Welcome to Episode 34 of The Afghanistan Project Podcast,
where hosts Mikael Cook and Beth Bailey highlight the struggles of Afghans living under Taliban rule, and the efforts of individuals from a variety of backgrounds and political affiliations who have stepped up to provide support to the people of Afghanistan in the chaos that followed the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Our guest, Joan Barker, is a former Peace Corps volunteer
who taught English to Afghan Air Force personnel from 2017 and 2018 in an effort to make the Afghan military more self-sustaining in preparation for Americans to depart the country. Joan talks about her experience working alongside Afghans, and how it led her to join the #DigitalDunkirk effort to find U.S. allies a pathway out of Afghanistan during the U.S. withdrawal in August 2021. Joan also talks about her work supporting Afghan refugees in Operation Allies Welcome, and advocating for moral injury recovery among those who felt a deep shame as a result of the devastation wrought during and after our Afghanistan departure.
Our story this week comes from an Afghan whom we are calling
Obaidullah. Obaidullah shared the story of his father, a former Special Forces member, who received disarmament papers from the Taliban but did not trust that the Taliban would not find and kill him for his work supporting the former Afghan government. He fled to Pakistan without legal paperwork, and now is concerned about being arrested and deported to Afghanistan, where his life is once more at risk.
 
About Joan Barker:

Follow Joan on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/joan__barker/)
or Twitter (https://twitter.com/ms_joan777)

You can find Joan’s opinion pieces by following her linktree
here: https://linktr.ee/joan.e.barker?utm_source=linktree_admin_share
 
About the hosts:

Mikael Cook was an Army non-commissioned officer and veteran
of the war in Afghanistan. He was an active member of the #DigitalDunkirk movement to evacuate our Afghan allies in August of 2021. You can follow his Instagram @Mikaelcook89.

Beth Bailey worked in support of Afghanistan operations
as a civilian intelligence analyst for the Department of the Army between 2010 and 2013. She is a freelance contributor to Fox News Digital and the Washington Examiner. Follow her on Instagram @BWBailey85 or Twitter @BWBailey85.

For listeners in Afghanistan:

If you would like to have your story considered for a future
episode, please send us a letter about your experiences to our show e-mail address, [email protected].
Please include as much detail as possible, and let us know if you would like us to give you a pseudonym to protect your identity.

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