As Nesreen, the visiting Baghdad teacher, and I do our tour: Putting a Human Face on 'collateral damage' I am often asked, "How did you connect with a teacher in Baghdad?"
After a workshop at John Dewey High School, Brooklyn NY I promised the students I would get them email contact with students in Baghdad. Of course I had no idea how I would accomplish this and left in a minor panic.
As a good New Yorker I turned to our most powerful tool: networking! I emailed, wrote, called, and collared every person I knew.
1. Terry Shutte, a friend from high school days, put me in touch with a friend who works for an Arab-American newspaper.
2. The reporter knew someone in Washington, D.C. who “does something with the Middle-East.”
3. That person, from Global Exchange, knew someone she thought worked with Iraqis.
4. That someone works for The Center
for Nonviolent Communication and pointed me to a man who “might be able to
help.”
5. The CNVC man knew of a doctor who
traveled the world treating war-traumatized children, and “she was in Iraq.”
6. But when I contacted the trauma doctor she told me
that she could only do her work for six to nine months at a time. The emotional
load of working with these violence-damaged children became too much for her
from time to time. She had left Baghdad and was back in London for some much
needed rest and recuperation.
She sensed my disappointment and
said, “Don’t worry. I have the email address of a taxi driver in Baghdad and he
knows everyone!”
8. I emailed the woman and she said,
“My sister is a teacher here in Baghdad. I will ask her if she wants to contact
you.”
9. And then Nesreen wrote these words
to me:
From: nesreen
Sent: Friday, March 05, 2004 6:37 AM
To: Bruce
Subject:
Re: A request for High School age contacts in Iraq and Afghanistan
Dear Bruce,
I’m
ready to help. But let me tell u something first. I’m also a teacher in (XXX),
a high school for girls. I’ll ask my friends, students, and colleagues to help
and share ideas with u.
Best wishes,
Sincerely,
Nesreen
Well, OK, it's eight degrees of separation, but who's counting?
B
