Newave Podcast
Trailblazer ft. Sozan Fahmi
We had a great conversation with the one and only Sozan Fahmi! We talked about her recently winning an award from High Council of Women Affairs, her work at Khalsa Aid which is an international NGO with the aim to provide humanitarian aid in disaster areas and conflict zones. We talk about the importance of mentorships, volunteering, and women supporting and uplifting each other. We also talked about marriage , dating , stereotypes and certain traditions that we deal with that aren’t very helpful.
We hope to have Sozan back on the podcast soon to record a conversation in Kurdish!
Instagram: sozan_fahmi
twitter: fahmisozan
Azadi Means Freedom ft. Azad Kurd
We had the pleasure of talking to Azad Kurd on the Newave Podcast this week. We discussed Turkish assimilation, nationalism and colorism. Azad was kind enough to share some personal anecdotes from his upbringing with us to help demonstrate how deep and long the thread of systematic racism/assimilation in Turkey is. We talk about the Kurdish language and so much more. Though we couldn’t get through it all… this was a good primer/brief summary for future conversations we plan to have with Azad on the Newave!
"Who is to say that robbing a people of its language is less violent than war?"
-Ray Gwyn Smith
kurdistani.org
Moving Mountains ft. Walid Siti
Moving Mountains ft. Walid Siti
Nuveen Barwari and Huner Emin interview artist Walid Siti on the Newave Podcast. Walid Siti takes them through his journey from Duhok, to Baghdad, to Ljubljana, to London. They talk about everything from drawing, mountains, displacement, the Duhok art scene, and the artists childhood.
Bio:
Walid Siti was born in 1954, in the city of Duhok, in Iraqi-Kurdistan. After graduating in 1976 from the Institute of Fine arts in Baghdad, Siti left Iraq to continue his arts education in Ljubljana, Slovenia before seeking political asylum in 1984 in the United Kingdom where he lives and works. Formerly trained in printmaking, Siti works extensively in a variety of mediums including video, installation, 3D works, work on paper and painting. His works traverse a complex terrain of memory and loss, while at the same time offering an acute insight into a world, which for him has been a place of constant change. The narrative of Siti’s experience, of a life lived far from but still deeply emotionally connected to the place of one’s birth, is one he shares with many exiles; he takes inspiration from the cultural heritage of his native land that is crisscrossed with militarized borders and waves of migration. The artist’s work considers the tensions between collective identity, interdependence and the constraints placed on the individual by themes of heritage, tradition, homes, borders, mobility and migration.
Instagram: @walidsiti
Website: https://www.walidsiti.com
STOP FUNDING DICTATORS ft. Meghan Bodette
Join us for this conversation with Meghan Bodette, an independent researcher focusing on North and East Syria. She is the founder of the Missing Afrin Women Project, which tracks kidnappings and disappearances of women in Turkish-occupied Afrin, Syria. She is a graduate of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.
Follow Megan on Twitter: @_____mjb
Nan u Mast #2 ft Rondik
Nan u Mast
di gel Pêl u Nuvîn.
Em wek podcast a Newave di xuš halîn bi ragehandina gušeya me ya nuyî bi navê “Nan u Mast”.
Nan u Mast, bernamekê heftîtaneye ku em xeyal dikeyîn li ser radîyo eka devera Duhok ê bi hête pexiškirin li berên sipêda.
Em di bernamê Nan u Mast de dê li ser rotîna xiwe ya sipêdehîya axivîn u behsa serhatîyên xiwe u guhdara keyîn.
Me divêt demekê sivik u xiweš bi keyîne mêhvan li sipêdeya guhdara damê di čine ser rojanên xiwe.
(Kurdi)
We are super excited to have had our first guest on the Nan u Mast segment! It was so nice talking to Rondik from Duhok. All episodes published under the name “Nan u Mast” are and will be in Kurdish.
Cham•pi•ion ft. Remziya
Remziya’s commitment to being a positive catalyst in American politics started at the age of six when her family arrived in the United States as Kurdish refugees. A nationally recognized activist, Remziya has worked extensively to bring the voice of minority communities to the forefront of public discourse. A political expert on Kurdish and immigrant communities in the United States, she has developed a rapport with politicians, journalists, and a diverse range of citizens with varying political views.
It was our pleasure and an honor to have a conversation with Remziya Suleyman. We talked about refugee resettlement, activism, being a mother, forgiveness, and so much more.
Mermaid Chronicle ft. Hivron
We have been a lot happier ever since we recorded this episode with Hivron. We talked about childhood/refugee/diaspora trauma, stigma surrounding mental health, western therapists, theta healing and so much more!
