In the weeks after the U.S. committed one of its most profound betrayal to the people of the autonomous region of Northeastern Syria, often known as Rojava, organizers started scrambling across the world. This was an open invitation for Turkey, by way of proxy forces, to start invading the area, resting their strength on their willingness to engage in war crimes and crush the Kurdish attempt at self-governance.
Journalist and organizer Debbie Bookchin, the daughter of the anarchist Murray Bookchin whose ideas were instrumental in forming the ideology of the Rojava project, began a tour to raise the need for international solidarity with the Kurds. The organization she works with, the Emergency Committee for Rojava, is an international solidarity organization that is fightin desperately to protect the community in Syria that is facing opponents on all sides and is fighting for survival.
Interview Debbie Bookchin about what it will take to protect Rojava from the imperialist actions of its neighbors, what the legacy of the Rojava revolution is, and what it would mean to bring these ideas home.
What’s your assessment of what people are going through right now?
They are suffering tremendous hardships. It is a situation in which, really, hundreds of thousands of people have had to flee. Hundreds of people have been killed, people are wounded. Innocent people, including many, many children are losing their lives. And, in many cases, their legs, their arms. They are suffering burns. The situation is very, very grave right now, and it’s really imperative for anybody who considers themselves a progressive to do whatever they can to intervene.
