Urban Institute - Afghan Resettlement Status We are pleased to welcome Diana Guelespe, PhD, Urban Institute, and Jessica Darrow, PhD, University of Chicago, to BPB’s Learning Luncheon which focuses on the status of Afghan Resettlement. The Urban Institute and The Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice, at the University of Chicago recently […]

We are thrilled to welcome Stephanie Saldaña to talk about her book, What We Remember Will Be Saved: A Story of Refugees and the Things They Carry. Eggplant seeds, a lullaby in a vanishing language, an embroidered dress. When people flee their homes, the things they save speak of beauty and suffering and the indomitable […]

We are thrilled to partner with the Syrian Community Network in welcoming Dr. Nour Akhras to talk about her new book, Just One: A Journey of Perseverance and Conviction,  which chronicles the life of Dr. Akhras, a Syrian American doctor. Dr. Akhras is a pediatric infectious diseases physician, one of only 1,500 in the United […]

We are thrilled to welcome Sola Mahfouz to talk about her new book, Defiant Dreams, a searing, deeply personal memoir of a tenacious Afghan girl who educated herself behind closed doors and fought her way to a new life. Sola Mahfouz, born in Afghanistan in 1996, faced immense hardships under the Taliban's rule, being denied […]

BPB invites you to discuss the inspiring story of sisters Yusra and Sarah Mardini on Zoom on Wednesday, April 26 at 7 p.m. This quarter, there are two ways to engage before our discussion: Read Yusra Mardini's memoir "Butterfly: From Refugee to Olympian - My Story of Rescue, Hope and Triumph." Or, you can watch the biographical sports drama The Swimmers. […]

Call to Action NEW! Donate using Zelle. Now, you can donate using Zelle. Using this method means that more of your donation goes to helping refugees as there are no fees with Zelle (Cedit Card payments deduct a fee). Our Zelle email: finance@buildingpeacefulbridges.org Of course, if you don't use Zelle, please use the form to […]

Reading Refuge Book Club: "We Are Displaced" by Malala Yousafzai. We are excited to welcome Zaynab Abdi, a young woman who was born in Somalia, grew up in Yemen and is now a U.S. citizen. She will join us to discuss We are Displaced, by Malala Yousafzai. Zaynab is one of the young women who […]

Building Peaceful Bridges (BPB) is excited to welcome Bela Suhayda at our next Reading Refuge Book Club, Wednesday, March 30th at 7:00 pm to discuss his book, From Tyranny to Liberty, A Personal Story. Bela authored From Tyranny to Liberty, a harrowing story of his family's escape from their Hungarian homeland after the Communist Russia invasion […]

Housing Challenges for Afghan Newcomers.Join us for a panel discussion on the housing issues that face the new influx of Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holders and evacuees from Afghanistan. As hundreds of new Afghan evacuees are welcomed to the Chicagoland area, housing has emerged as the most difficult part of the resettlement process. Added to […]