"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..." -Excerpt from Congressional forum testimony, April 27, 2006

We first came across Dr. Dahlia Wasfi in an email sent to us with the subject reading, “Truth about Iraq.” In it was a link to the popular video streaming website YouTube (please see link on the side). It was footage of her testimony before a congressional forum on Iraq. In the video, Dahlia speaks about the living conditions she witnessed during her last visit to the country in 2004, and highlights the horrific conditions leading to the continuous deterioration of life haunting Iraqis since the American led occupation. Her words were being uttered on behalf of the millions of Iraqis that are being silenced and herded around in a display of failed democracy in a state of fear that has consumed their everyday lives.

Dr. Dahlia Wasfi was born in 1971, and spent her early childhood in Iraq, until she returned with her family to the United States in 1977. She has currently a Medical Doctor, and is an activist speaking out against the atrocities being carried out by her government, and in her name. We were able to track down this community leader in the hopes of gaining strength and knowledge in what seems to be an increasingly desperate situation.

IAM: You returned to Basra and Baghdad in 2004. What was your first impression, and how did your experience intensify your urge to be a proactive force for the Iraqi people?
Dahlia: I knew by numbers, the amount of bombs my government used to destroy Iraq, but that did not prepare me for the devastation I witnessed.  I was infuriated by the omnipresent reminders of our aerial campaigns—destroyed buildings, sewage in the streets, rolling blackouts, and poverty that economic sanctions introduced to Iraqi society.  I knew my tax dollars—earned in a privileged life in the United States—had helped to fund the suffering of Iraqis (and other peoples).  I was able to see how my relatively “simple” life as an American was one of luxury, because I enjoy electricity, potable water, and security.  I can do nothing for my family when I’m in Iraq.  But I wanted to use my American privilege to try to make a difference for them—a difference for the better, rather than the worse, which my government effected in my name.

IAM: You describe the horrific conditions that Iraqis live under in great detail. Who desperately needs to hear this message in your opinion?
Dahlia: At this point, I believe the so-called “peace movement” in the U.S. needs a dose of reality.  There was great solidarity in the worldwide demonstrations of February 2003, just prior to the start of Shock and Awe.  But when the invasion began, many activists—myself included—became disheartened, depressed, and inactive.  We had NO right to do so, while missiles were raining down on innocents in our name.  After the invasion, there was a large split in the “peace” movement, between those calling for troop withdrawal, and those (ignorantly) advocating for the troops to stay to support democracy.  After Hitler invaded Poland, did the Allies allow the Third Reich to leave the Gestapo in place to defend the Polish people?  Of course not.  That would have been as absurd as keeping the biggest, strongest killing force in the world today in Iraq to “help” the people.  In my view, today in the U.S., the greatest obstacle to troop withdrawal is NOT the warmongers.  It is so-called “progressives” who are failing to support immediate, unconditional withdrawal of American troops.

IAM: What do you say to the Iraqi elite, all of whom live in the west, that helped organize the war, and literally celebrated, as bombs fell on innocents, killing, crippling, and maiming them?
Dahlia: I believe any of us who stand by while genocide is being perpetrated will have to answer one day to a higher power.  I remained silent for many years, living a good life at the expense of innocents around the world.  As Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Silence is betrayal.”  I guess part of my motivation for my activism today is to atone for my complicity in war crimes.  I cannot stand in judgment of others until I face those faults in myself first.

IAM: Other than the United States, who holds the primary responsibility, who else is responsible for the destruction in Iraq?
Dahlia: The occupation of Iraq is an extension of the occupation of Palestine, which is a continuation of colonialism by (mostly) European powers in Western Asia, Africa, etc.  The Arab
World has had the boot of Western imperialism on their neck for much of the 20^th century through today.  All those who have participated in this rape and pillage—from the U.S. to Great Britain to France to Belgium to Israel—have blood on their hands.  But today, with the strongest military and as the only superpower, it is the U.S. that dominates.  Rather than using our wealth for good, we act in the name of greed and corporate power.

