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Hi John, this is Etan, NIAC’s Community & Advocacy Associate. I’ve worked at NIAC for almost 2 years now, mostly behind the scenes on our communications and organizing work, but I wanted to take this chance to introduce myself and review some of the great work our team and volunteers have done this month.
August may be when Congress adjourns and Washington clears out for the summer, but it was another busy month as usual here at NIAC. Before I get into the roundup of the work we did over the past month, please consider rushing a contribution to help support the efforts outlined below >>
Now, let's look back at what we were able to accomplish last month.
Building Political Power
August always marks our busiest time for "in-district" meetings for NIAC Action volunteers across the country to meet locally with their members of Congress. In these meetings, community members advocate on issues that are important to all of us - human rights in Iran, the human cost of broad sanctions, the urgent need to protect our civil rights here at home, and more.
This month, NIAC Action members held nearly 30 meetings with their elected officials in New Jersey, Massachusetts, New York, Arizona, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Virginia, Washington, California and New York.
If this sounds like something you’d be interested in, you can sign up here as a volunteer and attend a meeting.
Fighting for Civil Rights
On August 3rd, NIAC President Jamal Abdi teamed up with our community partners at Asian Americans Advancing Justice on a piece in The Hill warning against Congressional efforts to target Iranian, Chinese, and other U.S. visa holders for discriminatory property bans. Thanks to our multi-ethnic coalition of civil rights and immigrant rights organizations, there is legislation in Congress to protect against such discrimination on the basis of your nationality at the state level. But there is also legislation moving forward (the Rounds Amendment) that could begin imposing these discriminatory restrictions federally, so stay tuned for updates on our efforts to block the Rounds Amendment in September.
Equitable Immigration
This month, NIAC urged the State Department in a public letter to expedite visa and refugee processing for Iranians, with a specific focus on Iranian students. Iranian students continue to encounter difficulties in securing U.S. visas due to administrative backlogs and unexplained rejections, and NIAC is working to remediate this situation.
Supporting Peace and Diplomacy
On August 10th, NIAC welcomed the long overdue furlough for Iranian American prisoners held in Iran. NIAC Policy DIrector Ryan Costello published a piece in Defense One on how the prisoner swap and release of humanitarian funds can reduce harm against the Iranian people, and how medicine shortages, sanctions, and corruption in Iran are all linked. To educate policymakers and inform the public, we also compiled this FAQ on the prisoner swap.
Also, on August 4th, NIAC made clear that the unilateral enforcement by the U.S. of sanctions beyond our borders sets off an exchange with Iran risks dangerous escalation. Our statement came after reporting said that 2,000 U.S. Marines and three warships are joining fighter jets and a naval destroyer in the Persian Gulf.
Tracking Stories and Events in Iran:
NIAC continued tracking human rights and current events in Iran through this month, publishing 6 Human Rights Tracker and Iran Unfiltered newsletters:
These newsletters are read by lawmakers, their staff, journalists, and experts alike. If you’re interested, please subscribe below.
📥 Subscribe to receive our Human Rights Tracker in your inbox >
📥 Subscribe to receive Iran Unfiltered in your inbox >
None of this work is possible without our community's support – from our amazing volunteers to the grassroots donors providing resources. So if you want to show your support and ensure we can keep providing an independent, values driven, community focused voice for peace and justice, make your contribution today.
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With gratitude,
Etan Mabourakh
NIAC Action Community & Advocacy Associate
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