The Country that History Forgot

The Kurds Fought ISIS, then the US Abandoned Them

The Kurdish people are arguably the largest stateless ethnic group in the world. Millions of people who share a culture, ethnic background, and language, but don’t have power over their own future. And importantly, they’ve been used as a tool by global powers trying to influence the middle east for decades.

Special thanks to: Dr. Yerevan Saeed, Crisis Group, Dr. Bryan Gibson, ACLED

-- VIDEO CHAPTERS --
00:00 Intro
03:45 Snapshot of the Kurdish Movements
07:16 A Tool for Conflict
11:39 The Syrian Civil War
14:27 The State of the Kurds Today

About:
Johnny Harris is an Emmy-winning independent journalist and contributor to the New York Times. Based in Washington, DC, Harris reports on interesting trends and stories domestically and around the globe, publishing to his audience of over 5 million on Youtube. Harris produced and hosted the twice Emmy-nominated series Borders for Vox Media. His visual style blends motion graphics with cinematic videography to create content that explains complex issues in relatable ways.

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[sujaynis]

the U.S. has to be the prime example of, pretending to care and then never actually care.

[sayadyosefi]

I am a Kurd from what is called Iran. born in Iraq and grow up in the Iraqi Kurdistan. Half of my family lives in Iranian Kurdistan and the other half in Iraq. In iraq they call me Iranian and in Iran they call me Iraqi. I have never had a passport or Citizenship. When my grandfather was sick and dying, i was not allowed to cross the borders and meet him, i never meet him throughout my live.
I call out people around the world to read and learn about all the other genocides and ethnic cleansing by those mentioned countries.

And thank you for making the video.
Sayad,

[drazedits]

“We were told that we were going to be attacked, but it was too late, and the notice was too short. All of a sudden, we heard the sound of bombs dropping all over the town. People started coughing, tears streaming from their eyes, and all I could think about was running. I grabbed my brother’s hand and ran as fast as I could, struggling to survive as people were dropping dead. I was getting weaker and weaker, but for the sake of my younger brothers, I had to pull through and just keep running. We survived the attack and stayed in a cave for a week without food or water. I had to go back to the town to search for something to eat or drinking water, but when I returned, I found a ghost town, filled with thousands of dead bodies lying on the ground, among them my relatives and neighbors.”

This is the story of my mother during the Halabja chemical attack as she tried to survive the chaos. She and many others posed no threat to anyone, and all that we Kurds have ever wanted is to own the lands where we have lived for thousands of years, before anyone else claimed it as their homeland. This is just one story, but there are thousands more as we have endured many other genocides.

Where is the justice in this?

[RE]

crazy how much the US has used the kurds without ever really helping them

E: stay in school kids. otherwise you'll end up as a 35 year old telling people you don't understand the necessity of repaying debts made in blood or the importance of upholding your reputation as a trustworthy person in the comment section of a YouTube video you couldn't finish

[phillip]

It's crazy that anticolonial movements in Palestine have massive support in these countries, yet they have their own version of the Palestinians they are oppressing themselves.

Edit: Replies prove my point. Tons of hypocrites replying to this comment saying 'it's different' but then using the exact same arguments as the Israelis. "freedom! civil rights! (Just not in my backyard!)"

[erkinsahin]

I think this question should have been asked. Why are Europeans drawing map borders for places they have nothing to do with.

[lukerichards]

My barber is Kurdish and when I asked him where he comes from he says “Kurdistan”. That’s the only answer he gives.

[thephoenix]

I'm not a Turk, neither do I care for defending Turks, but you're implying that if a large number of people from a certain ethnicity live somewhere then they're entitled to have their own country, that's a dangerous line of thought, especially in a region like the middle east, not to mention, it punishes countries who historically incorporated different ethnic groups native to regions they conquered into their societal structure, instead of exterminating them in a relentless genocide, "Looking at how the U.S dealt with the natives", that logic is fundamentally flawed.

[amirmehdiimani]

As an Iranian Kurd this was very painful to watch

[Ssehos]

Thank you for remembering the Kurds and expressing this ✌️☀️♥️🍀

[Muhsin.b]

4 title changes in 9 days!
Johnny, if you're going to dive into the Kurdish issue, you've got to go all in. The title changes—from 'How Us and Everyone Else Betrayed the Kurds' to 'The Kurds, the Forgotten Nation, ' then 'This Should Be a Country But Is Not, ' and finally 'Why the Kurds Never Got a Country' feel like you're skirting around the real discussion. If you’re talking about a nation's freedom, be bold and stick with a strong, consistent message. Don't hedge, just lay it out there with conviction.

[MerdoKhan]

How can history forget a country that never existed please explain?

[ValouroverFear]

Hello Kurds, thank you for your culture, and cuisine. Thank you for existing ❤

[yunusozgurkus]

You can give Minnesota to Kurds so they can have a country. Win win.

[Helenapriits]

as an Estonian I am soo thankful that you talk about countries like this.... it mesans a world to these people to know that they are not forgotten

[GeDiceMan]

Kurds: It sucks being split by different powers.
Poland: Been there.

[Madamekurd]

This is a video that all Kurds should watch and share, especially Kurds who have assimilated in Bakur and HDP members should watch it.

[imhotepwu]

Hevî dikim welatê me yên kurdan rojek azad be ❤️☀️💚

[notesfromleisa-land]

I am a second generation Armenian I US. The stories of the atrocities would curl your toenails. My family was lucky to escape…but the horrors of their experience shaped everything. It was omnipresent in our growing up. So much displacement for so many who have so little control over their destiny.

[amirr]

At least 30 to 40 percent of the map has not been drawn, so what about Lorestan?