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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
A RESOLUTION HONORING ARAB AMERICAN FAMILY SERVICES
WHEREAS, April is National Arab American Heritage Month, which celebrates the history, culture, and people and the many contributions Arab Americans have made to our country; and
WHEREAS, in light of this celebration it is important to honor the people and organizations that make many contributions in Cook County, such as Arab American Family Services (AAFS); and
WHEREAS, AAFS was established in 2001 by Itedal Shalabi and Nareman Taha and was registered with the State of Illinois in January 2001; and
WHEREAS, the philosophy of AAFS is to help participants find solutions and to build a culture of learning and sharing that empowers individuals, families, local leadership, and institutions, as well as to reduce the cultural, religious, and linguistic barriers that limit Arab Americans from accessing services and opportunities for personal growth; and
WHEREAS, in early 2001, they opened a one-room office at 64th and Pulaski in Chicago with just enough space for two desks and filing cabinets; They started showing up at every community gathering and government agency meeting they could find and went to mosques and churches and schools and hospitals, even sitting down with families in the parks and in their homes to listen to their concerns and learn of their needs, and during these meetings, they experienced the intense suffering and fear in many Arab and Muslim women and asked how AAFS might help; and
WHEREAS, Itedal and Nareman began helping women to complete immigration forms, finding domestic violence shelters for those abused, providing parents with translation services at school meetings, and advocating for services with government agencies, striving to provide services based on client eligibility and proper legal procedures; and
WHEREAS, their work conducting awareness programs for government officials and agencies, as well as other mainstream organizations to combat negative i...
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