Literature, Feminism, and Activism in Rojhelat and the Diaspora

Abstract

Abstract In this conversation, Essmat Sophie (author of the novel and animation film Dancing Amid Fire, Rising Above Ruins), talks with Wendelmoet Hamelink (researcher on gender, migration, activism, and conflict at the University of Oslo), about her interest in literature, about the creation of her novel and film, and about feminist life in the Diaspora. We discuss the fragmented lives of people who left Iran and can never return, and the history of the city Sine/Sanandaj. The conversation shows the complexity of Kurdish Iranian women’s triple struggle to escape political oppression, state violence, male dominance, as well as enduring a life of exile and marginalization. Essmat remembers the literature gatherings she attended in Sine, where women writers made a deep impact on her life as a young woman. Arguably, activist lives can be found in unexpected places and through creative strategies developed by women on the margins.