The Direct Aid Initiative

The Direct Aid Initiative is an initiative of Electronic Iraq intended to build bridges of friendship and support with Iraqis displaced as the result of the ongoing Iraqi crises. Through providing funds for crucial medical expenses, supporting small-scale projects to build the capacity of the Iraqi community in exile, and assisting with other crucial needs to help families overcome some of the many hardships they face, the Direct Aid Initiative seeks to model another relationship between Iraqis and Americans—one which has as its foundation the fundamental rights and dignity of the Iraqi people. We seek to support Iraqis in building a future for Iraq where the diverse experiences of Iraq’s people can make diverse dreams into shared realities of security, prosperity, and peace.

Working with a team of Iraqis, Americans, and others based in Jordan and the United States, the Direct Aid Initiative works closely in consultation with the refugee community to ensure that aid is targeted where it can be most useful, promotes collaboration between the various Iraqi communities, and increases the self-sufficiency and resilience of our partners.

Where possible, our intention is to patiently facilitate long-term relationships of trust and communication between Iraqi and American families. In this way, we believe this initiative can play a significant role in bringing the voices, concerns, and perspectives of Iraqis more fully into the discourse on Iraq in the United States, allowing US-based advocacy to move beyond antiwar positions to supporting a future of peace for Iraq and an engagement with the Iraqi people that is not solely predicated on a US military presence.

This effort is not intended as charity. Rather, it is an attempt at ongoing restitution to Iraqis for all that has been lost as a result of devastating sanctions, the 2003 invasion, and the ongoing occupation, and an investment on the long path of building a future of friendship between our two peoples.

Donations to the Direct Aid Initiative are tax deductable.

Checks can be sent to DAI care of the Middle East Cultural and Charitable Society:

MECCS/DAI

P.O. Box 382425

Cambridge, MA 02238

For more information, contact Direct Aid Initiative Coordinator Noah Merrill.