This is the second part of our reading group on comparing the oppression of Kurds in the Middle East and African Americans in the U.S. This time we are focusing on the emergence of social movements in response to various forms of state violence, looking specifically at Black Lives Matter and Rojava.

The readings include:

1. Chapter 6 from Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor's "From #BlackLivesMatter to Black Liberation" (35 pages): https://mcusercontent.com/a192f265413e834da01a6cb4a/files/1fe63c3e-3b21-4da4-9578-f45f5ab1f348/Ch_6_From_BLM_to_Black_Liberation.pdf

2. Hawzhin Azeez's short article "Police abolition and other revolutionary lessons from Rojava:" https://roarmag.org/essays/police-abolition-and-other-revolutionary-lessons-from-rojava/

3. Documentary about Rojava "Roza - The Country of Two Rivers": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fipJAwje68

Optional readings:

1. A short article by Barbara Ransby "The White Left Needs to Embrace Black Leadership": https://www.thenation.com/article/activism/black-lives-white-left/

2. An article by Martin Van Bruinessen "Genocide in Kurdistan? The Suppression of the Dersim Rebellion in Turkey (1937-38) and the Chemical War Against the Iraqi Kurds (1988)" (in continuation with the theme of the previous session): https://mcusercontent.com/a192f265413e834da01a6cb4a/files/4a789567-de79-4dbf-818f-edd1f936f2c5/Bruinessen._Genocide_in_Kurdistan.pdf

Please RSVP at info@defendrojava.org in order to get the Zoom link to the event.