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Welcome!

Welcome to our fourth issue of Itihad-e-Zan, with updates on all of WAW’s work in Afghanistan and Queens, NY. WAW’s work is thriving on all fronts, and has received major press attention this quarter (see below). Please read this recent update from our Executive Director, which discusses the recent Peace Jirga, and the security situation for women in Afghanistan. We have two big announcements in this issue:

• WAW is about to inaugurate our 5th Family Guidance Center, in Kunduz, Northern Afghanistan. The inauguration is scheduled to take place on July 6th, with the Governor of Kunduz cutting the ribbon, and presiding over the ceremonies.

• And secondly, the WAW Queens Community Center is moving! We have signed our lease and will move into new offices in the heart of the Queens Afghan community later this month. Please make a note of our new address: 158-24 73rd Avenue, Fresh Meadows, NY 11366. We have rented two floors of a house in a location which most clients can walk to. The house has several offices, a kitchen, a huge room for events, meetings and classes, and even a back yard with an apple tree. Our staff is full of ideas to deepen our community outreach work in Queens, in this ideal new location.

WAW's new space!

Profiles

Starting with this issue, we will bring you profiles of women in both Afghanistan and Queens. This will give our readers a better picture of the work we do, and increase awareness of the specific needs and struggles in each region where we are active.

AFGHANISTAN: Torpekai's Story

Torpekai is also the woman featured in the header graphic. In the smaller pictures, she is seen taking care of the children in our Children's Support Center (CSC), where she is a night caretaker.

Torpekai is one of the many very brave women in Afghanistan who has turned the injustice and cruelty in her life into strength, and used it to help others. Click here to continue reading Torpekai's story.

Torpekai reads with children at the CSC.

QUEENS: Narwan's Story

For Narwan's protection, we have changed her name for this feature, and are not including a photograph.

Narwan is one of our clients who faced new and unexpected challenges when she immigrated to the US. She came to WAW for legal help. Click here to continue reading Narwan's story.

WAW News

Update from Afghanistan

Our Children's Support Center in Kabul continues to serve as a unique model providing social and legal protection for children whose mothers are in prison. It is praised by government and international officials for the level of care and support given to children. In addition, our Family Guidance Centers continue to provide critical legal and social services to women, children and families. News of our services is spreading well beyond the provinces in which the FGCs are located, and women are starting to seek us out on their own. Click here to read more about the vital work of the CSC and FGCs!

Executive Director Manizha Naderi cuts the ribbon at our new FGC in Jalalabad.

You can still sponsor one of the amazing children at the CSC! Send an email to Manizha Naderi to become a sponsor right now! Or, click here to learn more about sponsorship, and to read a previous eNews's in-depth info on our new Children's Support Center.

Update from Queens

The staff and volunteers of Women for Afghan Women remain as active as ever, and the WAW Queens Community Center continues to host a variety of classes, workshops and Women's Circle meetings that empower Afghan women, teach them about their rights, and meet immediate needs such as basic literacy. Click here to read more about the goings-on in Queens.

A gathering of the Women's Circle group, which meets to discuss
issues facing Afghan women immigrants in the NYC area.

WAW in the News

News Articles Featuring WAW

Check out these links featuring WAW!

March 11, 2010: ABC World News with Diane Sawyer- "Exclusive: The Secret Shelters That Protect Afghan Women"

April 14, 2010: Foreign Policy in Focus- "Afghanistan: Should We Stay or Should We Go?"

May 30, 2010: The New York Times- "Afghan Child Brides Escape Marriage, but Not Lashes"

June 10, 2010: CNN- "Shelter tries to help abused child brides"

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