[LCM Events] Lebanese Awareness Week

[Loai Naamani]

Hello all,

In a couple of weeks, the LCM is planning to hold its annual Lebanese Cultural Week in Lobby 10 of MIT's Infinite Corridor. The
2-day event coincides with the 30-year Lebanese War memorial on April 13th. Given the date and recent developments in Lebanon, the
Executive Committee has decided to restructure and use this opportunity to educate the MIT community on the Lebanese cause and
garner their support on a number of stances we'd like to advance.

We have 4 booths reserved - half of the Lobby 10 area - for Wednesday the 13th and Thursday the 14th of April from 9 to 5. This
space should be sufficient to feature a number of tentative themes we plan to promote one way or another (through slideshows,
projections, LCD navigation booths, informational flyers, etc...):



-         30-Years Since (not a revisit of the war; just emphasizing how far Lebanon has come since and how united we stand today
through highlighting the second headline...)

 

-         People Power (through visual coverage of the historic protests that have shaken Lebanon recently)

 

-         Remembering Hariri (who he was, what he did for Lebanon, what his loss meant and sparked, etc... a modest educational
memorial)

 

-         Lebanon the Message (a polished portrayal of Lebanon's uniqueness, beauty, history, culture, etc... similar in form and
content to what the Cultural Week is usually about)

 

-         Lend Us Your Voice (through providing a statement of demands that passersby would read and support; signatures would be
gathered on a large Lebanese flag, a dynamic and symbolic activity in itself)


The booths would also feature live Fairouz music, Hallab sweets, free distribution of MEA's Enjoy Lebanon CD (also navigable on LCD
screens at the booth), continuously running the Guide to Lebanon DVD, the Beirut's Memory and Lebanon 3D poster-size books, the
Ministry of Tourism brochures and booklets, the blue 'Truth' ribbons and pins circulated in Lebanon, custom-prepared informational
leaflets about the various themes, among many other creative ideas we'd value your help in suggesting and preparing.

Your physical presence during those 2 days to the extent possible would also be instrumental in effectively putting our message
through to the MIT community at large.

The Harvard Kennedy School Arab Caucus, recently founded and run by Lebanese friends of ours, has kindly expressed its support and
willingness to attend this event. Their presentation about Lebanon and its current challenges last week was very informative and
would be a great addition to the other featured activities.

You are all welcome to our first planning meeting this Tuesday at 8pm in the Stratton Stu dent Center at 8pm (W20). Please respond
to this email indicating whether you'll be able to attend the meeting, help prepare for the Awareness Week, and/or be present at the
booths on April 12-13.


Thank you,
L.

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