Films featuring Afghanistan and Afghan migrants include:

Dead End: Afghan Migrants
16 min (Afghanistan/Greece)

Kites
80 min (Afghanistan/Poland)

War and Love in Kabul
86 min (Afghanistan)

Founded in 1998 by Jasmina Bojic, film critic and educator, UNAFF is an international documentary film festival originally established as a collaborative project between the UNA Midpeninsula Chapter, a grassroots, community-based, nonprofit organization and the Stanford Film Society in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

UNAFF celebrates the power of films dealing with human rights, environmental themes, women’s issues, population, homelessness, racism, children, health, famine, universal education, war and peace. In the past thirteen years, UNAFF has attracted a broad audience from the San Francisco Bay Area with regards to ethnicity—many finding the screenings to be a rare chance to see the state of human rights and culture in their own native countries.

Extending its role as a bridge between Stanford University and its community, UNAFF will have again the Opening Night at the historic Aquarius Theatre in downtown Palo Alto. With the support of the City of Palo Alto, UNAFF will be held for four days in Palo Alto, including one day in East Palo Alto, one day in San Francisco in addition to its four days of Stanford screenings. Also, by bringing a very popular programs “UNAFF and Kids” and “UNAFF in Schools” and six panel discussions, we hope to broaden our audience and initiate a meaningful community dialogue, during which renowned experts will elucidate topics such as climate change and population, Immigration and children, renewable energy and the impact of oil, science and nutrition and how local communities can join up with global medical expertise to battle AIDS.

Title: Community Speak Out Meeting: Social and Mental Health Care Needs in the Afghan Community

Session 1:
Recognition of Fazl Ghani Mogaddedi, Author

Session 2:
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Khalili Rahmany, Clincial Pscychologist, President, APAA
“Mental Health Concerns within the Afghan Community”

Additional Presenters:
Dr. Ray Grimm, Human Services Department, City of Fremont
Ihande Weber, LCSW, Mobile Mental Health, City of Fremont
Additional respected members of the community

Where:
Centerville Community Center
3355 Country Drive
Fremont, CA

When:
August 7, 2010
Program begins: 4:00 PM
Dinner: 8:00 PM
Event concludes: 10:00 PM

Please RSVP by calling Dr. Ahmad Zamani at 510-677-6402

This event is made possible by Afghan Care, The Afghan Coalition, Union Bank, N.A., The California Endowment and MHSA Alameda County.

In the East Bay, Refugee Transitions and other local community organizations will host a World Refugee Day Picnic at noon today, June 18.

What: World Refugee Day Picnic
When: Noon to 3 p.m. Friday, June 18
Where: San Antonio Park, Foothill Boulevard at 16th Avenue, Oakland.

Strengthen the Family, Strengthen the Ummah
Saturday, May 1st, 2010 at 6:00 p.m.
http://www.asknisa.org/events.html (Event Tickets)
MCA Banquet Hall 3003 Scott Blvd. Santa Clara, CA 95054
$20 online / $30 at the door | Baby sitting $5 per child / $10 per family
http://asknisa.org/2010-AnnualEventPostcard.pdf (Event Flyer – PDF)

SPEAKERS
- Sheikh Alaeddin El-Bakri Notable Scholar
- Imam Tahir Anwar Scholar and Resident Imam at SBIA
- Dr. Mohamad Rajabally President of NISA
http://www.asknisa.org | 1-888-ask-nisa (275-6472)

On April 1, 2010, over 300 million U.S. residents, citizens and non-citizens alike, will be counted. Once collected, this information is used to determine how over $400 billion dollars in federal funding will be allocated to communities around the country. Resources include funding for healthcare, schools, transportation, job training, senior centers and emergency services.

Be counted — let people know you are out there. The Census is a portrait of us all.

The Afghan Coalition wants to ensure that Afghans in the Bay Area are counted in Census 2010 because local Afghan populations constitute an undercounted population. In past U.S. Census counts, Afghans have either not been counted or generally counted as as Caucasian or Asian.

The news media oftentimes highlight that more Afghans live in Southern Alameda County, particularly Fremont, than anywhere outside of Afghanistan. Yet journalists have difficulty citing a specific population figure. Estimates have varied from 15, 000 to 50,000 in Alameda County alone.

Furthermore, according to Civilrights.org (where you can download a train-the-trainer toolkit), the Census is important for documenting the growth of immigrant communities, allocating resources for needed services, and identifying areas where civil rights enforcement may be needed.

Immigrant communities are at higher risk for being undercounted and require special attention to ensure an accurate count. Community-based organizations like the Afghan Coalition can play a key role in helping immigrants understand the importance of being counted and overcoming reluctance to participate. Finally, some immigrants, including Afghans, do not understand how U.S. systems work, are not English-proficient and may not feel comfortable with sharing personal information.

