Video: The Kurdish women's movement — History, theory, practice

Reposted from Pluto Press, July 26, 2022.

The Kurdish women's movement is at the heart of one of the most exciting revolutionary experiments in the world today: Rojava. Forged over decades of struggle, most recently in the fight against ISIS, Rojava embodies a radical commitment to ecology, democracy and women's liberation. But while striking images of Kurdish women in military fatigues proliferate, a true understanding of the women's movement remains elusive.

In this discussion, Dilar Dirik and chair Elif Sarican will draw upon Dilar’s new book The Kurdish Women's Movement: History, Theory, Practice and discuss:

- What is the ‘Kurdish Women’s Movement’, what are they defending and what are they fighting against?
- Why can radicals learn from this movement?
- How can people engage with this struggle?

Speakers:

Dilar Dirik is an organizer and political sociologist, currently a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Oxford. She has written on the Kurdish struggle for a range of publications including openDemocracy and ROAR Magazine. She tweets at @Dlrdrk1.

Chair Elif Sarican is an anthropologist - trained at the London School of Economics, writer, translator and organiser. She has guest lectured at a number of universities across Europe and North America on topics of feminism, radical politics and global history. She tweets at @elifxeyal.