Humanitarian Crisis in Afghanistan Raises Fears in Bay Area Afghan Community

KQED's Forum

KQED

News, News Commentary, Politics

4.2 • 727 Ratings

🗓️ 18 December 2021

⏱️ 56 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The searing images of Afghans desperate to get on to planes leaving Kabul brought the world’s attention to the crisis created in part by the American withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan in August. In the four months that have passed, the Taliban have solidified their rule, the international community has responded with sanctions and asset freezes of funds, and a humanitarian crisis of epic proportions has begun unfolding. According to the United Nations, “nearly 23 million people – that is 55% of the population – are facing extreme levels of hunger and nearly 9 million of them are at risk of famine.” The Bay Area is home to one of the largest enclaves of Afghan Americans, and that community has been working tirelessly to help new arrivals and to offer assistance to a country in tatters. As the intensifying crisis nearly disappears from American media coverage, we talk to an Afghan refugee about her fraught journey to leave the country she loves and her community’s struggle to resettle, and we’ll discuss the humanitarian crisis facing those left behind. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Support for Forum comes from Rancho La Puerta, boated the number one wellness resort and spa by readers of travel and leisure magazine in 2024.
0:09.7	In August, three or four people sharing a cassita enjoy special vacation packages that include hiking, mindfulness, and fitness classes, in a garden setting on 4,000 verdant acres of nature preserve.
0:22.4	Check in to summer at Rancho LaPorta, Rancho LaPoerta.com.
0:26.6	Support for Forum comes from Broadway SF, presenting Parade, the musical revival based on a true story.
0:34.4	From three-time Tony-winning composer Jason Robert Brown comes the story of Leo and Lucille Frank,
0:40.6	a newlywed Jewish couple struggling to make a life in Georgia. When Leo is accused of an
0:46.3	unspeakable crime, it propels them into an unimaginable test of faith, humanity, justice, and
0:53.2	devotion.
1:02.1	The riveting and gloriously hopeful parade plays the Orpheum Theater for three weeks only, May 20th through June 8th.
1:06.4	Tickets on sale now at Broadway, sF.com.
1:09.0	From KQED. From KQED.
1:24.2	From KQED in San Francisco, I'm Alexis Madrigal.
1:29.1	Wagagani worked for NPR in Afghanistan, and so when the Taliban took Kabul,
1:33.5	she was able to get out with the help of NPR and other news organizations. While for many Americans, the airlift might have been the end of the story. For Ghani, it was only the beginning.
1:38.4	She gave up everything. My house. I had dogs. I left my cat. I miss everything about my home. Everything.
1:47.6	She joins a panel today to walk us through what the last six months have been like as we take stock of the situation for Afghans resettling here in the U.S.
1:55.7	And those now under Taliban rule in Afghanistan. That's all next after this news.
2:09.2	Welcome to Forum.
2:10.5	I'm Alexis Madrigal.
2:13.8	The American media's memory can be shockingly short.
2:18.8	Just a few months ago, the crisis in Afghanistan, as the United States pulled its troops and the Taliban rapidly took over the country, was all over the news. Images of desperate people
2:24.6	trying to get out of Kabul dominated coverage. Now, not so much. But this hour, we want to pull
	...

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