Inside The Middle East
SHOW #66
Best of Inside the Middle East
QATAR-NOLA GIFT / DEBUTED JUNE 7, 2008
One of the world's richest men recently toured one of America's poorest cities, getting an up close look at how his 100-million-dollar donation is helping it to be rebuilt. The Emir of Qatar's monetary gift is one of the largest single recovery packages to New Orleans and the U.S. Gulf Coast, following the destruction of Hurricane Katrina. Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani has focused his money here on education, as he has at home. Jim Clancy tagged along with the emir as he travelled through the region to see the impact of his donation. Many Americans are unfamiliar with the country of Qatar, but we talk to a scholarship student, a new homeowner and a hospital patient who are quickly learning about the generosity of a "king" and country so many miles away. Jim Clancy has that story.
BEIRUT BLUES / DEBUTED OCTOBER 1 2008
Most people don't think of Lebanon as a hub for world-class blues artists. But it has generated at least one of these, in the person of internationally-renowned blues guitarist Otis Grand. Grand - who is more often referred to by his nickname, "Gentle Giant" - is widely recognized as one of the most gifted blues guitarists in recent decades. Dedicated to the very roots of blues music, his role models are B.B. King and Robert Johnson. For most of his professional life, Grand has kept it a closely guarded secret about who he really is and where he comes from. Brent Sadler joined him backstage during the height of Lebanon's summer concert season.
WOMEN BATTLE FOR CITIZENSHIP RIGHTS / DEBUTED MARCH 4, 2009
“The citizenship law is the most discriminatory of all our laws because it simply and crudely states that men can and women cannot,” says Lebanese activist Lina Abou Habib. Currently only five Arab countries allow women to pass their nationality onto their children. We meet men and women – in some cases 2nd or 3rd generation, born and raised in Lebanon – who are still considered foreigners in the only land they’ve ever known. Activists say it’s patriarchal and unconstitutional because it treats women as second-class citizens. Politicians opposed to changing the law say it risks unsettling the demographic-confessional balance that is at the heart of the Lebanese socio-political system.
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