” will give mainstream Americans a fresh perspective into the Islamic and Arab Worlds that is unique and rare.
Soliman argues that despite the events of Sept. 11th, 2001, Americans still do not understand the Arab and Muslim Worlds. By sharing his many interviews with Arab and Muslim leaders in the post-Sept. 11th World he believes he can not only change that but also improve the American journalism profession.
“There have been many post 9/11 books written with the Muslim-American perspective and some written by journalists who have covered such stories as the war on terror, domestic surveillance and the conflict between Israel and Palestinians,” explains Soliman who has been a journalist for more than seven years.
“But I think I bring a special knowledge as a professional journalist who has covered international issues for the past two years and who is both Arab and Muslim. I believe I bring a fresh and more objective perspective to the international discussion on these and other important issues. It’s a freshness that contrasts the sometimes cynical views often reflected in the writings of longtime, veteran journalists, many of whom are neither Arab nor Muslim and who have witnessed the often tragic events of the Middle East repeat themselves over and over again.”
The book features many voices and opinions not often heard, based on firsthand interviews Soliman conducted as a reporter for broadcast and print Arab, Muslim and mainstream American newspapers.
“It's not often that Americans really get to hear the perspective of the Pakistani foreign minister on such issues as the war on terror, and whether or not the US government is correct in saying that they're not doing enough. Understanding the people on the other side of the ocean is crucial to resolving our contemporary challenges,” he says.
And, Soliman believes the book might help initiate “a broader discussion about the role of our own American media, whether that is opening some eyes among editors and news directors about the importance of integrating more diverse voices in their newsrooms, specifically regarding Arab American journalists, or also aspiring Arab American journalists who could benefit from the experiences I share in the book.”
Like many Arab and Muslim Americans, Soliman had planned on entering a professional career in medicine or engineering. But it was when he wrote an essay that received immediate notice and was recognized with a prestigious journalism award that he decided to pursue journalism, instead.
“Prior to the 9/11 attack, the vast majority of Muslim-Americans entered the engineering and medical fields, the result of the influence they received from their immigrant parents,” explains Soliman, who worked for two years as senior anchor and producer for the nationally televised Daily World news on Bridges TV.
“The result was that Muslim-Americans, now numbering over 7 million according to the Zogby poll, never had much influence on public opinion or policy. Now, after the 9/11 attack, the few of us who did enter the journalism field are trying to keep the dialogue and coverage in the media more balanced and insightful.”
Soliman’s story is a poignant, eye-opening portrayal of the challenges facing media coverage of the Arab and Muslims, and on international issues including the war on terror, and racism.
“No reasonably minded person would disagree with anything [Soliman] has said in this book,” said Ambassador Richard Parker, former U.S. representative in the Middle East.
Prior to working at Bridges TV, Soliman produced and directed a post-911 documentary for a PBS affiliate titled Born in the USA: Muslim Americans. The film followed a Muslim American doctor and teacher in the months following the September 11th Attack, and received positive reviews and press from WCBS – TV in New York, The Star Ledger Newspaper in New Jersey, and The Home News Tribune. Soliman started his career as the Managing Editor of the Gazette-Leader, a weekly newspaper for the towns of Elizabeth and Hillside in New Jersey, where he covered crime, education, and government related stories. He also interned for WNBC-TV in New York.
“It’s not always easy being an Arab and Muslim-American journalist. A lot of people in our profession throw obstacles in our way,” Soliman argues.
“But I believe that when your argument is for more objective and balanced coverage, by way of including more diverse voices in the perspectives offered in the media, eventually people will realize that it can only be a good thing. Writing Born in the USA was just the next domino in the set that will be falling on this issue.”
Soliman is a columnist with the Arab Writers Syndicate (www.ArabWritersGroup.com) and a member of the Steering Committee of the Society of Professional Journalists-Arab American Journalists group. He is also a member of the Arab professional journalism associations NAAJA (www.NAAJA-US.com) and AMEJA.
The book is available from most major bookstores, and online from Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com. It is published by iUniverse Inc., in New York.
ET
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Statement issued by Debbie Almontaser in New York Arabic School controversy
This was released this week and published by several media including the New York Times:
Statement from Debbie Almontaser:
Good evening. My name is Debbie Almontaser. I am the founding principal of the Khalil Gibran International Academy, which is known as KGIA. Over a two-year period beginning in 2005, I devoted my life to establishing a school that reflected not only my vision, but the ideas of a design team that included other educators, prospective parents, community members, and the Arab American Family Support Center.
In early August of this year, under pressure from The New York Post, The New York Sun, and right-wing bloggers, representatives of the mayor, the chancellor, and New Visions demanded that I resign as KGIA’s principal. They threatened to close down KGIA if I refused. The next day, I submitted my letter of resignation. Because I believe that I am the person to carry forward the mission of KGIA, I have today submitted my application to become the principal of KGIA. I have also asked my lawyer to begin preparing a lawsuit against the D.O.E. for violation of my constitutional rights.
