Iraqi Families on the Borders

“Day by day, years go by”

As the economic crisis deepens and all eyes are on the new Obama administration, the dire situation of Iraqi refugees has been ignored in the media. The U.S. promises $2 billion to expand services in neighboring countries and ensure safety for those displaced within Iraq, but doesn’t say how or when. The U.N. High Commission on Refugees has identified only 50,000 people for resettlement. The U.S. will accept up to 17,000 Iraqi refugees in 2009. But the United Nations counts more than 4.5 million Iraqi refugees, with 2.5 million stuck in bordering countries. More than tales of bombs and battles, these are the real war stories. In the fall of 2008, I traveled to Jordan and Syria to speak with these people. These portraits represent people from across a wide economic, cultural, and political landscape who now share common harrowing stories of escape and survival.

Click on these thumbnails to see Johnny Barber’s photo essay.

	The Kids Don’t Know ABU MAZIN & HIS FAMILY		Why Are You Still There? IBRAHIM & HIS FAMILY		Will Never Return to Iraq UM ALAN AND HER SON		Scattered, Makeshift Families UM ADNAN AND ABU ADNAN WITH SELMED

	Forgotten Refugees YOUNG MEN IN JORDAN		Headed to America ABU DIAH & HIS FAMILY		Saving Her Remaining Son IMAN AND TOOTIE

Johnny Barber is an activist and freelance photographer.

Additional portraits can be seen at oneBrightpearl.com and further information is available at his blog oneBrightpearl-jb.blogspot.com.

YES! Magazine encourages you to make free use of this article by taking these easy steps. Barber, J. (2009, February 13). Iraqi Families on the Borders. Retrieved February 11, 2012, from YES! Magazine Web site: http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/food-for-everyone/iraqi-families-on-the-borders. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License