With support from the San Francisco Foundation, the Afghan Coalition is helping community members:

1) Understand the importance of the Census

2) Understand that it safe to participate in the Census

3) Understand the specific questions on the questionnaire

5) Know how to self-select by checking the “some other race” box and entering a specific population group, such as “Afghan”

6) Fill out and return the questionnaire by April 1, 2010

Multilingual staff and volunteers who speak Dari, Pashto, Urdu and English are available to help and will be providing one-on-one assistance in the Afghan Coalition offices from January through March 2010 and in community settings.

Read more about Bay Area grantmakers that are funding Census outreach efforts for undercounted populations in the Contra Costa Times.

Read the story published on Sunday, December 6, 2009 about a local Afghan family.

From Left to Right: Teri Lindgren, Rona Popal, Dr. Mohammad Qayoumi, Hamid Nekrawesh, Bruce Green and Qasim Tarin

In 1979 two events shook the world: The Iranian Revolution and the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan. These events caused millions of refugees to scatter around the globe thereby creating the cultures of the Diaspora. Thirty years later the California State University East Bay (CSUEB) hosted the first Global Knowledge Conference where scholars gathered to present research and discuss the dynamics of this Diaspora.

The historic event took place October 22 – 24, 2009. The venue at CSU East Bay was appropriate for two reasons: First, the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area is home to some of the largest communities of Afghans and Iranians and secondly, the president of CSUEB, Dr. Mohammad Qayoumi, is a member of this Diaspora from Afghanistan.

The opening evening reception featured art and music from accomplished members of the Diaspora such as sculptor Sami Nadi and master of the Rubab, Homayun Sakhi. Friday’s dinner featured the Shahrzad Dance Academy performing traditional Persian dances. Original verses were recited by poets Najia Karim and Nosratollah Nooh.

This was a conference for both the head and the heart, featuring scholarly presentations as well as emotional personal narratives.

As the host of this noble gathering, Dr. Qayoumi set the stage with his presentation on the ancient history of Persia. Scholarly workshops from CSUEB faculty covered topics such as “How to Meet the Informational Needs of Afghan Women” by Dr. Valerie Smith and “Causes of High Divorce Rates among Diaspora Afghans” by Dr. Farid Younos, and the results of an extensive survey on “Health and Well-Being of Afghans in Northern California” presented by Dr. Carl Stempel.

Keynote speakers included Dr. Alam Payind, the director of the Middle East Studies Center, Ohio State University, who had just returned two days previously from Afghanistan to bring a fresh report of conditions and attitudes there. Dr. Shafiq Shamel from Stanford University shared his insights concerning “New Directions in Afghan and Iranian Scholarship.” The wrap-up plenary session featured Rona Popal, executive director of the Afghan Coalition and journalist Mizgon Zahir-Darby, discussing “Emerging Issues within the Diaspora.” The final emphasis was on the needs of the new generation, who represent both challenges and great potential for blessing.

The entire conference was videotaped and hopefully will be available for viewing on the CSUEB website in the near future. A published form of the conference will also be produced so the lessons can be passed on to others and the benefits of this effort can be multiplied.

Links:

Presentation by Afghan Coalition Board Member Teri Lindgren, Ph.D., UCSF, “Impact of Sept. 11 on Afghan Women’s Community Participation”

Presentation by Afghan Coalition partner Carl Stempel, Ph.D., CSUEB, Social and Experimental Influences on the Health and Well-Being of First Generation Afghans in Northern California”

Presentation by Afghan Coalition partners Aida Shirazi, Ph.D and Mehra Shirazi, Ph.D., UCB, “Afghan Immigrant Women’s Breast Health Knowledge and Behaviors”

For links to other wonderful presentations from the conference, please click here.

Presenter Biographies

Global Politics of Afghanistan and Pakistan - event flyer

THE ABBASI PROGRAM IN ISLAMIC STUDIES is hosting an event on the global politics of Afghanistan and Pakistan at Stanford University.

Thursday, December 3rd 2009, 4:30-6:00 pm
Encina Hall Central, CISAC Central Conference Room
616 Serra Street, Stanford CA

A Discussion Session with:

• Tahir Andrabi, Economics, Pomona College
• Shahzad Bashir, Religious Studies, Stanford University
• James Caron, South Asia Studies, University of Pennsylvania
• Robert Crews, History, Stanford University
• Gilles Dorronsoro, The Carnegie Endowment
• Jamal Elias, Religious Studies, University of Pennsylvania
• Shah Mahmoud Hanifi, History, James Madison University
• Fariba Nawa, Journalist, Fremont
• Thomas Ruttig, Afghanistan Analysts Network
• Lutz Rzehak, Humboldt University
• Farzana Shaikh, Asia Programme, Royal Institute of International Affairs
• Amin Tarzi, Middle East Studies, the Marine Corps University

FREE AND OPEN TO PUBLIC

[Co-sponsored with CISAC, Center for South Asia, Department of History, CREEES]

For more information about the Abbasi Program, please see http://islamicstudies.stanford.edu or contact the program office at abbasiprogram@stanford.edu