CityDance Ensemble. Photo credit: Paul Gordon Emerson.

Tomorrow afternoon from 4-5:30pm, the U.S. Helsinki Commission will host a panel discussion on the plight of Iraqi refugees, the largest displacement in the Middle East since 1948. Free and open to the public at the Capitol Visitor Center’s Main Auditorium, the program will highlight the condition of approximately two million Iraqis straining the resources of their host countries.

As part of the event, CityDance Ensemble will perform Wishes of a Sailor, a piece inspired by their recent tour through the region where they visited Iraqi refugee communities in Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.

CityDance’s own Paul Gordon Emerson will participate in the panel along with U.S. Helsinki Commission chair Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD), Rep. Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL), and Dr. Michael Gabaudan of the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees.

The refugee situation is dangerous not just because of the human suffering involved, but the risks it presents to the region’s already delicate security. Be inspired by the dance, and learn more at the U.S. Helsinki Commission.