Helina Blogs

Kurdish culture and bridging the gap * KurdishMedia.com - By Helene Sairany * 29/01/2007 00:00:00 “For me the world is a garden of culture where a thousand flowers grow. Throughout history all cultures have fed one another, been grafted onto one another, and in the process our world has been enriched. The disappearance of a culture is the loss of colour, a different light, and a different source. I am of the side of different source. I am as much on the side of every flower in this thousand-flower garden as I am on the side of my own culture.” - Layla Zana, 1995. In an interview with a prominent Turkish journal, Layla Zana perfectly captures the essence of how I feel about living in the United States (U.S.) and bridging the gap between American values and my Kurdish culture and values. As Kurds, how do we want to define our culture? As an American Kurd who has lived in the U.S. for 11 years, I must say that there are many things that differentiate Kurds from Americans. Kurdish ...

Kurdishaspect.com - By Helene Sairany “It should be known that every identity that is murdered is our own murder regardless of what our language, religion or identity might be.” Leyla Zana Many times I am asked about my nationality. I do envy people of other nationalities for having a simple answer to this question because my own response always takes me an extra effort to explain. Where am I from? I am from Kurdistan. We’ve never heard of it. Yes, it is nowhere to be found on the map. Many times I have to say that Kurdistan is located between four countries: Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria. But why does my nation have to be associated with other countries for others to know where I am from? I may simply state that I am a Kurd from Kurdistan, but the ego inside me is much larger than a simple reply, I want the whole world to know where Kurdistan exactly is, I want them to know my true identity, my Kurdish identity. I have to admit that I never had any problems with my identity growing u...