When I first discussed with New Visions for Public Schools the creation of an Arabic dual-language public school in New York City, controversy was far from my mind. I was thrilled to create a unique school that would provide a rigorous regents-based curriculum with Arabic language and cultural studies, and that would equip students for work in such areas as international affairs diplomacy and cross-cultural understanding. As with the more than 60 other dual language programs in the city, KGIA was created to foster multilingual and multicultural education. It was also joining many New York City public schools that use theme-based approaches to inform and enrich curriculum across subject areas. As an Arab-American Muslim, born in Yemen and raised in the U.S., establishing KGIA was my American dream. It turned into an American nightmare.
On Feb. 12, 2007, the Department of Education announced the establishment of KGIA. In the days following, right-wing blogs began spinning KGIA as an Islamist school with a radical extremist jihad principal. And local New York City papers fanned the flames with headlines like: “Holy war! Slope Parents Protest Arabic School Plan,” “A Madrassa Grows in Brooklyn,” and “Arabic School Idea Is a Monstrosity.” From the day the school was approved to the day I was forced to resign, The New York Sun plastered my picture on its website with a link to negative articles about KGIA.
Leading the attack was the “Stop the Madrassa Coalition” run by Daniel Pipes, who has made his career fostering hatred of Arabs and Muslims. The coalition conducted a smear campaign against me and the school that was ferocious. Members of the coalition stalked me wherever I went and verbally assaulted me with vicious anti-Arab and anti-Muslim comments. They suggested that, as an observant Muslim, I was disqualified from leading KGIA, even though the school is rigorously secular, and its namesake, Khalil Gibran, was a Lebanese Christian. To stir up anti-Arab prejudice, they constantly referred to me by my Arabic name, a name that I do not use professionally. They even created and circulated a YouTube clip depicting me as a radical Islamist.
Then in early August, The New York Post and the Stop the Madrassa Coalition tried to connect me to T-shirts made by a youth organization called Arab Women in the Arts and Media. The T-shirts said, “Intifada NYC.” Post reporters aggressively sought my comment. Because the T-shirts had nothing to do with me or KGIA, I saw no reason to discuss the issue with the media. I agreed to an interview with a reporter from The Post at the D.O.E.’s insistence. During the interview, the reporter asked about the Arabic origin of the word “intifada.” I told him that the root word from which the word intifada originates means “shake off” and that the word intifada has different meanings for different people, but certainly for many, given its association with the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, it implied violence. I reiterated that I would never affiliate myself with an individual or organization that would condone violence in any shape, way, or form. In response to a further question, I expressed the belief that the teenage girls of AWAAM did not mean to promote a “Gaza-style uprising” in New York City.
Although The Post story distorted my words, it accurately reflected my view that I do not condone violence. That should have been the end of the matter. D.O.E. officials should simply have said that it was clear that neither I nor KGIA had any connection to the T-shirts. They should have pointed out that I had devoted my entire adult life to the peaceful resolution of conflict and to building bridges between ethnic and religious communities. In other words, they should have said that the attacks upon me were utterly baseless. Instead, they forced me to issue an apology for what I said. And when the storm of hate continued, they forced me to resign.
In closing, permit me to explain why I am speaking out at this time. While I have been the victim of a serious injustice, the far larger offense has been to the Arab and Muslim communities of New York City. In the years since 9/11, our communities have been the object of the most vile and hateful attacks. The attacks on me are part of a larger campaign to intimidate and silence marginalized communities. Among other strategies, the right-wing is trying to get people from other communities to view Arabs and Muslims as threats to their safety and security. As a result, well-meaning people sometimes act out of fear—not just a knee-jerk anti-Arab, anti-Muslim response, but the fear that, if they do not succumb to right-wing pressure, they too will become targets.
Those seeking to harm our communities would like nothing more than for me to remain silent in response to their hate. For the sake of the Arab and Muslim communities and for all marginalized communities, for the sake of the families of KGIA, and for the sake of all of us committed to creating a society that we can be proud to leave to future generations, I stand here today to say that they will not prevail. I will continue to stand against division, intimidation and hatred; I will stand for a society based on mutual respect and understanding and dignity for all our communities. These are values to which I have devoted my entire adult life and career.
I am applying to be the principal of KGIA because, as its founding principal and the person who envisioned the school, I believe I am the person most qualified to be its educational leader. Throughout the planning process, I worked with a wonderful and devoted design team comprised of educators, parents, students, and community members. I would like to continue that work and to build KGIA into a model dual language school that, to quote KGIA’s mission statement, “helps students of all backgrounds learn about the world” and fosters in them “an understanding of different cultures, a love of learning, and desire for excellence in all of its students.”
END
Statement from Debbie Almontaser:
Good evening. My name is Debbie Almontaser. I am the founding principal of the Khalil Gibran International Academy, which is known as KGIA. Over a two-year period beginning in 2005, I devoted my life to establishing a school that reflected not only my vision, but the ideas of a design team that included other educators, prospective parents, community members, and the Arab American Family Support Center.
