The Kurdish Struggle: Multiple Ways of Resisting in a Historically Oppressive Context

Abstract

Abstract This chapter discusses findings from a qualitative study exploring how Kurds (from Turkey and Northern Kurdistan, living in Germany), a historically oppressed but resisting group, respond to oppression in the context of asymmetrical group relations that assume they are powerless. We examine various resistance strategies against historical and ongoing oppression that these members of a diasporic Kurdish community expressed. Our analysis shows that Kurdish resistance strategies go beyond typical collective actions and are shaped by collective memories, critical consciousness, and perceived power. Our chapter shows that in long-term resistance against historical and systemic oppression, which also involves various types of repression, overt resistance actions may vary considerably and not always be limited to just one tactic. Instead, people combine multiple resistance strategies simultaneously in their struggle to respond more effectively to the circumstances of oppression. Moreover, people support different resistance strategies depending on their circumstances and the ingroup’s perceived needs.