When Hussein didn't physically attack the Kurds he used psychological forms of oppression.
Like other Kurdish schoolchildren living in Sulaymaniyah, 18 year-old Omar was banned from speaking the Kurdish language at school. Hussein enforced all Kurds in the region to speak Arabic.
"I was forced to learn Arabic. I don't have a problem with that, but Saddam [didn't] allow us to have any option to practice our language," Omar says.
Omar was in 12th grade when the Hussein invaded Kuwait. When all Iraqi schools closed for the academic year, Omar studied at home.
"It was a dangerous time, looting and stealing was common. People broke our windows and doors," Omar says. "Kind of like what's happening now [in Iraq]."
The comparisons Omar sees on U.S. television nowadays rekindle memories when she lived in her homeland during the first Gulf War.
"We experienced things that are happening in Baghdad right now, with no water and no electricity. When you don't have those things, you don't have life." Omar said. "It takes lots of time to rebuild. Each day [after the war ended], things got better."
At the end of the school year, Omar and other 12 th grade Iraqis had a choice --to take the school graduation exam or to repeat the academic year. Omar took the exam to attend college. However, Hussein's regime enforced strict laws preventing Kurds from attending certain schools located in other parts of Iraq. Hussein's policies enforced the division and isolation of the Kurdish people from the other parts of Iraq.
CHOOSING A SUBJECT TO STUDY AT COLLEGE
Once she passed the exam, Omar faced another obstacle. As a child, Omar dreamed of studying politics. Her father was a politician and she says she and her parents always talked about the news at home. Omar could study politics in Baghdad, but it would be a risky decision to leave the U.S. protected area of northern Iraq. She cried when she made the agonizing decision to attend a school closest to her home did not offer a degree in politics. She says she was not passionate studying biology at Irbil's University of Education, but it was one of her few options as an Iraqi Kurd.
Omar's supervisor, Dr. Mohammad Sabir Ismail, says that his family experienced Saddam's wrath when he decided to study outside the country.
"They [Hussein's regime] imprisoned my family for years...to try to force me to come back to Iraq," Ismail winces and his voice cracks. When Ismail finished his university studies, he also immigrated to the United States as a Kurdish refugee.
AN UNEXPECTED TRIP
Weeks after graduating college, Omar found work translating documents for the U.S. government. After Hussein announced his plans for attacking Irbil in 1996, Omar and approximately 7,000 other Kurds met the U.S. military on the border between Iraq and Turkey.
"They had our names, our pictures, our fingerprints circulated throughout Turkey and if [the Kurds] were to try to go back we would be investigated and we didn't want to know what could happen to us," Omar says.
After U.S. officials unsuccessfully negotiated with the Turkish government to permit the refugees to enter Turkey, Omar and boarded a U.S. military plane destined for a U.S. base in Guam.
"It was a very difficult decision [to leave Iraq] for all of us, but we didn't have a choice." Lina says.
Omar stayed 3 months in Guam. She lived in a tiny home with six other Kurdish refugee families. The U.S. government provided clothes, food, and shelter to the refugees staying on the military base.
"It was very tough and we had a difficult time, but the American armies were nice to us," Omar says. "But we did not know how long we would stay there."
Then one day, Omar remembers when the U.S. government said all Kurdish refugees living in Guam could relocate to any U.S. destination they wanted. Omar decided to move to Virginia.
"The only thing I knew about Virginia was that 'Virginia is for lovers,' " she says with a smile. "And I believe in love."
With $1,000 dollars and a green card issued by the U.S. government, Omar began her new life as a Kurdish immigrant. Omar found love when she met her Jordanian husband while attending Strayer University to earn her masters degree in computer programming.
ADJUSTING TO A NEW LIFE-STYLE
As Omar adjusted to her new life in the United States, she found work teaching 7 th grade science for 6 years at Washington International School.
A longtime friend and former coworker at Washington International School, Erini Gouleta says, " [Omar] is a very sweet and gentle person who is resilient despite the odds and problems she has faced."
Omar says that the adjustment was easier than she expected because her family emigrated several months after she moved to Virginia. She was happy working as a teacher, but she still yearned to help her country.
A NEW CAREER OPPORTUNITY
In July 2003, Omar took her father's advice and applied to an open position at the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) office in Washington D.C. to help the representative with administrative tasks.
As the D.C. PUK representative's assistant she meets with Congressional members and Bush Administration representative on a weekly basis. Collaborating with U.S. officials, she is helping create a plan to build an American university in northern Iraq. Omar hopes it will be a place where Kurds can study politics.
"I love helping my country, this is what I dreamed about all my life," Omar says.
Omar is also a member of 'Women for a Free Iraq' organization which she says helps to integrate women's influence into Iraq's development programs.
Last month, Omar escorted the female members of Iraqi governing counsel around Washington DC when they met with high government officials, including President Bush. Although Omar would not discuss details of her meetings with the women from the Iraqi governing counsel, she is optimistic for the future of Iraq.
"This is a time when we as Kurds need to help Iraq because this is a time when our country needs our help. We have to be appreciative of the Americans to help rebuild our country." Omar says. "The Iraqi people are happy but we are still afraid--Where's Saddam? Where's he hiding? Day by day [this fear], will go away."
When some critics doubt the reconstruction progress in Iraq, Omar remains supportive of U.S. efforts. As the international community mourns the deaths of U.S. soldiers, Omar sympathizes with the soldiers who protect her homeland.
"When I hear about American soldiers who are killed, I cry. I see how sad [American] soldiers are who come home for two weeks. When they have to go back, I see in their eyes how sad they are [to go back to Iraq]." Omar says, "That's why I appreciate Americans, very, very much. Everyday, we [the Kurds] wake up and say--Thank you, God. Thank you, America. We will never forget."###
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