Exhibits
Baghdad, California - A Film by Diego Lynch & Rahmah Pauzi
Join us for a screening of "Baghdad, California" on Saturday, October 26th at 11am PT at the New Americans Museum. This documentary explores the impact of the Middle Eastern American community on San Diego's El Cajon. A Q&A with director Diego Lynch will follow.
Admission is free, but your generous donations will help support our mission.
Film Synopsis:
In a city divided between rich and poor, hills and the valley––El Cajon’s face has been transformed by tens of thousands of refugees. Post the War On Terror, it is now “Little Baghdad,” the largest home for refugees of the Iraq War in California. But, the face of power – the rich and the lawmakers – remains unchanged.
Every ten years, the U.S. counts its citizens in the Census, tabulating the tapestry of identities which comprise the country. But most significantly, it’s data determines the distribution of resources, power, and representation. Two women––a Latina from California’s farm-labor organizing tradition, and a Kurdish running a women’s shelter––are organizing to get their communities finally counted to tally the changes in this town.
As these activists go door-to-door in this American city, they try to convince their neighbors to face the question: can the democracy promised to Iraq, 7000 miles away and 20 years ago, be found in the home of the free?