Heval Means Friend
We had a very productive conversation with Rody about learning, preserving, teaching and speaking the Kurdish language, different dialects, diaspora, a very special project he has been working on and so much more! We hope you enjoy!
Instagram:
@Rodybajo
@berivan_u_heval
Reuse Awareness ft. Courtney
Courtney Adair Johnson is an artist and curator based in Nashville, TN. Her art practice works to create sustainable community through reuse awareness. She is interested in creating new ideas with art to generate awareness of our waste and consumption habits. Courtney has led reuse projects with Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Tennessee Craft, and Springboard for the Arts (Fergus Falls). She is presently Gallery Director of Tennessee State University Art Department and Co-Builder of
McGruder Social Practice Artist Residency (M-SPAR)
.
Website:
www.courtneyadairjohnson.com
Transplanted ft. Huner Emin
Huner Emin is a stateless artist from southern Kurdistan. Emin uses art as a tool to express political and social issues in his society. Huner Emin studied western art with a concentration on formalism both in Iraq and the U.S. Join us for this episode as we talk about art school, honor violence, “ayb” culture, thinking in multiple languages, and the importance of having an art community. Nuveen and Huner also talk about their admiration for contemporary artists Hiwa K. and Sarbast Mustafa! Huner also tells us about that one time he did a performance in a mosque… and so much more!
Insta: huneremin
Website: www.huneremin.com
I am a stateless Kurdish artist from south Kurdistan/northern Iraq. My nation is divided among four different countries. Therefore, I use art as a tool to express political and social problems in my society. I studied western art, concentrating on formalism, both in Iraq and in the US. However, I am in constant search for an identity, alternating between western and eastern culture. This parallel thinking was a pursuit of authenticity that led to my art making process. I work predominantly on political subject matters. My ideas develop through planning, reorganizing, and experimenting in various medias. In my conceptual pieces, the audience is juxtaposed between instillation materials and video art. However, my paintings are combinations of abstract forms and
Pahlavi writing characters, which I want to resurrect in order to unify the Kurdish language(s). It is anattempt to bring storytelling to the artwork by incorporating calligraphy, as I believe that narrative gives extra dimension to the art as well as being a symbol rediscovering my identity. In Kurdish society, life is overwhelmed with politics. Everybody follows news channels on daily basis, whether in their homes or at the coffee houses. It is hard for me to extract my art from my environment, where I observed political issues. Involuntarily, I find that my art is forming itself.
Decolonizing Journalism with Sham Jaff
We had a very productive, funny, and informative conversation with the author, journalist and editor of the weekly newsletter ‘what happened last week?’. We learned about news consumption, the importance of making the news more accessible and fun for everyone and so much more!
Twitter: @sham_jaff
Instagram: @whlwnews
@shamthingelse
Newsletter: https://www.whathappenedlastweek.com
EMPOWER ft. Rez Gardi
We are so pleased to have Kurdish-New Zealander international lawyer, human rights activist, and the founder of ‘Empower’, a youth-led organisation aiming to address the underrepresentation of refugees in higher education Rez Gardi on the Newave Podcast! We talked about everything from the process of prosecuting ISIS members for their targeted genocidal campaign against the Yezidis, refugee resettlement, the complex relationship between hostland and homeland, her upbringing, her favorite snacks and so much more!
Twitter: @RezGardi
Instagram:
@rez.gardi
@empoweryouthnz
Si Ya Si / Po li ti cal ft. Dilan Sirwan
Join us on the Newave Podcast for this awesome conversation with Dilan Sirwan based out of Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan. Dilan Sirwan Hussein is a student at the American University of Iraq, majoring in Political studies. He is the current Editor-in-chief of the AUIS voice, an independent student-based newspaper in Iraq. As a young activist in the region, he has been utilizing the amplifying impact of social media platforms to highlight the Kurdish struggle. twitter : @DeelanSirwan
WILL THE REAL PEL/PAEL PLZ STAND UP
Join us for a wonderful conversation with Pel Doski, Kurdish American poet based in Nashville, TN. Her work is defined by layered imagery of water, flowers, and celestial bodies—all symbolic to her personal growth and observations of societal growth. She has been published in an anthology of Kurdish writers titled The Kurdish Progeny” and in various Magazine around the world. We talk about her poetry, switching majors in college, pressures from family, doing the things you wanna do and so much more! Her work can be found on her instagram @wavedoski and her blog HelbestUHizir.wordpress.com @helbestuhizir
LONG DISTANCE RELATIONSHIP WITH KURDISTAN ft Jîl Şwanî
Join us for a wonderful conversation with our favorite author Jîl Şwanî. He is currently based out of Denmark. We talk in depth about his writing process/ practice, some of the stories he has written in the past and projects he hopes to make in the future. We also talk about our undying love for Kurdistan, the double standards/expectations Kurds in diaspora face, we talk about different Kurdish dialects, the dismissive culture of not physically being present, and so much more!
