If You Are So Inclined

Rahela Majidi, the cover artist of my first chapbook Striking Light from Ashes, has put together a GoFundMe for her family members who fled Afghanistan. They are currently being detained in removal camps in Istanbul, and have appealed the decision to deport them back to Afghanistan. Funds will help them with attorney fees and basic needs. Please open the link to read their story. Offer anything you can. Wish them safety and well-being. If you have read this, then you are helping with your attention and concern. Thank you so much.

Warm wishes,
Charise

https://gofund.me/5403e6b4

Portrait

Author and Artist

Meet Rahela Majidi, the artist for the cover of Striking Light from Ashes. She emigrated from Afghanistan to the United States two years ago. She is a self-taught artist, without the luxury of materials or art teachers while living in her native country. Rahela was the only girl from her village to go to university, after passing the required high school exam. And her mission with painting, both oils and watercolors, is "Dreaming Peace through Art". 

In her own words: "As an Afghan woman, I fought for basic rights to education and freedom for myself and many other girls in Afghanistan for a long time. I have since left my beloved country to live in freedom in America. However, everyday, I dream that women in my country will achieve freedom from repression...I have decided to dedicate my life to express this dream through my painting." The image on the cover of the chapbook is titled "Reaching for the Sun". To see more of her work visit: https://www.facebook.com/pg/RahelArts/about/