International Press Club of Chicago

DATE:  Monday, January 29, 2018  

WHERE / WHEN:   George B. SWIFT School Auditorium located at 5900 N. Winthrop Ave., Chicago, IL 60660 at 5:30-7:30 p.m.

GUEST SPEAKERS/PROGRAM:  Tears Have No Color: A Conversation About Syrian Refugees. Karen Koning AbuZayd, Consul General of Turkey Hon. Umut Acar, Consul General of Lebanon Hon. Bilal Kabalan, Jordan’s Honorary Consul Ihssan Sweiss, and Dr. Zaher Sahloul.

 

International Press Club of Chicago in partnership with the International Women Associates (IWA) and MedGlobal presented the opportunity to hear the status of this ongoing human tragedy. Since 2011, when the war in Syria began, over 5.4 million people have fled Syria, seeking safety in Lebanon, Turkey, Jordan and beyond.

 

This event gave IPCC and IWA members rare opportunity to join the conversation, help raise awareness, and be part of the solution.  Leading the conversation was Karen Koning AbuZayd, the former UN Commissioner-General of United Nations Relief and Works and currently serves Commissioner for the Independent Commission of Inquiry on Syria at the UN Human Rights Council.

 

The event was completed with a private screening of "The Two Million", the award-winning 15-minute documentary directed by Chicago-based writer/director and IWA member Derin Baratka highlighting the challenges and difficulties facing refugee families in Turkey, will also be shown at the end of the program.