From all four parts of Kurdistan and across the diaspora, Kurdish women from different geographical, political, and educational backgrounds pick up a pen, reflect, and remember. Going beyond exoticising stereotypes and patriarchal representations, Kurdish Women’s Stories gives 25 women authorial freedom to write about their own lived experiences. With contributors ranging from 20 to 70 years of age, we hear stories of imprisonment, exile, disappearances of loved ones, gender-based violence, uprisings, feminist activism, and armed resistance, including first-hand accounts of political moments from the 1960s to today. Conceived as part of Culture Project’s self-writing program, this book is essential reading for anyone who wants to better understand the struggle of Kurdish women through their own words. Contributors: Diba Alikhani, Kobra Banehi, Khanda Hameed, Nazanin Hasan, Nafia Aysi Hasso, Deejila Haydar, Zhala Hussein, Ruken Isik, Seveen Jimo, Lanja Khawe, Nahiya Khoshkalam, Hero Kurda, Khanda Rashid Murad, Rozhgar Mustafa, Dashne Nariman, Bayan Nasih, Avan Omar, Nasrin Ramazanali, Mother Sabria, Bayan Saeed, Bayan Salman, Farah Shareefi, Susan Shahab, Simal (Anonymous), Shahla Yarhussein
What People Are Saying
"Kurdish women have historically been subjected to all sorts of violence and erasure. Behind this backdrop, expressing their own truths--especially writing about their personal lives--is a politically radical stance. This book is a valuable contribution to Kurdish women's collective history-writing." Dilar Dirik, Kurdish feminist activist and writer
"A fascinating, inspiring journey through the worlds of Kurdish resistance by women in Iraq, Turkey, Iran, Syria, and exile--prisoners of Khomeini or Erdogan, students, warriors, feminists. A real contribution to people's history and women's studies." Meredith Tax, author of A Road Unforeseen: Women Fight the Islamic State
"This historic anthology is a call for hospitality towards what five generations of Kurdish women carry in them--absolute love, momentary death, irredeemable losses, survival, revolts, and liberations." Fazil Moradi, Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study, University of Johannesburg
"Captivating women’s stories from all parts of Kurdistan. Stories both intimate and insightful. The narratives are vivid and offer an evocative sense of chaotic politics and longing of Kurdish women for love and freedom." Shahrzad Mojab, Professor, Department of Leadership, Higher and Adult Education, University of Toronto
“The test of a great book is that it changes the way we see things. This collection of women’s experiences is profoundly moving and full of insight.” David McDowall, author of A Modern History of the Kurds