Coptic Solidarity will host its 12th Annual Conference The Coptic Problem: Hate Based on Religion in Washington, D.C., June 13-14.
The Policy Day will be hosted on Thursday, June 13 in the Cannon Caucus Room of the US House of Representatives. The conference will continue on June 14 at the Hilton Springfield.
June 13 Policy Day
Cannon Caucus Room, US House of Representatives
9:30 AM Welcome by Master of Ceremonies
Speaker: Yigal Carmon – Founder and President Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) Religious Minorities Facing Existential Threat 10 Years After Rise of ISIS
Speaker: Eric Ueland – Vice Chair, US Commission on International Religious Freedom
Session: Overcoming Challenges: Compound Persecution of Women
Moderator: Hulda Fahmi – International Director, Set My People Free
Judith E. Golub – Co-Founder FoRB Women’s Alliance
Caroline Doss JD – President, Coptic Solidarity
Jamileh Naso – Co-founder & President, Canadian Yezidi Association
Hilary Miller – Researcher, US Commission on International Religious Freedom
US Representative Jim McGovern (D – MA)
Speaker: Ensaf Haidar – Saudi-Canadian human rights activist, Author, Wife of former Saudi prisoner of conscience, Raif Badawi
Lunch
Coptic Solidarity Annual Leadership Award Presentation
Speaker: HE Emanual Hana Shaleta, Bishop of the Chaldean Catholic Diocese of St. Peter the Apostle in West USA will be speaking and receiving award on behalf of Chaldean Patriarch Louis Raphaël Sako
Session: Lessons in Protecting Cultural Heritage
Moderator: Mariam Wahba – Associate Director of Communications, Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Michael Akladios PhD – Founder & Executive Director, Egypt Migrations
Sarah Levin – Executive Director, JIMENA
David Daoud JD – Senior Fellow, Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Speaker: US Representative French Hill
Session: Current Dynamics: Indigenous & Religious Minorities in the Middle East
Moderator: Raymond Ibrahim – Author, Public Speaker, Middle East and Islam specialist
Ambassador Alberto Fernandez – Vice President, MEMRI
Rachid Hammami – Author & Host of With Clarity Weekly TV Program
Hussein Aboubakr Mansour – Senior Fellow at the Jerusalem Center for Foreign Affairs
Speaker: Ambassador Nathan Sales – Former acting Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights
US Representative Gus Bilirakis (R-FL)
Speaker: Lindsay Rodriguez – Director of Development & Advocacy, Coptic Solidarity Providing an Overview of Coptic Solidarity’s Work & Closing
June 14 Hotel Day at Hilton Springfield
6550 Loisdale Rd. Springfield, VA 22150
9:30 AM Welcome by Master of Ceremonies
Speaker: Christo Heiberg – Author and Minister
Speaker: Aram Suren Hamparian – Executive Director, Armenian National Committee of America
Session: Minority Voices: 10 Years Since the Rise of ISIS
Moderator: Magdi Khalil – Political & Strategic Analyst for International Affairs; Co-founder of Coptic Solidarity & Co-found of Middle East Freedom Forum
Rasmin Toma – President DC Chapter, Assyrian Aid
Nafiya Naso – Settlement Coordinator, Operation Ezra
Gabriel Sawma JD– Attorney, Professor & Specialist in Shari’a Divorce and Finance
Speaker: Raymond Ibrahim – Author, Public Speaker, and Middle East and Islam specialist
Lunch
Speaker: Sarah Raviani – Fellow & Engagement Coordinator, National Union for Democracy in Iran
Coptic Solidarity Award Presentation
Speaker: Tereza Haroun – Founder of The Panorama El-Barsha Troupe featured in The Brink of Dreams which won the L’Œil d’or (Golden Eye Award) for Best Documentary at the 77th Cannes Film Festival
Break
Session & Workshop: Empowering Coptic Youth Activists
Beshoy Botros PharmD – Candidate PhD in Government, Regent University; MA Law & Public Policy
Fady Nakhla – Candidate MA International Affairs, concentration in Middle Eastern Studies, George Washington University; Legal Assistant, Word Organization
Merna Nakhla – Candidate MA International Affairs, concentration in Middle Eastern Studies, George Washington University; Researcher, Word Organization
Mariam Wahba -Associate Director of Communications, Foundation for Defense of Democracies
