A Syrian-American in Chicago Fights for Democracy in his Homeland

This Fourth of July, as Americans across the country celebrate the country’s freedoms, Syria’s government is cracking down on its citizens’ democratic rights. Syria’s government has sent tanks into the city of Hama, two days after tens of thousands of protesters demonstrated there, and called for an end to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. The Government has cut off power and telephone lines, and arrested scores of people, in an attempt to suppress a movement that mirrors the upheaval in Tunisia and Egypt. Yaser Tabbara is a Syrian-American lawyer and executive director of the Syrian American Council, and is fighting the regime from Chicago. Tabbara joins us to speak about his campaign to highlight the Syrian regime’s brutality and help depose President Bashar al-Assad.