In early August of this year, under pressure from The New York Post, The New York Sun, and right-wing bloggers, representatives of the mayor, the chancellor, and New Visions demanded that I resign as KGIA’s principal. They threatened to close down KGIA if I refused. The next day, I submitted my letter of resignation. Because I believe that I am the person to carry forward the mission of KGIA, I have today submitted my application to become the principal of KGIA. I have also asked my lawyer to begin preparing a lawsuit against the D.O.E. for violation of my constitutional rights.
When I first discussed with New Visions for Public Schools the creation of an Arabic dual-language public school in New York City, controversy was far from my mind. I was thrilled to create a unique school that would provide a rigorous regents-based curriculum with Arabic language and cultural studies, and that would equip students for work in such areas as international affairs diplomacy and cross-cultural understanding. As with the more than 60 other dual language programs in the city, KGIA was created to foster multilingual and multicultural education. It was also joining many New York City public schools that use theme-based approaches to inform and enrich curriculum across subject areas. As an Arab-American Muslim, born in Yemen and raised in the U.S., establishing KGIA was my American dream. It turned into an American nightmare.
On Feb. 12, 2007, the Department of Education announced the establishment of KGIA. In the days following, right-wing blogs began spinning KGIA as an Islamist school with a radical extremist jihad principal. And local New York City papers fanned the flames with headlines like: “Holy war! Slope Parents Protest Arabic School Plan,” “A Madrassa Grows in Brooklyn,” and “Arabic School Idea Is a Monstrosity.” From the day the school was approved to the day I was forced to resign, The New York Sun plastered my picture on its website with a link to negative articles about KGIA.
Leading the attack was the “Stop the Madrassa Coalition” run by Daniel Pipes, who has made his career fostering hatred of Arabs and Muslims. The coalition conducted a smear campaign against me and the school that was ferocious. Members of the coalition stalked me wherever I went and verbally assaulted me with vicious anti-Arab and anti-Muslim comments. They suggested that, as an observant Muslim, I was disqualified from leading KGIA, even though the school is rigorously secular, and its namesake, Khalil Gibran, was a Lebanese Christian. To stir up anti-Arab prejudice, they constantly referred to me by my Arabic name, a name that I do not use professionally. They even created and circulated a YouTube clip depicting me as a radical Islamist.
Then in early August, The New York Post and the Stop the Madrassa Coalition tried to connect me to T-shirts made by a youth organization called Arab Women in the Arts and Media. The T-shirts said, “Intifada NYC.” Post reporters aggressively sought my comment. Because the T-shirts had nothing to do with me or KGIA, I saw no reason to discuss the issue with the media. I agreed to an interview with a reporter from The Post at the D.O.E.’s insistence. During the interview, the reporter asked about the Arabic origin of the word “intifada.” I told him that the root word from which the word intifada originates means “shake off” and that the word intifada has different meanings for different people, but certainly for many, given its association with the Palestinian/Israeli conflict, it implied violence. I reiterated that I would never affiliate myself with an individual or organization that would condone violence in any shape, way, or form. In response to a further question, I expressed the belief that the teenage girls of AWAAM did not mean to promote a “Gaza-style uprising” in New York City.
Although The Post story distorted my words, it accurately reflected my view that I do not condone violence. That should have been the end of the matter. D.O.E. officials should simply have said that it was clear that neither I nor KGIA had any connection to the T-shirts. They should have pointed out that I had devoted my entire adult life to the peaceful resolution of conflict and to building bridges between ethnic and religious communities. In other words, they should have said that the attacks upon me were utterly baseless. Instead, they forced me to issue an apology for what I said. And when the storm of hate continued, they forced me to resign.
In closing, permit me to explain why I am speaking out at this time. While I have been the victim of a serious injustice, the far larger offense has been to the Arab and Muslim communities of New York City. In the years since 9/11, our communities have been the object of the most vile and hateful attacks. The attacks on me are part of a larger campaign to intimidate and silence marginalized communities. Among other strategies, the right-wing is trying to get people from other communities to view Arabs and Muslims as threats to their safety and security. As a result, well-meaning people sometimes act out of fear—not just a knee-jerk anti-Arab, anti-Muslim response, but the fear that, if they do not succumb to right-wing pressure, they too will become targets.
Those seeking to harm our communities would like nothing more than for me to remain silent in response to their hate. For the sake of the Arab and Muslim communities and for all marginalized communities, for the sake of the families of KGIA, and for the sake of all of us committed to creating a society that we can be proud to leave to future generations, I stand here today to say that they will not prevail. I will continue to stand against division, intimidation and hatred; I will stand for a society based on mutual respect and understanding and dignity for all our communities. These are values to which I have devoted my entire adult life and career.
I am applying to be the principal of KGIA because, as its founding principal and the person who envisioned the school, I believe I am the person most qualified to be its educational leader. Throughout the planning process, I worked with a wonderful and devoted design team comprised of educators, parents, students, and community members. I would like to continue that work and to build KGIA into a model dual language school that, to quote KGIA’s mission statement, “helps students of all backgrounds learn about the world” and fosters in them “an understanding of different cultures, a love of learning, and desire for excellence in all of its students.”
END
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