instagram : @jil.swani
Twitter: @thejilswani
Genjet Duhoke
Wern dgel Newave u mehvane wana Shivan Mziri sehbeta bken lser babeten qutabxane u kulye LDohuke, ferq u judahiya Kchka u Kurka naf chivaki da xas lnaf shuli da, behse Mes2ula tken u weste grtne, ferq u judahi naf feqira u zengina da, u gelek tshtet di!
art school in the west ft. Serife Kart
oin us for a conversation with the magnificent Serife Kart; contemporary artist/activist/student/human in Denmark. We talk about whiteness in art academia, art and activism, white people wanting to be oppressed really badly especially in the arts, art school and all of the “othering”, exclusion, miscommunication, isolation that POC deal with in art school.
NOT YOUR HABIBI ft. Kahin Mohammad
Join the Newave as we have a wonderful conversation with our favorite librarian, Kahin Mohammad, about his excellent tweets, baking, what it’s like working at the Library of Congress, the importance of calling racist people out, representation in spaces that are dominantly white, art, relationships with parents as you get older, the Nashville Kurdish community, and so much more! Follow him on twitter @Kahin
PLEASE BE WEIRD ft. Beri Shalmashi
Join the Newave as we have a cozy conversation with writer/filmmaker Beri Shalmashi! They talk about the importance of representation in the arts, making serious issues accessible for a western audience, depicting diaspora in her films, the struggles that Kurdish artists face when they choose a career path in the arts, her experience teaching film in Southern Kurdistan, Kurdish women in leadership roles, generational gaps, the need for more Kurdish actresses! We discussed her previous works and upcoming project Big Village in depth and most importantly she encourages all creatives to be more weird! This episode is very dear to us because it felt like we were talking to our big sister. The advice she gave us was so important!
Follow Beri on twitter: @BeriShalmashi
Previous works:
Upcoming:
WE THE PEOPLE ft. Marlos Evan
Join Nuveen Barwari and Pael Abdullah on the Newave Podcast as they talk to their guest Marlos E’van about the kind of art and artists that emerge during oppressive political times. They discuss the history and ideologies about the Black Panther Party that most schools in the Bible Belt fail to teach students. They explore the correlations and complexities between the Black Panther Party and the Kurdish resistance movement and how both have been victim to misrepresentation and false labels. We will critically look at the art that has come out of both parties and discuss why and how the art and artists are so crucial to movements such as these!
BE LOUD!!! ft. Drost Kokoye
Ride the Newave for a conversation with Drost Kokoye as they talk about activism, US justice system, growing up in a Kurdish community in America vs Kurdistan, healthcare, and using your voice to be LOUD, and so much more!
https://believersbailout.org/
https://holythrift.com/
Kurdish Superwoman ft. Dilman Yasin
Join us for an empowering conversation with Dilman Yasin. We talk about her involvement as the community outreach coordinator for the Kurdish Professionals, the importance of the 2020 Census, being a mom, teaching kids about their Kurdish roots/language, and sooo much more!
Instagram: @kurdishprofessionals
THERE’S NO ON AND OFF SWITCH FOR BEING KURDISH ft. Sayran
Join Nuveen Barwari and Pael Abdullah on the Newave Podcast as they talk to their special guest Sayran Barzani about how her Kurdish roots influence her jewelry line SAYRAN, the gold stores in Kurdistan, Kurds going into the arts, how to be involved politically through your work, using your art/social media platform to create a community and spread awareness of so many issues, the complexities of growing up in diaspora and sooo much more! You can follow Sayran on instagram @sayranb @sayran and on twitter @sssayran
Could You Just Listen to Kurdish Women for One Second? ft. Narin
Join Nuveen Barwari and Pael Abdullah on the Newave Podcast as they talk to their guest Naren Briar about various topics such as gender roles, gender equality, feminism in Kurdistan, academia, Kurdish women in comedy, dismantling the patriarchy and sooooo much more you just gotta listen!
Naren Briar Bio:
Naren works as a human rights activists and campaigns for religious and ethnic minorities in the Middle East through humanitarian work. Her main areas of study are the Kurdish, and Yezidi conflicts in addition to the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. She’s published analysis of the Iranian protests in The Region and works with local representatives to bring attention to the implications of American foreign policy and its effects on minorities in the Middle East. Follow her on instagram @nareeennn and on Twitter @narinistan
Connecting the Dots ft. Amina
Join the Newave for this episode as they make a new friend over the internet! Amina shares her experience growing up biracial in America and her desire to connect to her Kurdish roots. They talk about different ways to connect and build communities.