Global Solidarity

UPDATED 3/24/22: In honor of World Theatre Day on March 27, we wanted to update some of the ways we can support theatre-makers facing violence and oppression across the globe.

UKRAINE:

• Read our original post on how to support Ukraine.
• Support LGBTQ+ and Black Ukrainian Refugees 
• Resources for disabled Ukrainians. 

AFGHANISTAN:

• Support the #OpenSchoolForGirls movement

Read more below!

---

UPDATED 3/1/22: We're posting resources to support the people of Ukraine amid Russia's horrific invasion. In addition to the loss of life, the United Nations estimates that about 100,000 Ukrainians have already been displaced and that number could ultimately grow to 1 to 5 million. Emilya Cachapero and Juli Hendren have been in touch with the Trust for Mutual Understanding as well as some Ukrainian theatre artists, and we're boosting ways to support that they've shared with us here. 

---

(This page was originally created on 8/20/21, and will be continually updated.)

It’s been a difficult week. In Afghanistan, the Taliban has taken control of the country, creating a refugee crisis where the most vulnerable have no way out. In Haiti, a 7.2 magnitude earthquake has caused terrible devastation and claimed over 1,300 lives. In Lebanon, the impact of the blast that rocked the Beirut port one year ago along with Covid and economic and political crises have left the people without fuel, electricity, food and medicine, struggling to survive. In response, we’ve put together some resources to support these countries and their diasporas, which include many of our beloved colleagues in the theatre community.

For Afghanistan:

• This document provides ways to help Afghans on the ground, legal aid resources in a few countries for those attempting to or helping others leave, actionable scripts to lobby US congressional officials, and more. Thanks to poet Aria Aber for sharing it. 
• Resources for helping refugees safely emigrate. Joanna Sherman of Bond Street Theatre shared that any U.S. arts organization who did work in Afghanistan, even for a short time, can sponsor P2 visas for Afghans who worked with them. Bond Street is also raising funds for their family of artists in Afghanistan, with whom they've worked for over two decades. 
• Sign this petition. 
• Women for Women’s emergency fund for Afghan women.
• Urgent Crisis Relief for Afghanistan 2021
• Additional places to give - living doc

For Haiti: 

• Haiti Earthquake Relief from CNN’s Impact Your World. 
• CORE (Community Organized Relief Effort)
• Fonkoze: empowers Haitians, primarily women, with financial and development services to lift their families out of poverty.
• Fokal Haiti Relief: focused on long-term, grassroots efforts. 
• A thread from The Frontline with “vetted local Haitian orgs that are directly helping the on-going rescue and recovery work on the ground.”
• Additional Haiti Earthquake Relief Spreadsheet - living doc

For Lebanon:

Playwright/performer/facilitator Leila Buck passed on the following resources from Lebanese friends, family, colleagues, doctors and activists who named these as some of the most effective organizations on the ground right now:

• Lebanonneeds.org- a team of healthcare professionals in Beirut and internationally providing healthcare, housing and food to underserved communities across Lebanon. 
• Food Blessed – feeding the hungry in Lebanon’s most impacted communities
• Beit El Baraka – providing food, home repair, and other resources to retired Lebanese, prior to the blast and beyond.  
• Lebanese Red Cross – hospitals are on the brink of closing and medical support is badly needed
• Lebanese Food Bank – feeding the hungry across the country. 
• Embrace Lebanon – mental health support  for all Lebanese regardless of income.
• Skoun.org – Lebanon’s addiction recovery and treatment center.
• Helem – the first LGBTQ+ rights org in the Arab world. This fundraiser from last summer appears to still be active for LGBTQ+ communities in Beirut.
• There is also this resource list compiled in the wake of the August 2020 blast.

If you feel comfortable supporting Lebanese individuals directly, Leila is also collecting donations to support multiple loved ones impacted by the crisis in Beirut. As she writes:

“Because banks will not allow funds to be withdrawn beyond small amounts with high fees at set intervals, people who have savings and income are not able to access their money. And because of the various crises, the cost of basic needs has skyrocketed, so whatever they can withdraw is only a fraction of what is needed to survive.  In this broken system, the most reliable economic support is what they call ‘fresh money’ – foreign currency sent from outside the country directly to specific, separate accounts created for that purpose which are not subject to the withdrawal restrictions and exorbitant fees imposed on domestic bank accounts, or the fees on NGOs*. 

You can send a donation via Leila through her Paypal or Venmo (Leila-Buck), or email her at [email protected] for more information, including ways to help without giving money.

---

We know that these are not the only places in the world experiencing intense violence, deprivation, or struggle. We know that the U.S. also experiences these things, and, as a colonial country, has caused and contributed to the suffering in these countries and elsewhere. We welcome additions to the lists above, as well as other regions and diasporas that could use immediate support. Our responsibility as a global theatre ecology requires us to offer care, collaboration, and solidarity across borders. Click here to learn more about TCG’s international work. 

Finally, we offer our thanks to Leila Buck, Rachael Hip-Flores, and Corinna Schulenburg for collecting these resources. Please email Corinna if you have any more to add, or if you’d like us to add a region/diaspora to this global solidarity and support webpage.

Teresa Eyring, Executive Director & CEO || Adrian Budhu, Deputy Director & COO