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Syria Between the Screams of Racism and the March of Freedom
When the ground shakes under the feet of ancient times, and layers of history begin to crack, only the voices of those who have lost their compass rise above the noise, while the wise observe, knowing that every new birth starts first with the cries of the ignorant. The voice of ignorance does not emerge suddenly; it surfaces from the rubble of centuries that have not settled their accounts with themselves.
Today, as I have closely observed, the number of Syrian Arab nationalists who harbor hatred toward the Kurds does not exceed a hundred individuals. They consist of a fanatic howler, a hired writer, and a paid journalist, followed by a handful of simple and naive people within the millions of the Arab people. Yet, the scene appears as if they monopolize the voice and control the public space—not due to numerical superiority or intellectual power, but because the conscious and clean segment of the Syrian Arab intellect, which has liberated itself from the legacy of past racist regimes, refrains from engaging with the ignorant, and will not descend to the levels of hollow shouting and swamps of hatred.
True Arab consciousness that sees the Kurds as partners, not foes, and understands the depth of the tragedy that has befallen the Kurds and other peoples of the Middle East, prefers silence as a form of elevation or observing with wisdom, leaving the scene to be filled with the voices of backwardness and the rekindling of the embers of past conflicts. They have come to realize that racism is a plague that does not resemble the true face of indigenous Arabs.
For this reason, we see this wave of racism rising unchecked, despite its insignificance, driven by blind hatred and blatant incitement from known regional regimes, foremost among them Turkey and other occupying regimes of Kurdistan, which are clearly seeking to create chaos within nations trying to carve out a path toward democracy and modernization.
They delude themselves into believing they possess the initiative, imagining they are the makers of their destiny, while in their bare reality, they are nothing but weak tools moved by external fingers, unconsciously pushing them to sabotage any inclusive national project that could have redefined a new Syria if only minds were freed from the shackles of hatred, and if only consciences were unfettered from the chains of obsolete nationalistic fanaticism.
A faction from this segment has emerged to scream and shout, launching their poisonous attacks on the Kurds and their national conference, which carried in its final statement a sincere national dimension for building a unified, democratic, decentralized Syria that accommodates all its components.
This wave of racism has not been limited to the usual skeptics; unfortunately, it has also involved a segment of the Syrian transitional government itself, including President Ahmad Al-Shara, whose mask has slipped, either merging with the screams of the rabble out of fear or greed, or because his true nature was lurking behind the smiles of embellished nationalism, which suddenly emerged, surpassing all the rhetorical makeup he tried to use to disguise himself.
This dangerous slip is not merely a passing mistake, but an indicator of a deep flaw in the political thought that leads this phase. It seems we are witnessing the same rotten models that have torn their own countries apart under the illusion of false control, unaware that history does not forgive those who betray their pivotal moment.
Nevertheless, the truth remains clear to those who wish to see it: the future is not governed by discordant voices, nor defined by racist curses, but is shaped by the will of free peoples who have decided to transcend the grievances of the past and establish homelands that are inclusive of all, without exclusion or marginalization.
The more they blow on the flames of hatred, the more they reveal that time has passed them by; and the more they scream against the Kurds, the more they prove that they are mere shadows fleeing from the light of the new history.
Peoples, no matter how wounded, know how to move forward, while the fools remain running after their own phantoms.
Dr. Mahmoud Abbas