IAM: In one of your articles, you mention the pro-war atmosphere surrounding you, on campus in particular, how do you deal with ultra-nationalism, called patriotism by most, in the States?
Dahlia: I am reminded of the saying: “I complained because I had no shoes until I saw a man with no feet.” It is difficult living in the belly of the beast, but what I face here is nothing compared to the sorrows and horrors much of the world lives with, thanks to U.S. policies.  I think of the brief period I was with my family in Iraq, the incredible difficulty of their lives, and that helps me to move forward.  There is the American dream of success and prosperity, but it is only for a very few, built on the nightmares of everyone else.

IAM: Since Nine Eleven, democracy and tolerance, in whatever state they were in prior to the events of that day, seem to have also perished with the people murdered that day, what effect has that had on activists like yourself?
Dahlia: That was the beginning of the end of my silence—the last straw to break my back, if you will.  I was sad about the tragedy of the events of September 11, 2001, and the bigotry that would about to be unleashed on the Arab and Muslim communities.  But I also knew that we Americans were reaping the hatred sown by the racist injustice and murder committed in our name around the world.  More directly, I knew that the events of that one day—as opposed to Iraq, where everyday is 9/11—resulted from our bigoted complicity with Israel’s war crimes against Palestinians over the last 70 years.  But overall, Americans were—and still are—ignorant of our crimes against humanity.  Once we began to “shock and awe” Iraq on March 19, 2003, I could be silent no more on our crimes (though I should have started much sooner).  And for good or for bad, I haven’t shut up since.

IAM: You’ve mentioned that you felt hypocritical after the 1991 war, because of your inactivity. Many of us feel the same. How important is it for youth to be active?
Dahlia: Each of us still has a life to live.  Each of us has to determine what individual sacrifices we can afford to make.  I am fortunate to have the support of my parents these days, so that I can devote my time and energy to what I believe in.  And I also have advantages others may not have.  I have no foreign accent, and I sound “American” if you will (which I guess really means white).  I have an advanced degree, which lends credibility to my words.  I think that everyone of us makes choices everyday that can speak for our cause.  Buy from an independent store rather than a corporate chain.  Buy gas from CITGO, which is currently Venezuelan oil, rather than Exxon Mobil or British Petroleum.  Every day, we can send out a ripple of change, and we’ll never know how big an effect even the smallest effort can create.

IAM: As an Iraqi living in diaspora, what role do you see capitalism playing in making sure that we remain silent and complicit?
Dahlia: I am humbled by your characterization of me as an Iraqi living in diaspora, but with my mixed background, and having been born and spent most of my life in the U.S., I can only sympathize with the suffering of so many.  Having grown up here, I understand the materialistic mindset of capitalism.  I’m ashamed to admit that I’ve lived most of my life according to its selfish rules.  Five years ago, I was miserable in my residency program.  But I figured that once I finished my training, I would get a job with a big salary, get a condominium, get a BMW, and “get” to happiness.  That is pathetic, but American society programs us to think that the next big purchase we acquire will make us happy.  The truth is that our relationships are the most important thing.  Once I started to devote my energies to my own humanity rather than material things, I began to find peace.  It sounds a little crazy, I know, but that’s where my mindset is these days.  It’s what spurred me to visit my cousins in Iraq, and now I can’t imagine my life without knowing them.

IAM: In the footage we were sent (see link on the side), you are speaking to members of the United States Congress, how were you able to access these decision makers, and what were the emotions running through your soul as you were talking to them?
Dahlia: The Congressional Forum took place on April 27, 2006, and I had returned from my 3 month stay in Basrah exactly one month before.  Organizers at my Speaker’s Bureau (Global Exchange) work with the congresspeople who organized the forum.  Knowing I had just returned from an extended stay—which is rare for an American civilian in Iraq—I was invited to offer 5 minutes of testimony.  There was a professor of political science and former CIA agent who spoke just before me.  He made ridiculously patronizing and bigoted statements about Iraq, so I was irritated when I began to speak.  But I was lucky that I was able to channel my frustration and love for my family into a passionate presentation.  I figured that was my one shot at the war criminals, and I let them have it with all I had.

