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Bowman discusses time spent in Iraq

Dec- 7-2005 » Filed Under: TF Olympia

The following is an informative article profiling an officer with the 139th MPAD, which was deployed to Mosul as part of Task Force Olympia.

Link to Full Article
By Dennis Hines, The MidWeek

Several local students and school officials recently received some important information about cultural diversity.

Captain Angela Bowman of the Illinois Army National Guard gave a presentation during the 16th annual DeKalb County Partnership for a Safe, Active and Family Environment (DCP/SAFE) assembly in which she talked about her experiences in Iraq and about the Iraqi culture.

Bowman served as an operations officer for the 139 Mobile Public Affairs Attachment and as a deputy public affairs officer for Task Force Olympia from January 2004 to January 2005.

During her time in Iraq, Bowman was stationed in Mosul. She said Mosul is one of the most diverse cities in the Middle East and includes numerous religious sects and ethnic groups.

“Talk about trying to understand the culture and having it thrown at you like a fire hose. Literally, that’s what it was,” Bowman said. “We were trying to understand all of this, because this is the culture which we were existing and going to be living in within the next year.”

Bowman said Mosul features some of the largest universities in Iraq. She about 35,000 students attend the University of Mosul.

“I had no concept that 35,000 people in Iraq went to college,” Bowman said. “It just totally blew my mind.”

Bowman said religion is an important part of the Iraqi culture. The Imams (religious leaders) are considered some of the more prominent people in the country. Bowman said various religious sects have a different view about the Imams. The Sunnis believe the Imams are spokespersons for Mohammed, and the Shias believe the Imams are direct decedents of Mohammed.

“There’s a distinct difference in how you deal with each sect. It’s critical to understand what they think about their Imams (the ones that run the mosques),” Bowman said.

This long article continues...


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