I appreciate Poorya’s perspective and his personal experience is obviously valid. I would gently note that “many” doesn’t necessarily mean “all.” I’m married to a Kurdish Iranian-American who came here as a teenager, and what I’ve witnessed has been profound concern and anxiety. Among his family, there is deep worry about the safety of family still there, frustration at the lack of clear information from the administration, and an underlying sense of dread rooted in lived history. The fear is that this may follow the same painful pattern as past conflicts: that outside powers will intervene, create instability, and then withdraw, or that the Kurds in Erbil will once again be armed and left to face a fight they cannot win alone.
Communication has been incredibly difficult. Updates come only through a hard line that we are unable to dial back into, so we can only wait to hear from them. We’ve received word once every few days that his family is safe, and even that small reassurance comes with the knowledge that they are surely going through something traumatic. I think many of us, regardless of background, share a sense of uncertainty about what comes next, particularly as the approach from the White House continues to evolve.
I appreciate Poorya’s perspective and his personal experience is obviously valid. I would gently note that “many” doesn’t necessarily mean “all.” I’m married to a Kurdish Iranian-American who came here as a teenager, and what I’ve witnessed has been profound concern and anxiety. Among his family, there is deep worry about the safety of family still there, frustration at the lack of clear information from the administration, and an underlying sense of dread rooted in lived history. The fear is that this may follow the same painful pattern as past conflicts: that outside powers will intervene, create instability, and then withdraw, or that the Kurds in Erbil will once again be armed and left to face a fight they cannot win alone.
Communication has been incredibly difficult. Updates come only through a hard line that we are unable to dial back into, so we can only wait to hear from them. We’ve received word once every few days that his family is safe, and even that small reassurance comes with the knowledge that they are surely going through something traumatic. I think many of us, regardless of background, share a sense of uncertainty about what comes next, particularly as the approach from the White House continues to evolve.