IAM: To what extent is US policy dictated to the Congress by external factors such as multinational corporations?
Dahlia: Members of the U.S. Congress rely on corporate interests and PAC’s (public affairs committees) to fill the coffers for their re-election campaigns.  So if they want to keep their comfortable chairs in Washington, D.C., they tend to vote for special interests.  One of the most powerful lobbying groups in D.C. is AIPAC—the American-Israel Public Affairs Committee.  As we saw after Hurricane Katrina, the government caters more to corporations than its citizenry.  So I direct my efforts towards grassroots education rather than lobbying.

IAM: Returning to Iraq, to what extent, in your opinion, is unemployment a dynamic in what’s taking place?
Dahlia: Depending on where you are in Iraq, there is between 50 and 70 per cent unemployment, thanks to the awarding of no-bid contracts to American companies.  These companies deny the Iraqi working class jobs in the same way they deny the American working class—by outsourcing.  They use foreign workers from poor countries (e.g. Indonesia, Southeast Asia) who will work for pennies, which increases corporate profit margins.  For example, the largest construction project in Iraq is the “embassy” in Baghdad.  The contract went to an American company, which sold it to a Kuwaiti company.  There is not a single Iraqi working on that project (a facility most Iraqis don’t want anyway).  With such high unemployment and desperate living conditions, it is no wonder that young men seek to join the police—a high-paying job that is virtually the only work available to them. There are several facets of resistance to the illegal occupation.  There is the armed resistance, which is directly forcing the Americans out.  Then there are the political and economic centers of resistance, one of which is labor unions.  They want to defend Iraq’s oil resources—control of which was the primary reason for invading.  Paul Bremer, head of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq after the fall of Baghdad, illegally trashed most of the laws of Saddam Hussein’s regime.  One of the few he kept was the ban on unions.  Iraqis are defying the occupier, however, in every way they can.  This is why the occupation will never succeed.

IAM: Everyday, millions of Palestinians face a brutal existence under Israeli Apartheid or live in dehumanizing conditions as the world’s largest refugee population in the world. What are the connections between that and what’s happening in Iraq?
Dahlia: After the Israelis perpetrated the 2002 massacre in Jenin, American military brass sought their advice on conducting occupation.  Today, the Israelis have a heavily guarded base in northern Iraq.  Israeli Mossad are operating throughout Iraq; they entered from the north, thanks to the Kurdish leadership, who have collaborated with them for many years.  The U.S. Army has asked for help from the IDF in dealing with the improvised explosive devices (IED’s).  Senior U.S. Army officers are in direct communication with the Israeli military, as AIPAC’s website boasts.  In addition, the dogs being used in the criminal abuse at Abu Ghraib and other prisons throughout Iraq likely come from the IDF canine unit.  The occupation of Iraq is an extension of the occupation of Palestine.

IAM: You are now a regular speaker around the country and beyond, meaning that you have effectively put your career on hold, what kind of support have you received from within our own communities?
Dahlia: Mostly, I’m working independently.  The most prominent Arab-American organizations are seeking acceptance into the political realm of Washington, and don’t want to have much to do with me. I am happy to share my story and research anywhere I am invited.

IAM: You also have a website, liberatethis.com, and your video on the internet has been viewed by thousands. What role do you think internet and more specifically, independent media, can play in promoting a different discourse than that which we are bombarded with through corporate media?
Dahlia: The internet is so critical to the work I’m doing today, because it allows for international networking.  As of this morning, my 6 minute congressional testimony has had over 59,000 views.  Without the internet, it would only have been heard by a handful of politicians who brushed it aside.  Because the corporate media are complicit in the execution of our war crimes (as was determined by the World Tribunal on Iraq), it is through independent media that the facts can surface.  Sooner or later, the truth comes out, and the truth shall set us free.

IAM: What does the future hold for Iraqis, in your opinion?
Dahlia: Iraq’s future is up to Iraqis and Iraqis alone.  The country cannot move forward until the brutal grip of my government’s violent and genocidal occupation ends.  I pray that better days are coming soon, insha’allah.

We would like to thank Dahlia for her time, but more importantly, for her strength and courage. This is not the last you will hear from her, as we intend on ensuring that she is a critical part of any work that we do.