Dahlia Wasfi
Dahlia Wasfi (born 1971) is an American physician and peace activist. She is also an environmentalist who actively speaks out against the environmental impact of war and the corporate and government restructuring of farming methods and food resources in war zones in order to benefit American corporations at the expense of seed diversity and food security.[1]
Early life and education[edit]
Born in 1971 in New York City to a Jewish-American mother and Muslim Iraqi father, Wasfi spent her early childhood living in Basrah, Iraq under Saddam Hussein, while her father taught at Basrah University.[2] She returned to the US in 1977, earned her B.A. in Biology from Swarthmore College in 1993 and her medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1997. She began a residency in general surgery before switching to anesthesiology.[2]
Activism[edit]
Wasfi visited Iraq in early 2004 and again from December 2005 to March 2006, and was struck by the destruction, poverty and lack of security under the American occupation.[2]
 Ain't Nothin Green About the Green Zone, May 18,2008 | |
| CONGRESSIONAL PROGRESSIVE CAUCUS: Dahlia Wasfi at Iraq Forum, April 27, 2006 |
On April 27, 2006, Wasfi addressed the Congressional Progressive Caucus to provide an eyewitness account of life in Iraq,[3] saying:
I speak to you today on behalf of relatives on my mother’s side — Ashkenazi Jews who fled their homeland of Austria during Hitler’s Anschluss. It is for them that we say 'Never again.' I speak to you today on behalf of relatives on my father’s side, who are not living, but dying, under the occupation of this administration’s deadly foray in Iraq. From the lack of security to the lack of basic supplies to the lack of electricity to the lack of potable water to the lack of jobs to the lack of reconstruction to the lack of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, they are much worse off now than before we invaded. 'Never again' should apply to them, too.[4]
Wasfi is one of a number of different people who have been credited with popularising the slogan "No justice, no peace" after videos of her speech were widely shared on multiple social media platforms.[5][6][7]
In March 2008, Wasfi gave expert testimony alongside Iraq Veterans Against the War members at the National Labor College in Silver Spring, Maryland, noting that her activism was inspired by Rachel Corey, who was killed by an Israeli bulldozer while trying to defend a Palestinian house. Wasfi said that it was "anti-Arab and anti-Muslim prejudice" that prevented Americans from paying attention to what was happening in Iraq and Palestine.[8]
In January 2009, Wasfi wrote an article for independent news website Information Liberation, calling the situation in Gaza and Palestine "a holocaust".[9] In 2011, she gave the keynote address at a conference at the Gallatin School at New York University titled "Counterinsurgency: A Euphemism for Oppression", recounting a list of American atrocities in Iraq.[10][11]
Wasfi was one of fourteen peace activists interviewed by Eric Bonds for his article "Strategic Role Taking and Political Struggle: Bearing Witness to the Iraq War".[12]
Publications[edit]
- Wasfi, Dahlia (2007). "Life Goes On". Al-Raida (118–119): 40–42.
- Hills, Elaine A.; Wasfi, Dahlia S. (2010). "The Causes and Human Costs of Targeting Iraq". In Merrill Singer; G. Derrick Hodge. The War Machine and Global Health. Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 119–156. ISBN 9780759119437. Search this book on
- Wasfi, Dahlia (4 June 2015). "Battling ISIS: Iran-Iraq war redux". Middle East Eye.
References[edit]
- ↑ "Ain’t Nothin’ Green About the Green Zone," Green Festival, Chicago, IL, May 1, 2008. Accessed 15 May 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHS0Cq8hje4
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Interview: Dahlia Wasfi". Al-Rasub. December 14, 2012. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
- ↑ "Dahlia S. Wasfi, M.D." Liberatethis.com. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
- ↑ "Dr. Dahlia Wasfi speaks at Iraq forum". Congressional Forum testimony. April 27, 2006. Retrieved December 28, 2010.
- ↑ Jones, Douglas M. (2013). Dismissing Jesus:How we evade the way of the cross. Wipf and Stock. p. 219. ISBN 9781620325353. Search this book on
- ↑ Malley-Morrison, Kathie (January 5, 2012). "She's inspiring our youth". Engaging Peace. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
- ↑ "'No justice, no peace': an epic speech by Dr. Dahlia Wasfi". The Siasat Daily. October 7, 2017. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
- ↑ Roth, Andy Lee; Phillips, Peter (2011). Censored 2009:The Top 25 Censored Stories of 2007-08. Seven Stories Press. p. 310. ISBN 9781583229521. Search this book on
- ↑ Wasfi, Dahlia (January 3, 2009). "The Holocaust". Information Liberation. Retrieved November 12, 2020.
- ↑ Crane, Conrad C. (2016). Cassandra in Oz: Counterinsurgency and Future War. Naval Institute Press. p. 226. ISBN 9781682470206. Search this book on
- ↑ "Counterinsurgency: History, Theory, and Practice". New York University. 22 September 2011. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
- ↑ Bonds, Eric (2009). "Strategic Role Taking and Political Struggle: Bearing Witness to the Iraq War". Symbolic Interaction. 32 (1): 1–20. doi:10.1525/si.2009.32.1.1. JSTOR 10.1525/si.2009.32.1.1.
External links[edit]
- liberatethis.com, run by Dahlia Wasfi
- Dahlia Wasfi Interview on Alrasub.com December 14, 2012
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