Women for Afghan Women
PRESS RELEASE
October 21st, 2005
For immediate release:

Contact:
Manizha Naderi
(718) 321-2434
Manizha26@earthlink.net

Margaret Keady
(347) 678-0201
Mkeady@bway.net


Afghan Women’s Photography Exhibit Premiers at Queens Museum of Art
Photo and interview opportunities available

Women for Afghan Women is proud to announce “unseenamerica: Beyond The Window,” a photography project by the Afghan women of Queens.

Exhibition at the Queens Museum of Art: Oct. 24 to Nov. 24
Artist Reception at the Queens Museum: November 6, 2005; 4-6pm

Afghan women’s experiences have been discussed and hotly contested in media and American culture since September 11, 2001, but rarely have Afghan women been given spaces to speak for themselves in the public debate about their lives. In “unseenamerica: Beyond the Window,” a new exhibit at the Queens Museum of Art, Afghan women from Queens, New York use photography as a means of creative self-expression. Through the exhibit, Afghan women offer a photographic record of their lives, speaking through the lens in their own unique voices.

“unseenamerica: Beyond the Window” is organized by Women for Afghan Women (WAW), an organization of Afghan and non-Afghan women in the New York area who are committed to ensuring the human rights of Afghan women. WAW’s goal is the empowerment of Afghan women, which means ending the silence and invisibility that have been the most effective tools of their suppression. WAW teaches ESL classes and helps Afghan women navigate their way through daunting housing, health, immigration and educational systems.

Debuting on October 24 and running through November 24, this exhibit will help dissolve myths and stereotypes about Afghan women, who are largely "unseen" beyond their domestic environments.

“unseenamerica: Beyond the Window” is a national project of Bread & Roses Cultural Project that gives cameras, lessons, and exhibits to the scores of people who have no public voice and little visibility in the larger culture.

Photo and interview opportunities are available on request, and at the artist’s reception at the Queens Museum of Art on November 6 from 4-6pm.