Book excerpt: My Art, My people The first Assyrian art book published by a native Assyrian artist; My Art, My People is a collection of paintings spanning the last 25 years. My journey began while living under oppression in Iraq. The long five years I served in the army during the Iraq-Iran war, the departure from my homeland to the west, and the struggle we endured building a new life in the United States. My work is a reflection of my people, the sanctions against Iraq, the invasion of my homeland, and the daily attacks against the Christian minorities. They faced the bombing of our churches, a century-long diaspora, and most recently the invasion of the radical Islamic groups like Isis leading to the desecration of Nineveh and Khabour. It's hard to believe all these events happened over such a short period of time. This has not been a nightmare, rather a hard reality of oppression and terror for over a hundred years. We are from a land where the majority considers us infidels, which has justified the countless times our lands and homes have been stripped away. I narrate the genocide against my people using colors and a canvas. But I also illustrate our homeland Mesopotamia, our culture, and our love for peace and freedom.