Beyond the U.N. inspectors, economic sanctions and weapons of mass destruction, three recent visitors painted a different picture of Iraq on Sunday afternoon — one of Citizens going about their lives in fear of an imminent attack from the U.S. military.
About 100 people gathered at the Pope John XXIII School, 1120 Washington St., to listen to the presentation by Gabe Huck, Theresa Kubasak and Bitta Mostofi, who returned from Iraq last month. They talked about their experiences in Iraq through participation with Voices in the Wilderness, a Chicago-based organization that seeks to end economic sanctions against the embattled country.
“I like to start with a map,” Huck said before going into the history of the Iraq region. “You all became familiar with this country sometime in junior high and called it the cradle of civilization.”
Kubasak, a professor at National Louis University and a third-grade teacher, performed a song she composed on guitar that began with images of a region rich in history where “three religions live in harmony” — but she soon turned to images of a “land of depleted uranium” and of “endless sanctions.”
Evanston resident Drew Tessler said those who only know the region from a map need to put the possibility of war into perspective.
“This gives us the idea of who is really hurt by the bombs, and that is everyday people,” Tessler said. “And that’s what is so horrendous about it.”
The rest of the 90-minute presentation mainly consisted of personal stories the trio collected during its weeks in Iraq.
Although Huck and Kubasak, a married couple from Evanston, both had traveled to Iraq four times before, this was Mostofi’s first trip.
Mostofi holds dual citizenship in the United States and Iran. She has visited family several times in Iran, which was involved in an eight-year war with Iraq during the 1980s.
“I was a bit nervous as to how I would be perceived,” Mostofi said. “Everything I had heard was about the kindness of the Iraqi people.”
All three stressed the value of what Mostofi referred to as “the magic sheet” — a piece of paper that outlined in English and Arabic the mission of Voices in the Wilderness to end the sanctions.
In addition to hearing the three speakers, photographs, postcards and books about Iraq were laid on tables nearby, as well as anti-war signs, buttons and videos that were being sold.
Pope John XXIII student Marina Porter, 7, carried two buttons that read “No War” and a sign that said: “No to war. It’s time for peace.”
“A lot of my friends have the buttons,” Porter said. When asked about the prospect of a war in Iraq she said, “I don’t like it.”
Audience member Hassan Farag, an Iranian visiting friends in the United States, said his experiences in the Iran-Iraq war have led him to believe that non-violent means should be used in cases of conflict.
“We are all for peace,” Farag said. “We believe that the regime of Saddam (Hussein) should be removed through the U.N. and through diplomatic means.”
