Wartists

[Omaid Sharifi - امید شریفی @OmaidSharifi]

#Freedom آزادی#
#Afghanistan

[Dr. Lima Halima-Khalil @LimaHalimaKH]

Today, once again, I find myself struggling to find the words to express my feelings. For nearly four years, Afghans have been trapped in a relentless limbo, their lives consumed by a crushing uncertainty shaped by U.S. bipartisan politics. To call Afghan lives pawns in a game of electoral chess feels far too small to capture the weight of this reality. Since August 2021, I’ve carried the burden of witnessing and experiencing countless uncertainties—not just for myself but for my friends, family, colleagues, and community.
I cannot forget what happened to those stuck at the gates of Kabul airport, clinging desperately to the hope that they might escape to safety. Many never made it—hundreds were killed, countless lost their children in the chaos, and thousands were left behind, losing not only their homes but their dreams of a future. In refugee camps, messages flooded in, pleading for answers I didn’t have—families wondering if their tomorrow might hold even the faintest promise of certainty. Today, some families are still scattered across the globe, stranded in hostile or precarious environments, clinging to the hope that the U.S., once their ally, might fulfill its promises to them.

In the past three and a half years, I’ve met U.S. senators who expressed empathy with their words but wielded the Afghan cause as a weapon in their political games, exploiting our suffering to discredit the opposing party. Their concern always felt conditional, their actions fleeting.

I’ve filled out countless forms, attended exhausting meetings, and begged lawyers to help families who couldn’t afford the obscene legal fees demanded of them. I’ve knocked on the doors of charities, leaving no stone unturned, desperate to find even a glimmer of hope. Yet despite all the effort, clarity about what comes next has remained out of reach. Even today, I woke up to the same questions and unrelenting uncertainty. I am scared to look at my phone, and I die every day because I don’t know what to tell anyone asking me what will happen to them and they feel I may be able to help.

I’ve paid rent for Afghan girls in Pakistan who were sexually harassed by their landlords—knowing it might leave me short for my own rent in this country. I’ve watched the dignity of friends and colleagues crumble in refugee camps and neighboring countries, their lives reduced to waiting in squalor for the faint hope of a secure future for themselves and their children.

Why are Afghans considered as illegal immigrants? Thousands of Afghans were put onto planes in August 2021, treated not as people but as problems to be managed. These were allies who served the U.S., people who risked their lives for promises of solidarity and safety. They did not arrive here illegally; they came because they were invited because they were owed. Yet today, they are dehumanized, left in a cruel limbo—floating in a void of fear, uncertainty, and abandonment, victims once again of partisan politics that treat Afghan lives as disposable.

Why are Afghan lives so undervalued? Why must their dignity, their humanity, be questioned again and again?
I don’t know if I’m more sad, angry, helpless, or hopeless—or if I am all of these at once…

[Omaid Sharifi - امید شریفی @OmaidSharifi]

The people of #Afghanistan have endured decades of dehumanization, violence, and exploitation—used as pawns by forces both within the region and beyond. This relentless suffering has stripped us of everything, leaving no strength to endure it any longer. Please take a moment to read this: @realDonaldTrump @marcorubio @afghanevac @DHSgov

[Omaid Sharifi - امید شریفی @OmaidSharifi]

At the @baselpeaceforum, we at @ArtLordsNet collaborated with participants to create a mural titled “Peace Begins in the Imagination.” This interactive art piece symbolized the collective creativity and shared vision required to build a peaceful future.

[Omaid Sharifi - امید شریفی @OmaidSharifi]

At the opening panel of the @baselpeaceforum, I spoke about the transformative power of creating visual alphabets for peace, particularly in spaces and communities long affected by cycles of violence and conflict.

[Omaid Sharifi - امید شریفی @OmaidSharifi]

Afghan refugees feel 'betrayed' by Trump order blocking move to US

https://t.co/7a8Lex2E4Y

[CIVICUS @CIVICUSalliance]

#CIVICUSLens: Check out our latest articles on the end of death penalty in #Zimbabwe 🇿🇼, creative resistance in #Palestine 🇵🇸 & calls for a moratorium on deep-sea mining for metals used in productions like electric vehicle batteries.

Learn more at https://t.co/FoHR5clPd4.

[Omaid Sharifi - امید شریفی @OmaidSharifi]

یک دوست عزیز دارم که هر وقت بحث‌ها احساساتی می‌شد، با لبخند می‌گفت: “شریفی، یک نفس بگیر!”
حالا که به تمام گفتمان‌ها و بحث‌های این روزهای فضای مجازی افغانستان نگاه می‌کنم، می‌بینم که همه ما واقعاً به یک نفس عمیق نیاز داریم.

