Arts
Complete show notes at www.rainbowstarmusic.com/episode12 ABOUT JEWHER ILHAM Jewher Ilham is an author, activist, & daughter of Uyghur scholar, Ilham Tohti, an internationally noted moderate voice who was dedicated to bridging the gap between the Uyghur people and the Han Chinese. Jewher arrived in the United States in 2013, following the detention of her father at the Beijing airport, as they were prepared to travel to Indiana University for Professor Tohti’s fellowship. This was the last time she saw her father. At eighteen years old, with little English and no plan, and unable to return safely to China, Jewher found herself having to start a new life in Bloomington, Indiana. Meanwhile, her father’s situation worsened. In September of 2014, he was given an unprecedented life sentence based on the writings on his website, Uyghur Online, that promoted peaceful co-existence between the Uyghur people and Han Chinese. His conviction and sentence swiftly were condemned by the then-Obama White House and leaders throughout Europe and the EU. During the period between her father’s arrest and sentencing, Jewher enrolled as a student at Indiana University. As an advocate for her father, she testified before the U.S. Congressional-Executive Committee on China, wrote op-eds in the New York Times, met with a number of government officials including former Secretary of State John Kerry, and received numerous awards worldwide on behalf of her father. In 2015, she recounted her experiences in her book, Jewher Ilham: A Uyghur’s Fight to Free Her Father (University of New Orleans Press). She was invited to be the key speaker at 2019 Ministerial to advance religious freedom hosted by Pompeo, the Secretary of State. During the week of the 2019 Ministerial to Advance religious freedom event, she was also invited to the White House to speak to the President on the Uyghur issue. Following that, she had the opportunity to speak at the UN general assembly on the atrocities the Chinese government is committing on the Uyghurs. In December 2019, Jewher accepted the Sakharov Prize on behalf of her father and urged the European Parliament to take a stand and hold the Chinese government accountable. Jewher graduated with her bachelors degree at Indiana University in May 2019. S She is currently taking a year off to assist on a documentary film (‘Static & Noise’) about Uyghurs, as well as to continue to advocate on behalf of her father. LINKS * Follow Jewher Ilham on Instagram * Support the Documentary ‘Static & Noise’ that Jewher Ilham is helping create * Purchase Ilham’s book, “Jewher Ilham: An Uyghur’s Fight to Free Her Father” * Visit the Wikipedia on Jewher’s father, Ilham Tohti --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/rainbow-star/message