Tima Kurdi (born 1970) is a Syrian-Canadian author and human rights activist. Born in Damascus, she moved to Canada as a young adult and is based in Coquitlam, British Columbia. Kurdi is the author of The Boy on the Beach, which documents the circumstances that led to the death of her nephews Ghalib and Alan Kurdi, and their mother, Rehanna as they fled the Syrian civil war.
Tima Kurdi | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1970 Damascus, Syria |
| Nationality | Syrian, Canadian |
| Organization | The Kurdi Foundation |
| Known for | Refugee rights advocacy, writing |
| Notable work | The Boy on the Beach (2019 memoir) |
| Family | Alan Kurdi (nephew) |
Early life and education
editKurdi was born in 1970 and grew up in a Kurdish family in Damascus, Syria.[1][2] She emigrated to Canada in 1992, at the age of 22 years.[3][4]
Adult life
editKurdi is the founder of The Kurdi Foundation, through which she advocates for Canadians to be mindful of the needs of refugees.[5][6] In 2018, she advocated for Canada to accept more refugees.[7]
Her memoir The Boy on the Beach documents her own family's efforts to escape the Syrian civil war and the circumstances that led to the deaths of Alan and Ghalib Kurdi (her nephews) and Rehanna (her sister in law), in 2015.[8][9][7] In 2019, she expressed her distress that a movie about Alan's death was being made without the Kurdi family's consent by filmmaker Omer Sarikaya.[10]
Kurdi lives in Coquitlam, British Columbia, Canada.[3]
References
edit- ^ Khan, Adnan R. (2017-09-01). "Two years after Alan Kurdi's death, little has changed". Macleans.ca. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ Kurdi, Tima. "The boy on the beach : my family's escape from Syria and our hope for a new home - City Libraries, City of Gold Coast". link.goldcoast.qld.gov.au. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ a b "14 books to read on World Refugee Day". CBC. 19 June 2020.
- ^ Kurdi, Tima (2018-04-13). "Opinion: The crossing: Tima Kurdi on her family's voyage through tragedy and hope". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ French, Cameron (2021-03-15). "As war drags on, aunt of drowned Syrian toddler Alan Kurdi focuses on plight of refugees". CTVNews. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ Daflos, Penny (2020-09-02). "Alan Kurdi's aunt marks grim anniversary of boy's death as refugee crisis continues". British Columbia. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ a b Wright, Teresa (2018-04-29). "Tima Kurdi wants Canada to take more refugees, hopes new book spotlights crisis". British Columbia. Retrieved 2022-08-03.
- ^ Patrick, Ryan B. (7 May 2018). "How Tima Kurdi is honouring the memory of her nephew with her book, The Boy on the Beach". CBC.
- ^ "Tima Kurdi". CBC. 12 Dec 2018.
- ^ Larsen, Karin (28 June 2019). "Family distraught over unauthorized movie about 'boy on the beach' Alan Kurdi". CBC.
External links
edit- Kurdi Foundation official website