2+2=1 — Kurdistan

“Being a Kurd is difficult,” a line I usually utter, and I won’t stop using it. However, that’s not to say that I am not happy with who I am and the blood that runs through my veins. My aim here isn’t to write a post that is political; it’s just to shed light on some aspects from my perspective.

Kurdish people were stripped of their country more than a hundred years ago, and our land was divided into four countries. Geographically, we got separated, but at heart we have always been one; hence, 2+2=1. Over the years, my people have been oppressed, killed, tortured, displaced, and had their rights taken away from them, all in order to erase us from existence. But they don’t know that we Kurds are a tough nation. They don’t know that their attempts to erase us only strengthen us.

From an early age, we are taught about the hardships that our people have been through: the revolutions, the genocides, the martyrs, and the hate we’ve received. From a young age, we are taught how to be proud of who we are. Our existence simply intimidates them.

When I was a kid, I thought that the hardships and the sacrifices I was learning about were something from the past, but I was merely a child and didn’t know any better. As the years passed, I witnessed what the Kurds, from all four parts, had to endure; from humiliation to not feeling safe. It breaks my heart to see what we are going through.

Recently, the Kurdish people of Rojava in Syria have been displaced and killed. To me, it’s like watching a film that I’ve seen many times before. We haven’t been silent about it. This showed me how much love and care we have for one another. The way we Kurds came together to help our brothers and sisters with whatever we could have been one of the most heartwarming things I have seen in a very long time.

Kurdish people have great hospitality. We like to dance our traditional dances and share joy and food. We have beautiful music, poetry, art, good food, rich culture, a beautiful language with many accents and dialects, and an ancient history. All we want is to be geographically united again and for our dream to come true.

I will end this post with my favorite lines:

“No friends but the mountains.”
“Jin, Jiyan, Azadî (Woman, Life, Freedom).”
“If my mother tongue is shaking the foundations of your state, it probably means that you built your state on my land.”
“In a place of one braid, millions will grow.”
“Long live Kurdistan.”