The Advocates Releases Curriculum Featuring Iraqi Immigrant Stories
In partnership with the Iraqi & American Reconciliation Project (IARP), The Advocates for Human Rights (The Advocates) has designed a curriculum to familiarize students with the postwar condition of Iraqi immigrants. The curriculum includes lesson plans for both K-5 and high school classrooms.
“The magnitude of the human rights abuses faced by these Iraqi immigrants, both in Iraq and after coming to the United States, makes this curriculum a compelling addition to The Advocates’ resources on immigration and the human rights of immigrants,” said The Advocates’ Executive Director Robin Phillips. “We were privileged to work with these immigrant artists and help make their experiences a powerful learning tool for students of all ages.”
Videos and books used in the curriculum are provided free of charge on IARP’s website, www.iraqiartproject.org. The videos and books tell the immigration stories of their respective Iraqi producers and authors. The resources were created in cooperation with the Veterans Book Project, artist Monica Haller, and filmmaker Nathan Fisher.
The elementary school lesson plan ensures that students have a basic understanding of Iraq by being able to identify it on a world map and share with each other what connections or previous knowledge they may have about the country. The high school lesson plan requires each student to choose a reading to analyze and discuss from among the Iraqi-made books.
The Advocates, IARP, and the International Leadership Program at the University of St. Thomas will host a free public reception with the Iraqi authors and video producers on January 24, 2013 from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The reception will be held in the Schulze Hall Atrium on the University of St. Thomas’ Minneapolis campus, 1000 LaSalle Avenue, Minneapolis, MN 55403.