June 1st, 2016

The World Refugee Day launch is TODAY at the Museum at King and Queen Sts. in Kitchener, starting at 5pm!

See Crossing Borders present alongside ‘the Gaza Doctor’ Izzeldin Abuelaish, author of I Shall Not Hate.

Date: Wednesday June 1, 2016
Time: 5-8pm
Location: THE MUSEUM, 10 King St W, Kitchener, ON N2G 1A3
Organizers: Community Coalition on Refugee and Immigrant Concerns (CCORIC)

 

Since September 2015, The Waterloo Region has come together to resettle over 1200 refugees, with many more on their way. An incredible feat that we, as a region, seek to celebrate and reflect on.

During the month of June, we will commemorate the courage, strength, and resilience of millions of refugees around the world. Join the Community Coalition on Refugee and Immigrant Concerns, for our Waterloo Region Celebrates Refugees Community Launch featuring world renowned Author and Activist Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, local dignitaries, Crossing Borders youth performers, the Art Exhibition, a Silent Auction, and refreshments. All are welcome!

Visit http://worldrefugeedaywr.com/ for more details on events happening throughout the month.

Izzeldin Abuelaish, known as “the Gaza Doctor” and author of ‘I Shall Not Hate’, is a Palestinian doctor and infertility expert who was born and raised in the Jabalia refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. Tragically, his three daughters and a niece were killed in January 2009 during the Israeli incursion into Gaza, yet this devastation did not harden Abuelaish’s heart. Instead, he has directed his energy toward spreading the doctrine that from tragedy can come good; from conflict and hardship can come peace and wellbeing, in hopes that the lives lost during this time would be the last. Nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize in 2010, and winner of humanitarian awards around the world, he now lives with his family in Toronto, where he is an associate professor at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health at the University of Toronto.

“I know that what I have lost, what was taken from me, will never come back. But as a physician and a Muslim of deep faith, I need to move forward to the light, motivated by the spirits of those I lost. I need to bring them justice. I will keep moving but I need you to join me in this long journey.” – I Shall Not Hate

Dr. Abuelaish has founded Daughters for Life, a Canadian charity that provides young women in high school and university the opportunity to develop a strong voice and play a more influential role in improving the quality of life throughout the Middle East through their education. Silent Auction proceeds will go directly to his charity.

Contact:
Kaylee Perez
Chair, CCORIC
kayleeperez@mcco.ca
(519) 498-7273