“The Kurdish revolution faces great challenges going forward. But the revolutionary forces have already made history. Their project of Democratic Confederalism, with its emphasis on direct democracy against the state, multicultural accommodation, gender emancipation and social ecology, inspired people across the globe. At a time when the future of humanity and life on the planet…
Tag: Rojava
James L. Gelvin: “Turkish attack on Syria endangers a remarkable democratic experiment by the Kurds”
‘The key to understanding the Rojava project, as those involved often refer to it, is the notion of “confederalism.” In this form of government, local units – in this case, Kurdistan’s “autonomous regions” – come together in a federation yet retain a great deal of autonomy.’
“Why the Turkish Invasion Matters”
“The invasion of Rojava is taking place against a global backdrop of intensifying nationalism, strife, and authoritarianism. We have to understand this as a single battle in a much larger conflict.”
“From Rojava to the Mapuche Struggle: The Kurdish Revolutionary Seed Spreads in Latin America”
“The Kurdish seed has already spread through Latin America and it is taking root among activists who are eager to collaborate. Like the Zapatista Army of National Liberation, the Kurdish struggle has inspired the formation of new groups, committees, organizations, and people who share similar experiences, and all appear to join what is just one…
“Resistance is Life: Welcome to the Commune”
“The Kurdish people have gone to great efforts to make their revolution an open one, to give both international fighters and civilian internationalists like us the opportunity to come here and learn, and develop the connections we need if we are to form a new internationalism with its roots here in the cradle of civilisation.”
Cihad Hammy: “The first commune in Kobane: construction and challenges”
“Despite the challenges and shortcomings of the commune system in Rojava- North Syria, it still remains the best model in Syria that relatively offers the only space for peace, feminism, coexistence and democracy.”
Mathew Little: “Democratic Revolution in Rojava”
“By making stronger connections with activists working at the base level of democratic confederalism; for example the communes, co-operatives and women’s organisations, we can broaden our understanding and begin to forge genuine solidarity and also generate ideas and inspiration for our own movements.”
Philip Argeș O’Keeffe: “Tekmîl: Creating a Culture of Constructive Criticism”
“It is rooted in the aspect of the philosophy of democratic confederalism which emphasizes humility, open-mindedness and progress in all aspects of revolutionary life.”
José Antonio Gutiérrez D. reviews “Revolution in Rojava” (2016)
Michael Knapp, Anja Flach and Ercan Ayboga, eds: Revolution in Rojava: Democratic Autonomy and Women’s Liberation in Syrian Kurdistan (London: Pluto Press, 320 pp.), a first-hand account of the alternative social project being implemented in the area called, in Kurdish, Rojava – three cantons in the north of Syria with a sizeable Kurdish population, but which…
Michael Löwy: “Libertarian Kurdistan: it matters for us, too!”
“What these revolutionaries in the northern provinces of Syria are trying to do is without precedent. By way of community self-organisation from below, they are trying to rally the Kurdish, Arab, Assyrian, and Yezidi populations in a secular confederation that breaks out of religious sectarianism and nationalist hatred. To put ecology and feminism at the…