Panel Discussion with SD Organizations

We had a wonderful night with leaders from local nonprofit organizations that work for the advocacy of refugees and immigrants in San Diego!

Thank you everyone who came out tonight. And a big THANK YOU to all the panelists who made time to have this important conversation with us about the challenges refugees and immigrants face in San Diego, and the contribution they bring to the community.

Anon(ymous) director Randy Reinholz (far right) gave a word before the panel about the show’s message and its relevance today.

We were honored to have with us (from left to right)
Ms. Dilkhwaz Ahmed from License to Freedom
Ms. Elizabeth Lou from Nile Sisters Development Initiative
Mr. Fahad Mohamed from Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans (PANA)
and Mr. Jama Mohamed from United Women of East African Support Team (UWEAST)
Far right is Yi-Lin Eli Chung, moderator for the evening’s event.

Ms. Dilkhwaz Ahmed shared with us a powerful video from License to Freedom’s website (http://www.licensetofreedom.org/), about the stakes of sexual violence and exploitation, and the resilience of survivors.

Her presentation reminded us the importance of action beyond sympathy.

Ms. Elizabeth Lou pointed us to the Nile Sisters website (https://nilesisters.org), which features their services and valuable information about issues concerning refugees and other vulnerable foreign-born populations in San Diego.

A lot of the information we pulled for Anon(ymous)‘s production came from Nile Sisters.

Mr. Fahad Mohamed shared with us PANA’s integrated voter engagement program, as well as their #RightToRoof campaign to address the hidden homeless issue among refugees and immigrants in San Diego.

The THRIVE tool United Women of East Africa uses to identify and address priorities of community improvements.

Mr. Jama Mohamed shared with us his personal story coming to America as a young refugee, and eventually graduating from San Diego State University with a Psychology degree!

All the organizations featured on the panel could be found on our Community Resources page.

License to Freedom http://www.licensetofreedom.org/

Nile Sister Development Initiative https://nilesisters.org/. Also on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/nilesisters/.

Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans (PANA) http://www.panasd.org/
They are on Twitter @PANASanDiego

United Women of East Africa http://www.unitedwomenofeastafrica.org/. Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Uweast1/. They are also on Twitter @uweast1.

SPECIAL THANKS to
San Diego State University Theatre Department
Dr. Huma Ghosh, from Women’s Studies Department, for spreading the word about the event and bringing in students
Adam Danska and Christina Martin,Production Supervisors, for helping us set up
Marissa McKinney,House Manager, for ushers and setup
Stephanie Kwik, Assistant Dramaturg, for media support
Confucius Institute at San Diego State University, for lending us their microphone

My First Day podcast

banner taken from KPBS website

First days can be exhilarating, terrifying — or a mix of both. They mark the beginning of life’s chapters and define who we ultimately become. My First Day is a series that explores these important days through people who came to San Diego from elsewhere, and now call it home.

How do people from all over come to settle in San Diego? To find out, listen to the San Diego based podcast My First Day with local documentary mediamaker Andrew Bracken by KPBS!