Standing in front of 40 religious and academic leaders in Najaf, Iraq this summer, I wondered how they would react to the presentation I was about to give. I was an unarmed, Christian American spending five weeks in Iraq with the Muslim Peacemaker Teams, or MPT. The topic of my presentation was the relationship between Iraqis and Americans and the possibility of “reconciliation.”
I lived for five weeks in June and July of 2011 at the home of my friend and colleague, Sami Rasouli, in Najaf, a city about two hours south of Baghdad. Most Iraqis told me they were eager if somewhat nervous for the end of the American occupation but also eager to build stronger relationships with the American people.
While in Iraq, not once did I enter the Green Zone or an American military base. Invited by Sami, I helped teach English classes in Najaf and visited families in Najaf, Karbala, Baghdad and Basra. I met artists, business professionals, farmers, university professors and others. All welcomed me with smiles and generous hospitality.
Recently, MPT began hosting Americans to live and work in Iraq, just as the Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project has hosted dozens of Iraqis in American homes over the past few years. The project is small compared to the scope of the Iraq War, but it affirms our shared desire for peace and our common humanity despite the war.
The Iraqis who hosted me demonstrate an amazing capacity to focus on the future. For them, the war is not over, and there is no time to dwell on the past, not for the millions who still lack reliable access to clean water and electricity or dealing with trauma-related disorders.
After my presentation in Najaf, a microphone was passed around the room for comments. Nearly all welcomed me warmly to Najaf, but nearly all also rejected the possibility of reconciliation with Americans until the U.S. military left Iraq, and Americans worked in long-term partnerships with Iraqis to help rebuild Iraq.
With the U.S. military now officially out of Iraq, will Americans forget about our war in Iraq and its consequences? Or will we work with Iraqis in the coming years and decades to support the recovery of a country we helped destroy?
Luke Wilcox, Development and Communications Director of the Iraqi and American Reconciliation Project in Minneapolis, MN.
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