اگر این وطن با این همه عقده، خشم، نفرت و دشنام آباد می‌شد، شاید امروز وضعیت ما، چه در سطح فردی و چه به‌عنوان یک کشور، بهتر می‌بود. اما واقعیت این است که تا نیت‌هایمان را پاک نکنیم و با ذهن باز و احترام متقابل وارد بحث‌ها نشویم، فضای مجازی هم تبدیل به بازتاب همان بحث‌ها و مشاجرات سطحی و تند تیک‌تاکی خواهد شد.

بیایید کمی به خودمان و به کسانی که از ما تأثیر می‌گیرند و نوشته‌ها و گفته‌های ما را می‌خوانند و می‌شنوند، رحم کنیم. ما می‌توانیم بحث کنیم، اما با احترام، برای ساختن فضایی بهتر، هم برای خودمان و هم برای دیگران.

[Rep. Tim Burchett Press Office @RepTimBurchett]

Today, I introduced the 'No Tax Dollars for Terrorists Act' to ensure US tax dollars are not funding the TALIBAN.

Here's what the bill does:

1) Forces the State Dept to develop and implement a policy to oppose any foreign aid from going to the Taliban.

2) Requires a report on any cash assistance programs in Afghanistan and how the US keeps the Taliban from gaining access.

3) Requires a report on the Afghan Fund and the Afghanistan central bank.

It is crazy that legislation like this needs to be introduced in the first place.

[ArtLords-هنرسالار @ArtLordsNet]

Read @OmaidSharifi's interview and see #ArtLords pictures and their stories in this issue of @AdiMagazine

[NEDemocracy @NEDemocracy]

On #HumanRightsDay, NED celebrates our grantees around the world who are working to promote and protect human, civic and political rights, including freedom of expression, freedom of information, freedom of religion, freedom of association, and more.

[Omaid Sharifi - امید شریفی @OmaidSharifi]

وای که دا کمپاینونه د سراج‌حقاني لپاره جوړ شوي وي، چې ګواکي د هبت الله سره مخالفت کوي! ښه نو، پایله یې نن ښکاره شوه؛ ترهګر یوازې په چاودنه او ځانمرګي برید پوهېږي. پرون یې نیوکه وه، نن یې کاکا د خپل ابدي آرمان سره یو ځای شو.

[Omaid Sharifi - امید شریفی @OmaidSharifi]

I had a conversation with Adi Magazine @farahstlouis about exile, artivism, and the work of @ArtLordsNet. https://t.co/9UwIjjqWLr via @Adi_Magazine

[Amnesty International South Asia, Regional Office @amnestysasia]

Afghan women and girls are enduring a relentless assault on their rights under Taliban rule. The world cannot remain silent.

Take action and sign our petition:
https://t.co/VbWqDEC02Q

#Endgenderpersecution
#16DaysOfActivism

[Omaid Sharifi - امید شریفی @OmaidSharifi]

Our flagship report at @CIVICUSalliance, The People Power Under Attack Report 2024, assessing civic space conditions in 198 countries and territories, has been released. Key findings include:
· Protesters were detained in 76 countries, making it the most common violation of civic freedoms in 2024.
· Over 70% of the world’s population lives in countries rated as Repressed or Closed.
· Violations dominate, with Palestine solidarity protests suppressed even in several democracies.
Rating Changes:
Worsened: Eswatini, Ethiopia, and the Occupied Palestinian Territories were downgraded to the Closed category, the worst rating.
Repressed: Burkina Faso, Kenya, and Peru were downgraded to the Repressed category, the second-worst rating.
Improved: Jamaica, Japan, Slovenia, and Trinidad and Tobago moved to the Open category.
Progress Noted: Bangladesh, Botswana, Fiji, and Poland showed civic space improvements.
This report highlights the urgent need to address growing restrictions on civic freedoms worldwide.
https://t.co/iyYOJO3bam

[Maiwand Rahyab @RahyabMaiwand]

Thanks @OmaidSharifi for your friendship and support. Team @ArtLordsNet contributions to the event was significant and meaningful, and helped us realize the power of art and artists in resisting repression and tyranny.

[ArtLords-هنرسالار @ArtLordsNet]

Congratulations to our partners, @EquitasIntl and @ResSocieties, on the launch of the Resilience Network at @MasseyCollege in Toronto, Canada.
To express our solidarity and support, #ArtLords organized a mini-exhibition showcasing our artworks. Through this exhibition, we highlighted how we use artivism as a powerful tool to drive positive social change and stand against tyranny and extremism.

[Omaid Sharifi - امید شریفی @OmaidSharifi]

I am very pleased to have had the opportunity to share my thoughts and lived experiences with @ArtLordsNet at the @FletcherSchool’s Conference on Gender and International Affairs during the panel, Resilience and Liberation Through Art: Art as a Tool for Social Change.

[ArtLords-هنرسالار @ArtLordsNet]

غلام

[NEDemocracy @NEDemocracy]

Since its founding, NED has advanced President Reagan’s vision from his Westminster Address: “We must be staunch in our conviction that freedom is not the sole prerogative of a lucky few, but the inalienable and universal right of all human beings." https://t.co/ZLOmxQk5eq