Washington -- On Tuesday April 15, Members of the Chaldean Assyrian Syriac Council of America (CASCA) will join Caucus Chairmen, Representative Anna Eshoo (D, CA) and Representative Frank Wolf (R, VA) at the Inaugural Reception for the House Caucus on Religious Minorities in the Middle East.

Other members of the caucus include Representatives Joe Knollenberg, Howard Berman, Ray LaHood, Joseph R. Pitts, and Dave Weldon. They will be joined by constituents and advocates from several non-profit and religious institutions, including a recent Iraqi refugee, Julet Yousef. The Inaugural Reception is the capstone of a weeklong series of events bringing advocates from all over the nation to explore the plight of Iraq's displaced minorities and work directly with Federal policymakers to address the communities' unique challenges.

Iraq's true minorities are being driven from their homes and communities all across Iraq. Tuesday's event will bring awareness to the violence, economic and social displacement of Iraq's religious minorities that drove them from their homes in Baghdad and other, once-integrated Iraqi cities. Iraqi religious minorities will participate in the Caucus Reception along with a screening of a recent 60 Minutes segment that highlights the difficulties Christians are facing in Iraq.

WHO

Congresswoman Anna Eshoo (D, CA)
Congressman Frank Wolf (R, VA)
The Chaldean Assyrian Syriac Council of America
Christian Solidarity International
The Center for Religious Freedom of the Hudson Institute

WHAT

Inaugural Reception for House Caucus on Religious Minorities in the Middle East

WHEN

Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Program and Reception begin at 6:00 p.m.

WHERE

Rayburn House Office Building, Basement Room 338

Chaldean Assyrian Syriac Council of America

CASCA was formed in 2007 to educate U.S. policymakers on the plight of Iraq's Chaldean/Assyrian/Syriac Christian minorities and to advocate for policies that will support stability, security, aid, and reconstruction relief within Iraq and assistance and resettlement of the most vulnerable refugees of this fragile population outside Iraq. CASCA joins the Christian Solidarity International and the Center for Religious Freedom of the Hudson Institute in hosting Members of Congress at the reception.